DIY Marriage: Truth, Lies and Shovels

The first lie I told my husband last weekend was, "I think this will be a lot of fun, especially since we can do it together!"

That was before the first stone was moved and the first shovel hit the ground.

For our 7th anniversary, we decided to forgo gifts and, instead, dig out the old paving stones leading from our front door to the driveway.  We designed a new walkway and were going to DIT (Do It Together), not DIY.

I'm not one who enjoys things like:  outside, being outside, working outside, bugs, dirt, gravel, sand, things in my shoes, sweat, dirty hair, dirty clothes, heavy things, bending over.  All these things I hate.  All these things are required for this project.

After I told that first lie, the rest were pretty easy:  "I love just spending time together."  "I'm glad we decided to do this instead of going on the tour of wineries."  "It looks level to me."  "No, I'm not tired."

Anytime a person asks you if absolute truth is essential in marriage, you should remind them that no one looks good in capri shorts and you should always lie when they ask you if they do.

The honest truth is:  after we got started, we did have fun.  We laughed together, we threw dirt clods at each other, we problem-solved and we got really dirty.

As soon as this project is finished, we'll also love that we did it together.  Until then, I'll remember that putting on the act of happiness can open the doors to bringing in real happiness.

By the way, the very first lie was not told by me but by the sales person at Lowe's who told us, "It shouldn't take you more than an afternoon or two to get this project done."  Six and a half days later -- and I'd like to throw a dirt clod at him. . . .