Top 10

Yesterday, as we all know, was Valentine's Day.  I've always been the type that loved romance on Valentine's Day.  However, after 9.5 years of marriage and a child who is more than time consuming, we don't always get the chance to be romantic.  In the past we have had some good Valentines and some not so good.  So this year we decided on a quiet evening at home.  We planned to put John to bed and then order take out and just enjoy the quiet while he slept.  Because it was a simple celebration, I decided to do a simple thing.  Instead of buying him a card this year, I made him one.  It wasn't fancy, especially since I'm the least creative person in the world.  But it told him exactly how I felt.  The front simply said I love you and on the inside I listed the top 10 reasons why I love him.  I thought that I should share with you why I love him so much.

10.  He isn't afraid to watch Chick-Flicks with me.  We don't get a chance to get to movies much any more, but the invention of the Red Box has made it cheap and easy to rent movies at home.  Often times we'll wait until John goes to bed and the nurse gets here for the night, and then we cuddle up in the bed to watch the movie.  While we both enjoy a good action or dramatic movie from time to time, more often than not I find us watching Chick-Flicks together.  Many times he falls asleep during the movie, but sometimes, he enjoys them just as much as I do.  But the fact that he'll sit down with me to watch these kinds of movies tells me that he loves spending time with me.

9.  He cries every time we watch Extreme Home Makeover.  He is probably going to kill me for sharing this one.  There aren't very many TV shows that we both enjoy.  But since this show came on the air, we have both enjoyed watching this.  I think the initial attraction for him was the home improvement project.  But as the years have gone by, the show has become more emotional.  And I often catch him wiping a tear from his eyes, although he sometimes denies it.  But I love the fact that he's not afraid to show his emotion.

8.  He takes care of things around the house, so I don't have to. He always takes pride in taking care of our home.  From paying the bills, to cutting the grass, to doing little projects around the house, he does it all.  He is a pretty handy guy for having no type of training.  He makes sure all of John's medical equipment is kept clean and he orders all of his supplies each month.  If I wanted to do these things, I couldn't because I don't know how.  He does such a good job at all of these things, and it's all so I don't have to worry about it.  I love having my very own handy man.

7.  He can pick out clothes for me better than I can for myself.  Now this one is a little more embarrassing for me.  I hear so many people talk about how men can't pick out clothes for themselves and they would never let them pick out clothes for them.  Women complain that men have no style and should have no say in anything to do with design.  But my husband is quite opposite.  He has a very good sense of style and he has a very specific sense of style.  He knows what he likes and what he doesn't like.  He dresses very sharp.  But more than that, he dresses me pretty well too.  Several times he has gone and picked out an outfit for me as a gift.  Never has he brought something home that I didn't like or that didn't look good.  When we go shopping, I often times bring him along and when I try on clothes, I always get his opinion.  I know that if he likes it, then it will look good.  I love wearing clothes that he likes.

6.  We can be very silly together.  I think all couples have their inside jokes.  We are no exception.  We both like to burst into song, many times to get John laughing.  But the funny thing about it is that neither of us have a great singing voice.  It sounds terrible, but our son smiles and we smile too.  I love that I can be my complete self around him.

5.  He makes me laugh I think in life it's very important to find someone who makes you laugh.  A great sense of humor is one of the top things I like in a person.  Tommy has this.  Sometimes he says things that I think is so ridiculous but it ends up making me laugh.  Even in tough times, he can find something to say that makes me laugh.  I love his sense of humor.

4.  He has made it possible for me to stay home with our son.  When we decided to have children, we concluded that it would be good for me to stay home for at least a couple of years.  That turned out to be a great decision after John was born with special needs.  Tommy has a good job and works very hard at it and this has allowed me to stay home with our son for the last 5.5 years.  I cannot express how much this means to me.  The time I have had with our son has been priceless and I wouldn't trade it for anything.  I've been able to be involved in every aspect of his growth and development.  I have loved watching his progress and seeing him develop a personality.  I have met some amazing people who have been apart of this development, all because I was able to stay home with him.  I will forever be grateful for this opportunity.  I love him for that.

3.  He works hard to provide for our family.  This kind of ties into number 4.  But other than allowing me to stay home with John, he has provided things and memories for us that I will never forget.  He works very hard at his job.  His work ethic is something that was instilled in him by his father and his grandfather.  He takes pride in his work and wants to make sure he puts 100% into everything he does.  He has received a few MVP awards at work for this reason.  And even though I sometimes complain about the long hours, it's because I miss him when he's not home.  I look forward to the weekend each week so we can all three be together, but I know that in between weekends, he is giving his best.  I love his work ethic.

2.  He is an amazing father.  Before John came along, Tommy didn't have much to do with other kids.  Toddlers and older kids were OK, but he didn't go near babies.  I asked him what he was going to do when we had children, and he said it would be different when they were his own.  He was right.  From the moment our son was born, he has been a hands on dad.  He changes diapers, he feeds him (although not always as often as I'd like) and he helps with bath time every night.  He also is a great playmate for John.  He gets on the floor and lets John crawl all over him.  And he can make that boy laugh like no one else.  The best sounds in the world to me are hearing the two of them playing and hearing happy squeals come from our son.  Of course John is happy when his daddy comes home from work, but Daddy may be even more happy to see him.  Those two are buddies, two peas in a pod.  Every time I see them together, I fall in love with him all over.

1.  He makes me feel safe.  All of the reasons I listed above, culminate into this last one.  All of these things that he does for me and for our family makes me feel safe.  I know that everything is taken care of and no matter what, everything will be OK because we have each other.  When he is away on a trip, it takes me awhile to fall asleep.  But when he's home, next to me in bed, I have no trouble.  I know everything is going to be OK, because he is here.  I love having him by my side.