Happy 33!

I'm here today to wish my most fabulous husband a Happy 33rd Birthday!! Brandon and I have been...well, let's just say not very rich for pretty much our entire marriage. Because of this, neither of us is very big on getting gifts for each other on all the various holidays (except Christmas when I'm a spoiled brat, but that's a story for another time). So when Brandon turned 30, I wanted to do something special for him and came up with the idea of leaving 30 little notes around the house, each listing a reason I loved him. So in honor of his 33rd birthday, I choose to be completely unoriginal and copy my once brilliant idea. Except this time I choose to share these 33 reasons of love with the massive viewers of my blog (that's right - all 5 of you!) This post is uber-long. If you choose to continue reading, I hope you have a good chunk of time to devote. I'll do my best to keep it interesting.


33 Reasons Why I Love My Husband:


1. Brandon is the most painfully honest person I've ever met. It was the main characteristic that attracted me to him. After years dating and always wondering, "Does he like me? What does he want out of this? Is he dating other people? Should I?" it was so refreshing to have someone sit me down, spell out his feelings and intentions so I could understand, and never leave me guessing and dissecting his every little statement and action. I'm not saying his honesty is always a good thing...if I ask him if an outfit looks good on me, he's not going to give the standard "EVERYTHING looks good on YOU honey", I'm going to get the truth. But I still love his honesty and am grateful for it, even when it bruises my ego.

2. I love that Brandon has GOALS. Goals upon goals. Some of them are unrealized, but he never stops dreaming, and he never stops trying.

3. I love that Brandon is always encouraging in MY goals. Really this is a love/hate reason. Sometimes, like when I've decided I simply must eat and drink my weight in fried foods and Coke, I don't want to be reminded that I have goals to attain that won't be helped by this addictive behavior and I'm bugged at him for invoking the guilt. But he knows my potential and he won't let me simply give up. The happy, ambitious girl in me LOVES this about him. The depressed, lazy girl want to tell him to go to....well, you get it.

4. I love that Brandon works so hard at a job he doesn't always love and tries his hardest in school for a career he's not always sure he wants. He does this even when I know sometimes he'd love to quit it all and become some sort of a contractor. And he does it because he really doesn't want to negotiate child support.

5. I love that Brandon has his list of things that he loves to do without me. Such as boating, mountain biking, and basketball. This is a true sign that we have been married for more than 2 years. This would have been listed on the things I hate if you had asked me in our months of dating and early years of marriage. But now I enjoy the time to myself and I love that he comes home happy and will occasionally even miss me while he's gone.

6. In turn, I love that he knows just when I'm about to be worthy of being committed and will let me take off to enjoy time to myself. Or that I can plan a girls night for whenever and know that he will enjoy his alone time with the kids, and not complain at me for leaving him for a few hours.

7. Confession time: I am a CRYER! I cry for every emotion. When I'm frustrated, sad, tired, angry, happy, overwhelmed, stressed-out, scared - you name it, I'll cry for it. I love that my tears always make Brandon sympathetic. You'd think after years of watching me cry at the drop of a hat he'd start rolling his eyes or make sarcastic remarks, but he really doesn't. He still wants to give me loves and make it all go away. And in turn, I never use my tears to try to win arguments (even though I know I could easily do this because it would work).

8. I love that whenever I'm laying by Brandon on the couch or in bed and he's awake watching TV, studying, or reading a book; he'll start (almost unconsciously) running his fingers through my hair or rubbing my back. It still gives me the chills and then relaxes me into the most tranquil stages of sleep.

9. **Caution: This next reason is a bit disgusting. You might want to skip to the next one if you have a weak stomach.**
So I'm human and I lose hair like any normal person, especially soon after having a baby. There have been a few times that I've gotten into the shower to see a few of my loose hairs (from my HEAD, mind you) spelling out the words "I Love U" on the shower wall. Simple really, but I think it is the most romantic thing in the world. Only Brandon would take my nasty old hair and turn it into a love note.

10. Speaking of bathrooms, I absolutely LOVE that Brandon cleans my bathrooms. Yes, you heard right. In all my days of marriage, I can count on one hand the amount of times I have had to clean a bathroom. Brandon knows how much I despise cleaning bathrooms and does it for me. (Sorry, you can't have him, he's mine). He also mops floors, since my skills for this chore leave much to be desired.

11. I love how great Brandon is with the kids. I've mentioned this before, but I suck at being a fun mom. I'm easily annoyed by the sense of humor children seem to possess and I quickly lose patience while trying to play all their dumb little games. Brandon is so great at it. He will chase, tackle, and tickle them until he's overtaken by pure exhaustion. He will talk to them in funny voices and listen to their endless (and frequently repeated) knock-knock jokes - most of which don't make any sense whatsoever. I'm lucky my kids have him or they'd be mighty bored.

