Rex and I don't spend as much time together as some couples. While I am thrilled we are not so co-dependent as to check in every hour about whether almonds or a granola bar would be a better choice for a vending machine snack (Yes, I know those couples) a few mid-morning calls just to say "I love you" wouldn't suck either.

Sometimes, like getting a cold, we don't realize how little time we spend together until we're knee deep in sniffles and coughs and are then forced to co-habitate for hours on end on the same sofa, complaining and whining and moaning (and not just about our runny noses.) Two hacking spouses do not a romantic ensemble make.

It's not that we don't adore each other. And Lord knows we need each other. But it's kind of a like a flu shot - the antibodies are ultimately awesome for your wellbeing, but it hurts like a mother when it's first administered.

But... and here's the fun part of the flu shot and our marriage - when everything is great, it's awesome! And we always wonder why we didn't do this sooner. I remember the beautiful man I married, the wonderful father and the practical day to day rock that keeps my crazy balloon from soaring too high into the atmosphere, getting caught in telephone wire or being pooped on by a passing pigeon.

Today we got a babysitter and visited a city near by. Then we got dinner at an old standby (because too much newness in one day would be crazy.) Then we came home and walked around the neighborhood, admiring the Xmas lights.

As we turned toward our house, Rex commented, "You know, we should really walk more. It's nice."

Me: "How about we do it tomorrow during lunch?"

Rex: "How about we do it every day for lunch?"

Me: "How about we do it Monday Wednesday Friday and get used to the idea of being in shape and being connected again before we get completely insane?"

Rex: "Cool."

Then we came home where he proceeded to play with our new AT&T internet and I did my blogging.

As he would say, "It's all good." And as I would say, "It beats the hell out of the flu."

 * Photo of my son at my mom's Thanksgiving gathering. I wish I had a full body shot of him. He was so joyous that night - putting crackers in my booty and then laughing so hard I thought he'd cough up a lung, all the while slapping his knees like an old man who just won a game of chess.

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