Thirty

Today is the birthday of someone very special to me.

My dear, darling husband, John, turned 30.

It's something that has been weighing on him a lot. We both feel enormous pressure to have everything figured out and be completely settled. I mean, by the time you're 30, everything should be sunshine and rainbows. We should be financially secure, have a couple of kids, steady jobs, and enjoy our typical 'Murican life. You know, live up to everyone else's expectations.

That's probably the worst thing we could do.

So, I'm going to take a moment and talk about what he has accomplished.

John and I have known each other for 12 years now. I've seen him change from an awkward, unsure young person into a slightly less awkward, and slightly more assured adult. But what has never changed is his smile. Or his ability to make me laugh. And twelve years is a very long time to make someone laugh so damn much.

ACCOMPLISHMENT THE FIRST: Keeping my sides split and the smile cracked wide across my face.

He has developed a deep passion for learning. Especially for anything space related. His drive to seek out new life information and go boldly where no man has gone before research all sorts of subjects to improve his knowledge is amazing.

This, in turn, has made him into an amazingly patient and enthusiastic tutor for Alex. Her grades have improved like crazy since John started helping her with her homework. And no, he doesn't just give her the answers. They seek them out together.

ACCOMPLISHMENT THE SECOND: Being a wickedly smart person who enjoys sharing his knowledge and joy for learning.

John has never lost his enthusiasm for music in all of its forms. He's been a member of the Dominic Greco Band for over a decade now.  He is constantly seeking out new genres and styles of music. Seeing how excited he gets when he starts talking about a new band he found never fails to make me smile.

Also, and this might be a little personal, I find it highly attractive when the man is playing his trumpet. Feel free to make your own crude music-related jokes here.

ACCOMPLISHMENT THE THIRD: Keeping a childhood passion alive and burning.

As I have stated before, I suffer from a few different mental illnesses. It's been a long, hard road to navigate. I've had to learn how to manage it. And John has never once complained about it.

I'm sure he's gotten frustrated with everything. And wished that my problems could just disappear. But when it comes right down to it, he has always had my back. He has worked his ass off to make sure that he had a job to support both of us. He picks up the slack when I am having one of my bad days.

He has been patient with me, held me when I needed it, and offered all of the love and support that he can.

ACCOMPLISHMENT THE FOURTH: Being the best damned husband that I could ever hope for.

So,  John, the happiest of birthdays to you. You are an amazing, incredible, accomplished human being. And I am so very lucky to have you as my partner, my husband, and my best friend.

Many, many, many happy returns of this day.

And if you haven't figured it out, I love you, dorkface. <3