My husband and his father are both hard workers.  They have worked together since my husband was really young.  Now, when they have projects to complete they still call each other and help each other out.  There have been many times when I have been annoyed that my husband was gone all day helping his dad.  It was his day off and I wanted him home helping me and spending time with our family.  It seemed that my father-in-laws projects were always at a bad time, right after my husband had been out of town or on a day when I wanted to do something else.  Of course when my father-in-law was helping us I never thought about what he was giving up to be there.

The week between Christmas and New Years my husband decided to refinish our floor.  It’s been unfinished since June when we remodeled and I have been anxious to get it finished.  My husband and father-in-law got to work.  They rented sanders and I packed the kids up for a day at my sisters house.  When I got home that night they hadn’t gotten very far.  My husband was working alone because his dad had a meeting and another responsibility that night.  I put the kids to bed and tried to help out but I’m not much help when it comes to projects like this.

I was wondering how long this would end up taking.  I was tired and it was getting late but I felt bad leaving my husband to do all of the work alone.  Then someone pulled into the driveway.  I was so happy to see that my father-in-law had come back.  He got out of his second responsibility and came back to help.  I went to bed about 11pm and my husband and father-in-law kept working.  All night long.  When I woke up the next morning, they had just finished putting the stain on the floor.  Instead of going to bed to wait for the stain to dry, they loaded up the rented sanders so that they were returned on time.  When the stain was dry they put on the first coat of sealant.  They just kept going with only minimal rest here and there.

I am still so full of gratitude for my father-in-law.  So grateful that he came back when we weren’t expecting it and that he was willing to work all night to get the job done.  For all of the help that he gave us not only that night but many other times throughout the years.  From now on whenever he has a job that he needs help with, I won’t be annoyed when my husband helps him.  I will just be grateful that they help each other and we all benefit.  And every time I look at my floor, I will be grateful for a father-in-law who came back when he didn’t need to (and that I have a beautiful floor that I LOVE).