my amazing hubby.

Daniel said something to me probably around March or April of last year about seriously thinking about working towards getting his MBA. He checked into a few schools and figured out the costs with each and where would work best for him. He settled on Wilmington University since he could do most of it online--only having to go to campus for a few classes. I can't remember the exact date he started but it was around a month before my scheduled c-section with Emily. He decided he wanted it done in a year and warned me it would be tough---that was probably the understatement of the century. Neither of us had any idea how hard it actually would be. Did I mention he was still working full time? (and by full time I mean he frequently would get in between 6 and 7 in the morning and not leave until 5pm.) And coaching not one but two tee ball teams? yep. He figured out that he would need to take 2 classes every 8 weeks and then his final 8 week semester he would only have 1. (phew!!)

Soon after he started the program Emily was born. Anyone thats had a baby can relate to life with a newborn. We had life with a newborn and 2 boys. And homework. Lots of homework. Daniel would come home from work and be bombarded with 3 kids and a wife that smelled like sour milk. (I really only think that was for like the first 2 weeks or so though--I felt like I got it together pretty quickly with Emily!! Don't get me wrong, we all still bombarded him when he got home, I just looked like I had showered and brushed my hair!) We'd all have dinner and I'd work on getting the kids to bed and he would settle in at the computer and work on schoolwork. Frequently he'd have stuff from work to finish up too. He did homework on weekends too.

Two weeks after Emily was born we found out Daniel's grandma was not doing well so we made an unscheduled visit to Powhatan so Daniel could see her. She passed away the following week and we made another visit to Powhatan.

We finished up the summer with the kids and I going to the pool a lot, Daniel met us after work when he could and stayed busy with even more schoolwork. He'd finish one round of classes, have a week break, and then they'd start up again. There were a couple of the "breaks" where he would already have assignments for the next class and would start over the break--because they were due right after the start of the semester.

Both boys started back to school--Jacob in Kindergarten and Zach in Pre-kindergarten. Soon after their school year started Daniel started taking classes on campus. There was a 4 month stretch where two days a week he would get to work before the kids were awake in the morning and they'd be in bed by the time he got home. Those were the hardest days. I felt like a single mom and would selfishly cry and be angry feeling like I was the one doing everything at home and with our kids while he was surrounded by adults. I know he would've rather been here with us but it didn't make those 4 months any easier (and there was still homework that had to get done on the nights he wasn't actually in class). He listened to me whine about not having any time for myself and told me that we both knew this would be hard and we just had to keep trying. There was one night (of many) that was so hard (and I blogged about it then). I had been having an overwhelming day, Daniel was at class, and I fell down the stairs holding Emily (she was tiny still). I cried and cried. I balled. My mom and dad just so happened to call me right after it happened and calmed me down so I could get it together. It's possible that it wouldn't have happened if Daniel were here but chances are it still would've. I might've been feeling less rushed to get the kids in bed if he would've been here. Nobody knows. Either way, it was hard for all of us.

We talked to the boys about why daddy was gone and why he was working so hard and I think they understood. We all breathed a sigh of relief after that 4 months was over--he had 2 more months that he had to go to campus for 1 class but it was just 1 and that made all the difference. He still had another class to take online at the same time but he was at least home most evenings.

We celebrated Christmas in Virginia and that evening it was apparent to everyone that my Grandma Gibson was fading from us. I cried on our way back to my parents house that night. Daniel squeezed my hand. A week later my grandma passed away. Daniel was able to get a couple of days bereavement time from work but still had schoolwork. I was upset and mad and overwhelmed by everything and he would hug me tight and tell me how much he loved me and that we'd get through it. We did. (but I just balled my eyes out while typing this paragraph.)

Fast forward a few more months, we've had dog issues with Copper, house projects like crazy, and our own wants, hopes, and dreams....and Daniel finished his MBA. His semester was over 2 days before Emily's 1st birthday. :) He earned his MBA with a 4.0 gpa. I am so proud of him and how hard he has worked.

I'm so thankful for the sacrafices he made for us. He missed out on a lot of the fun stuff with our kids over the past year because of school. We joked about him missing Emily's first year because of the MBA program I'm so thankful for his hard work. I'm so thankful he loves me not just in my good moments but when I'm upset and angry. I'm thankful that he wasn't bothered by my wanting to be selfish and gave me an hour every now and again to go get my haircut! I'm so thankful that he gets up every single day and goes to work to provide for our family so I can stay home with our kids. I'm thankful that he knows when I just need a hug. I'm thankful he's not selfish and would do whatever he needed to for his family. I'm thankful he's mine.

What a year we've had. It's been awful. Aside from Emily being born, it's been absolutely freaking awful. I've never been so relieved to have something behind us (him). I'm excited for what new things we'll be able to do this summer and what our future has in store for us. I know big things are coming our way and I can't wait.

and yes, out of the gazillions of picture files on my computer, I ended up taking a picture of a picture. It's my most favoritest picture of my hubby ever. :)