12. I love that Brandon lets me spend what little money we have on all the things I'm sure are going to make me lose weight. I have wasted money on gym memberships, books, DVDs, weight loss programs and vitamins; as if owning all these things will magically make me lose my baby weight, even when I don't actually use them. Again, he's always willing to support me in my goals and if it means spending money we don't have...as long as it makes me happy and keeps me motivated.

13. In our years of marriage, I've always been the one who takes care of the finances. I love that Brandon never questions my ability to handle them correctly and he's always complimenting me for doing it well. His trust means so much to me.

14. I love that it's always Brandon who reminds me to kneel down and say prayers with the kids. Sometimes I am SO ready to be done for the day and I can't wait to get the little munchkins in bed. I shamefully admit I'll try to skip it sometimes out of pure exhaustion, but he'll never let me. What a great example he is setting for our children.

15. I love that he is always ready with a compliment for me just when I need it the most. And because he never lies to me, I always know he's sincere.

16. Do you ever get in big fat arguments with your spouse and then you both utilize the silent treatment to its fullest degree until one of you admits they were wrong? I don't. Seriously. Sometimes I'd like to, but Brandon is the King of Communication. We never have an argument that isn't resolved within an hour or two because he simply will not let it go until we both feel validated and understood. Sure it will sometimes drive me nuts, but for the most part I'm so grateful that we don't waste hours or even days being mad over something that doesn't matter.

17. I love that in 8 years of marriage, Brandon has never once raised his voice to me. He gets frustrated and he argues, but he never yells. I'm incredibly sensitive and know I would not respond well to yelling. The Lord really listened to my prayers when sending this wonderfully mellow man in my direction.

18. Hugs, hugs, hugs. They are the best thing in the whole world. And Brandon will drop everything to give me the best hugs when I need them the most. And he'll never let go until I'm ready to let go, which sometimes takes awhile.

19. I love that Brandon is so considerate of other people's feelings. He cares so much how other people feel and whether or not he's done anything to offend them. He can't bear the thought of there being someone out there who doesn't like him.

20. I love him because he's soooooo GOODLOOKIN'!

21. I love that he is so amazingly patient with me. I am the exact opposite of what a homemaker should be. I suck at decorating, I don't like to cook or bake, I'm awful at keeping the house clean....really I have no domestic qualities to speak of. But he loves me all the same and doesn't belittle me for my lack of Betty Crockerish qualities.

22. I love that he is ok with us getting a pizza or grabbing fast food or takeout when I've had a bad day and really don't want to cook. Which honestly happens WAY too often.

23. I love that we can still talk and talk for hours and never run out of subject matter.

24. I love that Brandon doesn't mind chick flicks and that he's always willing to watch a movie with me, no matter how unmanly it may seem.

25. I love how Brandon takes pride in making our yard look nice. If it were up to me, our yard would likely be overrun with unruly weeds and be covered with the tumbleweeds that always seem to be hanging around. Yes, it's true - my lack of domestic abilities extends to the outside of my house as well. Actually, if it were up to me, we would live in a small but fancy townhouse where there is no need to worry about yard work.

26. I love the way he's always trying to make me laugh, though there are times I am grumpy enough to want to punch him in the nose for it.

27. I love that he'll give up doing much funner things to help me clean the house when it becomes too much for me to handle alone.

28. I love that even though Brandon treasures his weekend sleeping time (since he gets so little of it during the week) he's still willing to get up with Nathaniel at least once so that I can experience an occasional full night's rest myself.

29. I love watching Brandon with Nathaniel. Though he loves all our kids and is so great with each of them, I can tell he's truly enjoying Nathaniel and every moment of his infancy. There is never a moment when Brandon doesn't want him around.

30. I love when Brandon comes to the gym with me. He almost always lets me pick what we're going to do and then follows my lead. It makes me feel like he trusts me and like I actually might know what I'm doing.

31. I love that when Brandon's bored, he loves to call and just chat with me. Though I'm not really a phone person and don't exactly love to talk on the phone, I love that he loves to talk me just the same. I'm sure there's a lot more interesting people on his contact list, but for some reason his picks me almost every time.

32. I love how affectionate he is. In church, when most couples are sitting apart to help keep their kids in check, Brandon always insists on sitting right next to me. He still holds my hand in public, sits me on his lap even though I weigh nearly as much as he does, he wants to cuddle when we're hanging out, and just generally enjoys having me near him. There are times I feel so very unattractive, both in looks and personality. But somehow he still wants me close by, despite all the little ways I may have changed for the worse.

33. Overall, I simply love Brandon for being Brandon. And I love that he loves me for being me.

Happy Birthday Baby! Thanks for choosing me to share your life, your eternity, and most importantly - yourSELF. I love you bunches!