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Ten Things of Thankful: Let Me Count the Ways

My husband's birthday was this past week, so I'm using this week's TToT post to reflect on the various things I appreciate about John. 






In stream-of-consciousness order: 

1.  I'm thankful for John's intelligence.  We met in college, and in our first conversation, he told me he was an engineering major "by default."  Who in the world defaults into an engineering major?!  What happened, did you flunk out of neurosurgery?

2.  I'm thankful for John's sense of humor. His "engineering by default" answer made me realize he also was funny, and he has continued since then to make me laugh.

3.  I'm thankful for John's spiritual strength, and (4.) our shared religious convictions.  Though both sets of our parents demonstrate that it is possible to have a strong, happy marriage without belonging to the same church as your spouse, our shared faith brings a depth to our relationship that I would otherwise miss. 

5.  I'm thankful for John's forgiveness.  Generally speaking, we have a great marriage, and neither of us is prone to vindictiveness or spite.  We are, however, human, and I have certainly made some mistakes.  John's always met my goofs with kindness and understanding.  If you'd like a laugh, read about my biggest blunder here.

6.  I'm thankful for John's thoughtfulness.  I've had a lot of demands of my time this week.  After one particularly busy day, I arrived home to find the John had fixed dinner, and our daughter had set a lovely table.  When John noticed how tired I was, he suggested that I just go to bed after dinner, and he would take care of the clean-up, too.  I was out like a light before 7:30, and I felt much more rested the following morning.



7.  I'm thankful for John's fun-loving nature.  I tend to be task-oriented, and John has helped me realize that fun is important, too.  We've enjoyed weekly dates throughout our marriage, and make getaways a priority, also.




8.  I'm thankful that John is a Renaissance man.  Not only does he understand math and science, he writes well and enjoys the arts.  We're as apt to attend a museum or play as a sporting event.  Recently, we've seen movies as disparate as Gravity, Captain Phillips, and Austenland, and enjoyed them all.  



9.  I'm thankful that even though John knows a lot about many topics, he never makes others feel inferior or stupid.  

10.  I'm thankful that John's a great dad.  He has carved pumpkins to resemble Ernie (of Sesame Street), held interesting conversations on toy telephones, and taught teens to drive.  Now our kids are mostly adults, and John's a wonderful grandpa.  We're not growing old, but I definitely am thankful for the years we've spent together so far, and the years we have yet to see.  







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Thanks for John!

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Ten Things of Thankful


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Comments

  1. Ahhhhhh Happy Birthday John. What a wonderful list of Ten :) I'm sure that you could write many, many more :)

    I think the slide photo is my favourite :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, I'm sure I could write many more. In fact, I'm imagining that I will wake up in the middle of the night thinking, "How could I have neglected to say _________?!"

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    2. LOL then it's just as well this is a weekend-long gig ;)

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  2. hahahahaha What a great guy to write you that sweet note after the boss Im quitting/love letter possibility! He doesn't have a brother does he?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. He does have brothers, but they are each happily married, too. :-)

      Delete
  3. Gee Whiz I forgot the most important part.... HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Happy Birthday to your Husband.....

    ReplyDelete
  5. Happy Belated Birthday to the love of your life!

    ReplyDelete
  6. lol excellent Post!

    John, yo! Happy Birthday from the blogosphere.

    Isn't it something when two people can have differences (which I believe is necessary for a relationship to have dynamics) and yet, in the good ones at any rate, there is a complementary effect…one's strengths are reinforced and weaknesses are balanced.

    have a good weekend

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'll pass along your greetings.

      I agree with you; I'm definitely a better person for being married to John.

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  7. What a great list - great guy! Happy birthday to John!

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  8. I love it when you talk about John. It is clear you both love each other completely. Your marriage is a wonderful example for us all.

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  9. Every time you write about John, I feel I really would love to meet him some day. You too of course, you both seem such a special kind of people.... Having such a sweet husband - luckely I have one too - is a blessing in itselfs, isn't it? Someone to share life with, makes everything just a bit better.
    Wish him a belated happy birthday for me with a Big Dutch Hug!

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  10. Kristi, and I am thankful John's such a great guy!

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  11. What an amazing list! Sounds like a great guy, and he's lucky to have found someone who knows these things and appreciates them! It's so refreshing to see a positive post about birthdays and long-term relationships!
    p.s. LOVE that Ernie pumpkin!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Happy Birthday to your John! You an feel the love you two share reading this list!

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  13. Love your photos! Like you I am so thankful that I have someone I love to share life with! Hope John had a wonderful birthday!

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  14. What a beautiful balance the two of you are! I hope he had a marvelous birthday!

    And I love your dinner dishes.

    ReplyDelete

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