Today will always hold a special place in my heart. Seventeen years ago, Brian and I went out on our first date. (I really wanted Hudson to be born on the 6th, but he just couldn't wait another day. :) ) On February 6, 1996, I drove to Fort Worth to meet a guy that had finally asked me out - I had had a huge crush on him for years. He was 19, living in Denton and going to college at UNT and I was 16 and a junior in high school. We saw a movie and ate dinner at Chili's. Little did I know that six and a half years later, we would stand in the front of our church filled with family and friends and promise to love, honor and cherish each other. I have literally spent half of my life with this man and he is like no other person I have ever met. Don't get me wrong, he's not perfect, but he's perfect for me. In honor of seventeen years together, I'm going to brag on my valentine a little bit. :)
He is an AWESOME husband. I'm not always easy to live with and he has NEVER raised his voice, talked down to me or spoken to me in a harsh way. He has always treated me with love and respect and I feel protected when I'm with him. He's absolutely and whole-heartedly committed to our marriage. He still can make me laugh really hard and does it often. He leads our home with kindness, patience and love. He takes me and the boys into account anytime he wants to do something that will interfere with our normal "schedule". He is home each night and has NEVER complained about what I made for dinner and even says "Thanks for cooking"... even if it's a frozen pizza. :)
He is an AWESOME dad. He was always willing to help me with the boys- even as babies - changing diapers, feeding, whatever. He wants the best for our boys. He spends time teaching them things with patience, humor and love. He looks forward to coming home to them each day and it shows. He helps with bedtime each night and he takes Reed to school each morning (and will take Hudson next year too). He takes the boys outside or to the shop with him and they come back with all kinds of great stories. He is showing them by example daily how to be an invested and loving father and husband.
He never whines. Never.
He works hard and has always had a job. When Reed was a baby, things were pretty tight, but he always provided for our financial needs as a family and made sure that I was able to stay home with Reed. He continues to work hard so that I am able to be with our boys as they grow and be involved with their lives in ways that I wouldn't be able to if I went to work.
I trust his judgement implicitly. His decisions are always based on what would be best for our family. It may not always seem that way to me at the time, but everything has always worked out that way in the end.
He loves to get his hands dirty. He can fix ANYTHING. I can mess with something for hours and he can fix it within a couple of minutes. On one hand, it's annoying, but on the other, it's super helpful. :)
He doesn't cuss.
His patience level is UH-mazing. I've never seen anything like it. He always keeps perspective on a situation and never gets riled up.
He treats the people that work for him with kindness and respect.
He is just as attractive to me now as he was 17 years ago. Actually, even more. :)
He loves me the way that I am and most days that involves no makeup and hair in a bun. :)
He would lay down his life for his family in a second.
He's very creative. It has really come out since he started building houses. He does a beatiful job and I am in awe by his ideas that he makes into reality.
He has a good heart and is very generous to others.
Brian,
Happy First Date Anniversary. Thanks for picking me. I'm one lucky girl and I love you more than you know.
