From Michigan to Mexico and from Chainsaws to Changing Diapers.

I almost named this post "Bearded Badass Super Dad... But then I though I'd better not. :)

Anyway, I am sure I will make a few people gag before I am done with this post. But I suppose I can live with that.

I've been wanting to post about my husband for a while now. I have never been particularly shy about telling the world what a wonderful husband he is and how blessed I am to be married to such a good man, but it's been hitting me more and more lately how rare it is to find a man like him.

At 50 years old God called him into missions work. 25 years at the same job, never really living anywhere but Leelanau county Michigan his whole life, God calls him to take his wife and three small kids on the adventure of a life time. To sell everything, move from our dream home in the country to an orphanage in Mexico.

(Did we really do that?? That sounds crazy! I suppose in many ways it was...)

I sometimes devalue the leap that Bob took. I am someone who thrives in adventure. I love the unknown and crave it most days. But for him, this was nothing short of a miracle. I really need to respect the tremendous faith it took to drop everything he has known for his whole life, to follow the Lord in such a radical way. Especially when he was responsible to lead and protect his family.

My husband thrives on routine and order. For him, he shines best when he can just plug in and be faithful long term. This is such a blessing to be married to, but to live a life of faith and risk has definitely been outside of his natural comfort zone.

I am back in Northern Michigan on our family homestead without him for next few days. Seeing all that we left behind here has made me a bit nostalgic. I look around at all the beauty and in particular the things that my husband used to enjoy doing here, and I wish we could have the best of both worlds. I wish I could give HIM the best of both worlds.

My hubby used to drive out to the woods most every day after work and cut up firewood for our family's heat in the winter. He would hop in the beat up old plow truck and enjoy being his hairy bad self for hours just hanging out in the woods, using his manly skillz to provide for his family.

His idea of a workout was cutting and stacking 40 chord of wood

And fun was being outdoors riding around on the lawnmower

Now he does get to "Punch his Man card" relatively often by doing construction work at the orphanage as needed...

But mostly he spends his days being Super Dad to our 4 kids. I am the full time "worker" and he is a stay at home Dad.

Most days are filled with breaking up fights between our "deeply spirited" kids, or tube-feeding our special needs son.

He has become an expert at knowing if Jose has poo'd enough for the day or if we need to increase his bowel motility drug.

He plays dolls with Nora and reads little house on the prairie before bed.

He protects us from COCKROACHES that invade our MICROWAVE.

He lets Nora check his ears for earwax and PAINT HIS FINGERNAILS for goodness sake!

I know this is fulfilling to him. He is good at being a Dad and our kids are immeasurably blessed to have an involved father. But I recognize that he has given up a lot. I know that some days can be long and exhausting.

Long gone are the days where he could punch a time card and get a paycheck to validate his hard work. He used to come home smelling like wood and sweat. Now he stays home and smells like diapers, tube-feed and nail polish.

What is my point in all of this? Why did I spend an entire post to tell you that my uber manly husband is now Chief Diaper Changer? I don't know, but it's my blog so I suppose I can write about what I want!

But really, I just want to express two things.

One is, I appreciate my husband for all that he is and all that he does for our family. It takes a real man to put his family first. He never demands kudos or puts in a plea for praise. But he deserves it. He is a rarity and I don't take him for granted.

Without him taking care of the home front, none of the ministry we do would be possible.

The other thing is, I just want to encourage others to take leaps of faith. There has been so many wonderful changes that have happened because we said yes to God. Did we have to give up some things? Yes. But the rewards are immeasurable. You are never too old to step out into a new adventure. If My family can do it anyone can!

And I suppose the last thing I want to say is, August 22nd can come anytime. I miss you Bob. I can't wait for you to get here.