A few days late, yes, but it would be remiss for me to skip a Father’s Day post. Because I am lucky enough to have a wonderful husband, and Henry is lucky enough to have a wonderful father. And he deserves to be honored!
I met Kristien when I was rather young (19), and I was coming out of another intense relationship. When we eventually started to date, I wasn’t in the mindset of, “Could this be my husband?†as I might have been if I had met him a few years later. I imagine that if I was older, I would’ve held him up to some imaginary checklist of what I’d want my husband to be like. I would’ve discussed his characteristics and qualities with my girlfriends, fantasizing about whether he’d be a good dad and provider. But way back then, I just knew that I liked his personality and we had a lot of chemistry.
Days turned into months, and the months turned into years, and we were still together and happier every single day. We started to build a life together, moving into the same apartment when we were 22, and before I knew it, I looked at my hand and saw a beautiful ring. By 24, we were married. I felt so old and mature at the time, but in hindsight, we were just getting started.
A few weeks back, my brother-in-law asked me for my #1 piece of life advice. I immediately said, “Make sure you pick a good partner,†but the thing is – I don’t feel like I consciously selected Kristien. In many ways, Kristien and I grew up together, and who we were at 19 is not who we are at 29. When we were dating, I never held him up to an imaginary husband checklist. But knowing everything I know now about what I want and value about life, if I had done that, Kristien would’ve checked every single box.
The (big and small) reasons I love Kristien:
We are sad when we are apart, even for a few hours. We do lots of stuff alone, but we both get lonely without each other.
He takes care of the zoo – caring for Henry, feeding the pups, cleaning up after the cat. He does it all without being asked because he loves our crazy crowd.
He really, really loves animals and get upset when he sees roadkill. What a softie.
He sings all the time. And he’s pretty good!
He works extremely hard. I am bursting with gratitude every single day. I cannot thank him enough for the effort he puts in at work.
He does all the lawn care. I hate yardwork!
He protects and prioritizes me.
He is passionate about his hobbies and supports me in mine.
He lets me sleep in on his days off.
He has lots of funny nicknames for Henry – my favorites are “Bud Spud†and “Monster Munch.â€
We know what the other will say before they even open their mouth.
He likes couch and TV time as much as I do. He likes exploring and trying new things as much as I do. The perfect mix of homebody and busy bee.
Whenever Henry sees Kristien, he erupts into a stream of “Dad! Dad! Dad! Dad!†You know a dad is loved when the baby repeats his name over and over again.
Hello! British accent.
I don’t talk about Kristien too much on the ol’ bloggy, but I just had to shout it from the Internet rooftops: He’s the best husband and father that I could’ve hoped for. Henry and I are so lucky, and we are thankful for his love every single day.
Sometimes I get emails asking me how Kristien and I have such a perfect relationship and how we avoid fighting – that makes me want to laugh because we certainly have our battles and do not have a perfect relationship! No one does. But what does make him the perfect husband for me is that he is always willing to talk, grow, and learn with me. He’s a true partner, and although I don’t feel like I picked him, I know that I am pretty damn lucky he fell into my lap.
Happy Father’s Day!
You are very blessed indeed! I feel the exact same way about my husband and our children are so lucky he is their father! Hooray for good men!