So, in honor of the upcoming Father's Day, I wanted to write a little bit about the man I love. Without him, I would not be the person I am. I want to share who he is with all of you.
My husband, Kelly, is an amazing father. He loves his kids with such devotion, I think he thinks they can do anything (and rightly so, I think this too). They absolutely adore him. In fact, when Layla woke up from surgery, she did not want me, but her she screamed her head off for her Dad. In fact, it was so awful that they let me take her out of recovery early and into the waiting room to be with her dad (who was in the waiting room because they would not allow Cal into recovery). When he leaves for work in the morning I hear for a good, solid thirty minutes, "Oh, Daddy. My Daddy. Daddy is gone. I miss Daddy." from Layla. On bad days, she stands at the door and cries. Cal lights up when he sees him. Of course, "dada" was his first word, and it seemed as though he knew what it meant from the moment he said it. The first time he said it he was looking right at Kelly. Kelly puts fatherhood as one of his highest priorities. He makes sure our kids know him, and know that he loves them.
He is wonderful at making memories. For mother's day we tried a new pizza place that I had been dying to try. When we were seated the man at the table to the side of us was wearing a shirt with a skeleton on it. It scared Layla so bad that she would not sit in the restaurant. I suggested laying the seats down in our van and eating in the parking lot. He happily agreed, even though that meant a good fifteen minutes of cleaning out the van before we could lay the seats down. He happily sang the "When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that's amore..." song (which Layla has since named "the pizza picnic song"). He is great at turning little moments into fun memories that I know the kids and I will cherish for a lifetime.
Speaking of our van, I love that he doesn't care that I dinged the door the first week we had it. Or that I unknowingly was denting the back of it up every time I closed it in the wrong spot. It wasn't until I noticed it and said "Our van has a bunch of little dents in it in the back" that he told me what it was from. He doesn't say anything when he opens the side door and a ton of toys, marshmallows, and sippy cups come cascading out at him (even though if you look in his car it is typically pristine and orderly).
He is an amazing husband. He knows me. He knows that I lose everything. He gave me a key finder for Christmas that came with two key chains. When I offered one to him he said that he got one for my keys and one for my wallet. I loved that gift the most this year, simply because it was a reminder of how much he knows me. He knows that I hate to pump gas, and he tries to make sure that I never have to do that. He knows that I worry if I call him and he doesn't answer, so he will text me right away and let me know why he can't answer his phone. He knows that when we go on a date I will inevitably ask "do you think they'll be okay?" at least ten times before we get to the end of the street, and he answers "yes, they'll be just fine" every single time. He knows that I love taking the first drink of a soda right after it has been opened, and without even thinking he will open his drink and hand it to me.
I love that I know him. I know he hates to have bare feet, and it goes beyond hating it to simply not being able to do it if tile is involved. I know that he claims garlic makes him sick, but I can sneak it into certain dishes without him knowing. I know that cilantro really does make him sick. I know that he doesn't like sweets, but if he decides to have them he eats an abnormally large amount of them in one sitting (a whole box of ice cream drumsticks). I know that he is allergic to shellfish, but he loves crab legs. I know that he has to have his socks, belt, and shoes match his outfit. I know that he hates to have gel in his hair when he sleeps. I know that if he falls asleep on his back he will inevitably snore, and when I wake him up to ask him to roll over, there is a good chance he will fall back to sleep before he actually rolls over. I know he loves mafia movies. I know he would do anything for me and our kids.
He is such a generous person. In fact, he is the most generous person I have ever met. He does not have any of the "take care of myself first" mentality. He makes sure the kids and I have what we need and want, and then he would literally give away every last penny if I would let him. Not only does he give money or material goods to people, but he generously gives of his time. He is truly concerned with the welfare of others. That is one of the things that makes him so great at what he does. He works for a company that provides living assistance to individuals with mental handicaps. There are days (and these days are often) that he works really long hours, and then when the weekends come around he will usually get at least eight work related calls over the weekend. I know he misses me and the kids, but I also know that he is really doing everything he can for the individuals he serves. I know he cares about them and wants to make a difference in their lives. He is good at his job, and it is because he is doing something that is important to him, helping others.
He is hilarious. Seriously. And to be honest, there are times when I hate it. I hate it when I want to be mad but he does some little thing that makes me laugh. I hate it when he won't stop teasing me, and I can't help but laugh at him, which then makes him only tease that much more. But I love it. I love that he can get an entire room to laugh. I love that he has an unbelievably quick response, and I love his form of sarcasm.
He has a strong and sold testimony of the the gospel of Jesus Christ. He believes in Christ and the atonement with a surety that cannot be shaken. He knows that it is through this act, this act of complete and total unselfish love given to us by our Savior, that we can repent and return to live as a family with our Heavenly Father. And he wants to share this knowledge. He wants everyone to know of the happiness that comes with this knowledge. He served a mission in Taiwan and was an amazing missionary. He loved his mission president and the mission president's wife, and they loved him. I have had the opportunity to meet with his mission president twice, and I love to hear him talk about Kelly. I love Kelly's stories from his mission. I love that he taught me the gospel, not only by answering my questions, but by showing me how to live it. By showing me exactly what he believes by his actions.
I love my husband, and I am so very grateful for him. He helps me every day to become the person and the mother I want to be. And he doesn't mention all the many times that I fall short of where I want to be.
Thanks for letting me share a little bit about the amazing man that I married. Tell me a little bit about your husband or wife, or if you are not married about someone important in your life. What do you know about them that no one else does? I love that, those little intimate details that seem like they are something so simple, that no one else knows. Those small things are the things that make me realize that while our relationship isn't perfect, it is ours and it is what we make it.
