How Do I Know?

One of the favorite movies and soundtracks in our family is Enchanted. Whitney can be heard belting the music while she dances and spins in circles wherever and whenever the notion strikes. Her favorite? (This must be sung with staccato emphasis on each word, which is how Whitney sings this part.) "How do I know he loves me?" It was with this song running through my head that I started to think...

The past couple of days, there have been a few things that have happened that remind me how I know Ryan loves me. First of all, one of the hardest things about having a new baby is the lack of sleep. Clayton sleeps well for the most part. But, there are some nights, I only get about 3-4 hours of sleep before he wakes up. Sometimes, when I go in to feed him, I fall asleep in the recliner in his room, sitting straight up with my neck cranked to one side. Not very relaxing. On the nights when I fall asleep in the rocker, I don't feel as energetic the next day. Heaven help the mom with 3 children age 4 and under who doesn't have any energy! So, I usually try to keep myself awake for long enough to get Clayton back to bed. (Usually 15- 30 min.) The other night, I fell asleep in the recliner again around 2:30 a.m. Sometime around 4 a.m., I woke with a start when Clayton's door opened. There was my sweet husband waking me up so I could get back to bed and feel well rested when I got up for the day. He didn't have to get up at 4. He was just helping me get more sleep because he knows how badly I need it.

This morning, as I was getting ready for the day, I noticed that my cell phone was on my husband's dresser. I immediately knew that he had heard it "complaining" it was almost out of juice--and he plugged it in to charge on his dresser. This happens on an almost regular basis. Sometimes, I don't hear my phone signaling in distress. Other times, I hear it, but I just don't care enough to go get it. My husband, on the other hand, cares enough about my phone that he will plug it in for me.

There are, of course, other ways that I know my husband loves me. But, these small things make me so happy because I know my husband is doing them to help me be happy. I couldn't have asked for anyone better!