I am on the verge of simply losing it.  I don't even know where to begin.  Right now, I can't figure out if I am more frustrated with my husband for tearing up my entire house, well kitchen, bathrooms and office for reconstruction that has caused me to make a last minute trip away for the upcoming week to get out of the chaos.  Or I am more upset with the puppy that peed on my luggage just now! 

To live fully is to love fully and it is the love and affection we withhold on this earth that we regret which is why, this Father's Day, I pay tribute to those men who lead our families, attend endless youth football practices and soccer games, who fix our leaky faucets and make sure our families are safe.

Happy Memorial Day! I don’t get a lot of opportunities to write, or even talk about my father, but today of all days would be an appropriate day to do so. Dad died of a sudden-death heart attack when I was eleven years old. My sister, mother and I were all home when it happened. It was the worst day of my life. I didn’t even get a chance to say goodbye, but my final words to him were, “I love you, daddy.”

On this holiday weekend, as my husband goes off to his college reunion for one night, I want to focus on all the good stuff—and there is so much. I may get weighed down by the messy piles he makes, but so many other things he does lift me up. Consider this a pre–Father’s Day “why my husband is fab” short list (by no means complete).

 * He really loves me.

It’s not that I don’t appreciate the praises, flowers, school tea parties, $8 greeting cards that play music…it’s just that Mother’s Day, more than any other day of the year, reminds me of how fortunate I am to have a supportive husband.  Above all, I credit him with my ability to do it all.