Mi Amor

At the risk of sounding like a total cheeseball, I have to write a tribute to this guy today:

After all, it is his 28th birthday.  That only happens once in a lifetime.

At our wedding reception, my dad gave a toast for me and Ryan.  He said how happy he was to have Ryan as a son-in-law and listed off some of Ry's good qualities.  Then he said, "In addition to all of that, my daughters tell me that Ryan is 'hot.'  I am not a judge of such matters.  So, all you ladies in the house, if you think Ryan is hot, please make some noise!"  Of course the place went wild with hooting and clapping, and poor shy Ry was quite red-faced.  To that my dad said, "It appears by the color of his cheeks that he is indeed hot."

The moment:

I don't know why my wedding is on the brain these past few days (I must be in a foreign country dreaming of my hubby), but I just wanted to say on this his 28th birthday that Ryan is indeed hot.  And on top of that, he is wonderful in every way.

Two recent experiences to illustrate that fact:

When we are in the grocery store together, Ryan always does the check-out so that I can read the celebrity tabloids.  Yes, I will admit it, I like to peruse US Weekly in the grocery store; I refuse to purchase such trashy journalism, but who can resist skimming a good celebrity headline?  Anyway, when Ryan is done with the check-out, I sometimes don't realize it because I am so sucked in to my intellectual reading.  After a minute or two, I will look up and see him standing by the door with the cart full of bags, waiting patiently for me to finish.  I will slam the magazine shut and run over to help him.  Luckily for me, he is never mad, and it makes me want to kiss him right then and there.  (And sometimes I do.)

I have been thinking a lot about adoption these past few weeks, and one day, while lying next to Ryan in bed, I verbalized one of my irrational concerns: "What if the baby that we adopt grows up and doesn't have social skills?"  Ryan smiled and said, "We will love him or her, no matter what."  I continued, "Will you be okay with it if the baby has a disability?"  He didn't even hesitate.  "Of course.  Our biological baby could have a disability too, and all kids deserve to be loved."  That is exactly how I have always felt.

With Ryan by my side, the inevitable future challenges of life (whether or not they have anything to do with our children) seem less daunting.  He is steady and wise and good to the core.

And cute to boot:

Happy Birthday, Ryan.  When you pick me up from the airport tomorrow, you better be prepared to get a birthday squeeze.