It's Hubby's Birthday!

Today is my husband's birthday. Being the kind of man he is, Pete does not like a lot of attention. With that being said, he's going to hate that I'm doing a post just for him! In honor of his birthday, here are 10 things I love about him (in no particular order):

1. He is an amazing dad. The highlight of my kids' day is when Daddy comes home! He wrestles the best, builds the best LEGO/train/erector set/Lincoln log creations, and lets them play on his computer (they don't get to touch Mommy's very often. I know, I'm a big ol' meanie.). He's the good cop to my bad cop, and is the firm one when I can't stop laughing when a kid is being cute while misbehaving.

Little Paigey wrestling with Daddy

2. He is ridiculously quiet. This is both a blessing and a curse, as being a woman, I like to talk a lot, and by the time he gets home and the babysitting kids leave, I'm ready to talk to an adult. Unfortunately he's used up most (if not all) of his words while teaching. However, I'm learning that the quietness is more of him processing everything. He's a man of few words, but when he has something to say, it's heartfelt and meaningful. I'll take that over a lot of words any day! 

3. He is constantly trying to be a better husband for me. I caught him last night reading the book The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman, and I've noticed he's really trying to speak my love language, words of appreciation. He struggles with that as he's quiet, but I'm hearing comments more often now that he appreciates that I've done the laundry, I'm working so hard to pay down the debt, etc.  

4. He was the one who really introduced me to Christ. I wasn't raised a Christian, and the Christians I knew when I was young were either hypocrites or just plain weird. But there was something different about Pete, something I wanted to know more about. He was patient and listened to all my questions, and I started to attend church on a regular basis. My life has changed for the better in so many ways, and I'm glad Pete was patient with me without judging me like others had in the past. 

One happy Daddy! Snuggling Nate while we were in the hospital just after having Ryan

 5. He's a phenomenal cook. He's pretty much taught me how to cook, too. He'll see some ingredients that I don't think will go well together, and turn it into something amazing. He cooks just as often as I do, if not more, and he loves doing it. 

6. He supports and encourages me to do what I love. He doesn't mind that I have a studio downstairs or took up part of his office space for a sewing area. There are times when I'm super stressed that he'll tell me to take a break and go paint or sew. He understands I tend to get stuck in mommy-mode and need to find Shawna again. 

7. He loves me for me. Regardless of the baggage I bring, my tendencies to overreact or get excited about fluffy things, or even just me never-ending reorganization/redecorating obsession I have, he loves me and is patient. He finds me beautiful no matter what I look like; it doesn't matter if I'm dressed up to go out to dinner or in pajamas and haven't showered in 3 days. 

Love him <3

 8. One of his hugs calms me down quicker than anything else. I fit perfectly in his arms; we're always commenting on how God really did create us for each other because of that fact. There's something about his hugs that just reassures me that no matter what trouble I'm facing, I don't have to face it alone. 

9. He works hard so his family can have all of their needs met...and some wants, too! As I said in another post, he's working 2 jobs now with 3 different job responsibilities, and he's exhausted. Before he got the second job, he said if he had to work at the local grocery store or flip burgers to help pay bills, he would, just to make sure I could stay home with the kids and we'd have a roof over our head and food on our table. Not many men would do jobs they didn't like, so this is something I really admire about Pete. 

10. He doesn't expect me to be Super Mom. He doesn't even expect me to try. He knows I'm busy and can't do it all around here, and he always tries to step in and help when I'm struggling to keep things running smoothly around here.


Happy birthday, babe! I love you, always and forever.