Fourteen

I finally know just what it means to let someone in
To see the side of me that no one does or ever will
So if you’re ever lost and find yourself all alone
I'd search forever just to bring you home
Here and now, this I vow

By now you know that,
I'd come for you,
No one but you,
Yes I'd come for you,
But only if you told me to,
And I'd fight for you,
I'd lie it's true,
Give my life for you,
You know I'd always come for you,
You know I'd always come for you.
–Nickelback, I'd Come For You

Mr. Bug and I were married 14 years ago today, at 7:40 am {which is why my hair looks a little ratty} in the Salt Lake LDS Temple. It has been an adventure. We've had our ups and downs. The mundane takes its toll. But despite {or perhaps because of} all the hard times, the good times are worth it. I love Mr. Bug and I want to commemorate our 14 years together with a little bit of the why I love him. I solicited his help and together we put together a playlist of {you guessed it} fourteen songs that remind us of us.

I also made a little list of a few things that I love about Mr. Bug. I decided to write this next part as if I were speaking directly to him rather than to an audience. After all, it is for him {but you are welcome to read it too if you're not overly grossed out by all the mush going on around here today}. In no particular order:

14 Reasons Why I Love You
1. I love your sense of humor . You make me laugh and I love to hear you laugh. Dinner is a favorite time of the day for me, because I know you're going to say something funny and make us all laugh.
2. I love that your smile reaches your eyes {which are brown, not hazel, which I also love}.
3. I love your curly hair. Thanks for wearing it longer for me the last little while. I know you like it shorter.
4. I think it is incredibly sexy and manly that you can go from clean-shaven to a full beard in 1.9 days. Thank you for wearing a beard for me all these years. You're my kind of tall, dark and handsome.
5. You are a wonderful father to our children.
6. I'm proud to be married to a military veteran {and so glad you served before we met and were kept safe and protected so we could meet}. I love to hear about all places you've been. My favorite is that you, personally, navigated the Panama Canal. How cool is that?
7. I like that we fall asleep holding hands most nights.
8. I love that there are secrets that only you and I know.
9. Thanks for letting me do my thing and be me. Thanks for letting me have my projects {and not complaining that they are everywhere instead of neat and orderly and contained} and discover lots of ways to be creative.
10. I love that our date nights are predictably almost always dinner and a movie. It is so fun to go out with you. And I look forward to our stay-in-and-watch-TV-{with-snacks}-after-the-kids-have-gone-to-bed dates too.
11. I love that you are an incredibly non-picky eater and while you love variety and are always looking for yummy things to eat, you eat {and love} tuna casserole and you don't complain if dinner sometimes doesn't come out a culinary masterpiece.
12. I am ever amazed at your infinite capacity to see things in a positive light.
13. I love that you are {mostly} calm and patient and rational when I am {mostly} not. Thanks for being the Petruchio to my Katherina, the Pooh Bear to my Eyeore, the Buzz Lightyear to my Sheriff Woody, the Chandler to my Monica, the yin to my yang.
14. While you are not classically romantic, you hold onto me in your own quiet way. You don't keep score but you play to win. And we make it work. Thanks for that.

Happy Anniversary, Mr Bug. I love you.

{November 1, 2008}