DearDR has been implicitly under fire around here lately, and I just want it noted for the record, that I utterly and completely love the man. I’m not perfect either.
Today, for his 40th birthday, I am listing the top 10 things I love about him. In no particular order.
10. We went through the most difficult thing that parents can go through. And he was there, the whole time: the four days in the hospital, and the months and years of emotional recovery afterwards (heck, we’re still not over it, never will be). Gabriel’s loss, two years into our marriage, made our love — which I thought was pretty solid to begin with — even stronger, and brought us even closer.
9. He is a great father. Bun and Monkey utterly adore him, and he adores them. He is interested in them; he thinks they are beautiful and smart; he tells them that. I can see it hurts him to not be around them more. He’s not just the doting dad, either. He sets limits with them, takes on discipline issues, and will occasionally take Monkey out from under my feet when Bun is napping on a Sunday.
8. I mentioned this once before: People give DearDR stuff. This past month alone, he’s gotten a free — and very cool — laptop and a new Verizon phone for me — kind of Verizon’s version of the iPhone. We haven’t launched it yet, but it looks totally rad and I’m psyched about it. And I’ve never been psyched about a cell phone.
7. He’s very, very smart. He knows a lot about a lot of different things, so he’s great to have a conversation with.
6. He’s funny. No one else, ever in my life, has made me laugh as much and as often as DearDR. It’s probably one of the top things I treasure about him.
5. He works hard. And he’s good at being a psychologist. DearDR does not have an easy job. He sits and listens to people tell him their troubles all day, every day (except Sunday… well, unless you count me telling him my troubles that day). And he helps them — he helps them move on, get mentally well, get the help they need (whether government wrap-around services or medication). He makes a difference every day.
4. He is as into Lost as I am. He (almost) never misses our Wednesday date night, and even when he gets home all hungry, he fixes himself a sandwich during commercials so that I don’t even have to get off the couch. He doesn’t have time to do all the Lost homework (as it’s been called), but he listens to me explain the homework, as well as my own theories.
3. He is, overall, a good partner for me. He gets my back when I need him to; he tempers my anxiety with patience (as much as he can); and when I am having a bad day and he is not, he usually manages to cheer me up and bring a smile to my face.
2. He makes wine. Plus, he gives me well-rated store-bought wine on special occasions — to drink on other special occasions.
1. He’s a very talented green bean maker.
Happy Birthday, DearDR. I love you.
Red Pen Mama 