This. Every morning, this. I could wake up seventy thousand more times, roll out of bed, scramble to find a mismatched pair of socks, and throw on an oversized, overworn sweatshirt before hobbling out to the thrift store couch (where no less than four little ones will soon find me) and never tire of it. Because all of that means another morning of coffee with my friend.
My friend, is of course, my husband.
Sometimes he's my friend. Sometimes I get angry and glare at him. But in the morning, it's all about the love, baby. It's about those few fleeting moments that we get together in the living room before the thumping of little feet across the fir floors. Those few moments where we can wipe the sleep from our eyes, soak in the sunrise, and prepare ourselves for the day ahead.
Coffee, for Stuart and I, has always been more than just coffee. It's been our thing. Back in our early days, we'd linger at coffee shops and pretend like the world was all about us and our young love. We had nothing better to do than sip lattes and play chess.
(I almost beat him… once. He won't admit it, but it's true.)
Now, coffee has become one of our signature signs of service. If you need to ask for forgiveness, you should probably have an Americano in hand. Pile of dirty dishes that your spouse is scrubbing through? That means you're on latte duty. Bad day? “Let me make you a coffee.”
Stuart will rise out of bed before me each morning and warm up the machine before filling the cups with hot water that steams and twirls in the air. He'll pull a milky, rich, frothy espresso shot.
Plurp. Into the hot water it goes.
I take mine with a dash of cream. He takes his black. It's how we tell our mugs apart.
He'll holler at me from the hallway.
“Hey Mama. Coffee's ready.”
“…you coming? Coffee's hot.”
“…I'm going to drink your coffee if you don't get up.”
That one always works.
Slipping my hands around the mug, I'll act like I'm super angry I have to get up and out of my warm, tangled bed. But the truth is that I look forward to those first sips and first moments together every single day… all day.
Have you ever made an upside down cake that didn't turn out? So when you go to flip it over, instead of falling out of the pan into cake form, it just explodes and spills all over? Pretty much every day of my life is like that. But coffee with my friend in the morning is pre-flipping. It's the cake before the cake explodes. It's hopeful. It's calm. It's wonderous.
I'm madly in love with this man of mine. While watching him preach on Sunday, I sat in the back nursing the baby. I was beaming as I stared at him – watching him preach the gospel and his love of the Lord to a congregation full of saints eager to hear the good news. And I thought to myself, “Self. You're the one who gets to wake up and share coffee with him in your pajamas every morning.”
And then I patted myself on the back because that makes me awesome.
It's Sunday night… soon to be Monday morning. Which means that once again, I get to have coffee with my friend. I pray I get to do it a million times over and then some.
Happy Sunday, my friends!
Charlotte
That was so sweet. Your hubby must feel very blessed.
Terri
I am new to your blog and absolutely love it. What a dream life you live:) Thanks for sharing.
Rhonda
What a lovely post to read first thing this beautiful Monday morning. Well, not quite first thing. I’ve been up for a spell. Aren’t we blessed to be able to call our husbands our best friends? I thank the good Lord every … single … day … for my dear husband and I’m so thankful he created us for one another. Thank you for sharing yet another wonderful post.
Aubrey
This is our ritual as well. It’s a wonderful way to start the day. So thankful for people like you who can write about the true beauty that is found in moments as simple as coffee on the couch with our hubbys.
Bonnie Shelton
The way you wrote this makes my heart so happy. I feel like this will be your thing forever, remembered by your kids and grandkids and (God-willing) great-grandkids. The smell of coffee will remind them of you and since Starbucks is on the fast track to owning the earth, they’ll never go a day where you’re not remembered. ???? Someday, most likely in glory, we’ll have to have a cup together!
Shaye Elliott
Amen! ๐ Thank you for your kind words and for reading my posts!
Linda
Lovely. Just lovely! Once the imps are in bed, dishes done, leftovers put away (of course, from one of your wonderful recipes), the peace and quiet of each other. No talking, just looking, holding, the scent of the day lingering. That almost, just barely, but almost beats Paris.
