owl love you forever :)

as much as valentine's day makes me gag... i can appreciate a special day, or week, to really focus on love for other people. i am, in fact, challenging my 5th graders to perform random acts of kindness this week in honor of this lovey dovey hallmark holiday. my hope is that they will realize how good it makes them feel, and therefore continue such kindness throughout the whole year. fat chance, huh? hahaha, a girl can dream though...

lucky for you...i did not log on my blog today to talk about 5th graders. i am here to talk about a man who exhibits random acts of kindness daily. this particularly handsome fellow is my husband, craig.

of course craig is my husband and i love him deeply just for the fact that he IS my husband. unfortunately, i am learning more and more that a lot of spouses love each other just because they are married and they know that are supposed to love each other and it ends at that. while that may keep some marriages afloat, thank GOD mine does not fall into that category. it's just not that easy for us...and i'm glad. it takes two to make a marriage work, but let me tell you why my other half takes the cake.

craig does so much for me that if i tried to name all the things, i would instantly fall short. day after day he does countless acts to make my life easier. and, i'd be lying if i said that sometimes i don't take them for granted. i know he wants to be the best husband he can, but i don't think that's why he does stuff to help me or make me feel good. i think he does it because he is truly just a selfless giver. he wants to help people. if he can help, he's there. and not only does he do that for me, but he does it for everyone-even people he might barely know. even when he KNOWS the recipient of his help may not appreciate it like they should, or when he knows they would never do the same for him... he does it anyway. he is just a good man. he doesn't do the bare minimum. he gives 110% in all that he does.

i know that, like most parents, craig's parents are proud of him-- but geesh, i am certain they have more reasons than most to be proud. he is definitely a model husband, but he is undeniably and postively a model father. every day he amazes me with his patience and love for ben. i knew he would be a good dad... but it's an area that he has gone above and beyond. heaven forbid that something should happen to me, but i could leave this world in five minutes and i would have no hesitation about leaving ben soley in craig's care. i have felt that way since the day ben was born. craig was so nervous about caring for ben as a baby and doing the right thing. but he has never flinched or questioned it...he just does the right thing instinctively. and as ben is growing, craig continually grows with him. he bathes him, feeds him, puts him to bed, brushes his teeth, takes him to school, reads him books, gives him medicine, hugs and kisses on him, checks his school bag, makes sure he has a good coat and hat on, puts bug spray on him, tells him how proud he is of him... don't get me wrong- i do all those things too, but craig knows exactly how to efficiently accomplish all of those tasks, among many others, without asking me anything or without me asking him to do them. i know, first hand, that not all dads can or will do those things. not only CAN craig do them....he wants to. he just has a fatherly intuition that is stronger than he gives himself credit for. ben is the luckiest little boy i know.

as far as being a husband, craig is my lobster. i knew it 10 years ago and i know it even more today. there is no other man on this planet who can do for me what craig does. he provides for me on many levels. he is my best friend. he loves me when i feel like no one else does. he loves me even when he knows i am wrong. he loves me when i am being impossible to love.

oh, and did i mention that he is beautifully hand crafted into a major STUD muffin? i mean, if you have eyes, you know this is true. he is perfectly proportioned with those dark brown eyes and that thick dark brown hair. he is the epitome of "tall, dark and handsome." the genes are good. definitely good.

so, to sum it up...i just want everyone to know how absolutely amazing he is. he does all of the above and never complains. never.

and it would be just so wrong if i didn't throw in a cheesy-lindsay-play-on-language-line to go along with my valentine's week, epic long blog. i believe it certainly merits something so great. :) so, here ya go... this one's for you, craig...

"owl" love him forever.