Kati
I love the cake analogy. And the love. And the appreciation. We are still trying to find our “coffee” every day, but when we do find it, it’s lovely. Keep it up girl!
Shanna
These are my favorite types of posts. The beauty in the simplest most wonderful parts of life. Ps I’m making sourdough skillet bread with dinner tonight. Beautiful book!
Allison
This is me and my husband exactly.
Sometimes I feel bad for everyone else….but then not really.
Rachel
That must be a picture of coffee between you and another friend since they both have cream ???? I do really like reading your blog. I feel like I am farming vicariously through you. Outside animals are not allowed where I live and garden on .25 of an acre.
sfe
What looks like cream from milk is actually crema from the espresso. When the shot is pulled right into the cup instead of a shot glass it gets this rich frothy crema head
Brandi
This almost made me cry it was so beautifully written! In a seemingly loveless world, your unconditional love for your man is a breath of fresh air to me. Thank you for being so open!
Shaye Elliott
Thank you for your kind words! <3
Amy @ These Wild Acres
Just lovely. Thanks for sharing the importance of these “little” moments! ๐
Becca
Oh, how I envy you! Not only did my man give up coffee 2 years ago (blasphemy I know!) but he now is gone for work multiple days at a time so we can stay on this farm of ours.
Enjoy him sister!
Brooke
AMEN to all the coffee!!! I love love love reading your blog! Thank you for being so REAL and sharing your life with us.
Shaye Elliott
Thank you for your kind words! ๐
Kaelynn
This past weekend, my husband was actually awake to see me wake up for the first time since we’ve been married. You can probably guess who gets up and makes the coffee in this duo ๐ There’s nothing like that morning coffee time. A friend of mine recently told me he started a poetry/writing journal that he writes in when he first wakes up. Apparently your filter and inhibitions are less when you first wake up, freeing up your thoughts and inspirations. I have yet to try this, but I imagine there is some truth to it.
montanahappy.com
Love this post. It’s the simple things that we should be grateful for. I love that you recognize them.
Katie
I just love this. I wake up mega early for work and every now and again my partner gets up for a bleary-eyed cuppa with me. And it is such a special quiet moment before the rest of the world wakes.
Kristen
Love these words! Coffee is our quiet time too. I’m curious to know what type of coffee machine you have. I’m looking for a machine that will make a good Americano in less time.
Shaye Elliott
We have a Faema brand espresso machine. It’s AWESOME.
Shannon
Love this! I too cherish morning coffee time with my hubby. Would love to know more about the coffee recipe….. it sounds as if he adds a shot of espresso to the hot water already in the mug to me, would that be correct?
Sean
What a beautiful, blessed post. I’m lucky to have read this. On a side note, do you happen to know which specific Faema espresso maker you have?
shellie strugnell
I just love this so much….you capture the nuances of life so beautifully. What a life giving post!
Rebekah
So beautiful. Made me cry. Because it’s what we have too, and you tell it so beautifully. “The quiet before the little feet come running across the fir floor…” such an important part of my day.
We are blessed.
And may God bless you for sharing that with us!
Ellen
Shaye,
I so much enjoy your blog and your writings of your daily life. I am single and navigating this whole adult thing and love to read about your family life and marriage. I pray and hope for the same!
Susan
I envy your loving friendship with your husband. I have been married more than once. Have raised three children by myself during and between marriages. I have not had the experience of that calm, trusting, reliable partner in my life. I envy that. May God bless you both.
Lisa Moran
Not sure if you’ll see this comment but wanted to tell you I’m loving reading your blog. I found your channel recently and am working my way thru the videos. I really enjoy your writing style. I especially enjoy that you share your faith in your posts. That is so wonderful!
I didn’t know that Stuart is a preacher. I would love to have been able to hear one of his sermons.
Thank you for all the hard work you put into your blog and channel, sharing your life and your heart with us.