Today is a very special day. I am excited to announce that it is our 26th wedding anniversary. TWENTY-SIX YEARS! I know that is not a long time compared to many, but it’s remarkable to me. I mean, when I met Doug the thought of getting married was the last thing on my mind. I didn’t think it was possible for me to be happily married for life, and if it wasn’t for life I didn’t want anything to do with it. But, now I’m one of those people who’s on her way to a Golden Anniversary, still happy to see his face and still reaching under the sheet for his hand in the middle of the night.

I’m blessed, and grateful.

Anyway, to honor him, the man of the hour and the man of my dreams, I want to share 26 Reasons I Loved Him Then, and Love Him Still. It’s not a complete list of all the reasons I love him, but it’s the things that come to mind first.

1. He knew how to pronounce my name. My name was Caroline Mosqueda, and I never expected anyone to get it right. My first name was usually pronounced CaroLYN, and my maiden name was always butchered. He got them both right, the first time. Even better, though, he actually was concerned he had pronounced them correctly. I was impressed.

2. He loved my parents, even my Dad, whom he never met—except through me. My Mother was more than his mother-in-law; she was his spiritual Mom. She trusted him like a son.

3. He believed in my dreams. Still does.

4. He noticed things about me that I didn’t think anyone could see. He still does.

5. He has been in charge of bathroom cleaning for 26 years. (I think that makes him a hero.)

6. He makes me laugh. And, lets me make him laugh, too.

7. He does a great Peanuts dance. It’s usually at a moment when you don’t expect it, and always at Christmas time, when that song plays from “A Charlie Brown Christmas.”

8. He introduced me to jazz.

9. He brought me to Boston.

10. He is always willing to learn new things. He can teach himself anything!

11. He respects my quirks and eccentricities. (I have several.)

12. He made me handmade, pop-up cards. Still have them, of course.

13. He wears his heart for Jesus on his sleeve. When he came to Christ, he fell head over heels in love with his Savior.

14. He has endured my sinfulness, selfishness, insecurities, and immaturity with love and patience.

15. He doesn’t have anything to prove. Ever.

16. He kills all the bugs. That means literally, and figuratively. He does all the dirty work.

17. He does things I’m afraid to do, but gives me courage to do the things I need to do myself.

18. He’s really nice. He is kind to everyone. He knew all the patients at the care facility where his mother lived. By name. Knew their loved ones. Knew the staff. And, he didn’t know them for any politically reason. He has compassion for people, and it shows.

19. He cares about my opinion. Well, 99 times out of 100. Those are pretty good odds.

20. He has become an example to me. He has become someone I can safely ask for counsel. I can trust his advice.

21. He has always protected me. Always looked out for my wellness and safety.

22. Do I list the ways he cared for me, when I had cancer and during that long and complication-filled recovery? Do I list every time he had to nurse my huge wound? Or, every time he had to sit with me in a doctor’s office? Or, how he kept me calm in E.R.s? Do I list the many times he had to inject me with blood thinners? Oy! This guy had nurses in awe of the fine care he gave his wife. He didn’t have to be that guy, but he did it without flinching.

23. He always tries to fit one of my favorite worship songs into his song list, especially when he knows I really need to hear it.

24. He speaks truth with compassion. He says such hard things so well.

25. He has given his daughter an example that guards her from foolish men.

26. He is always growing. Always trying to be more like Christ. I respect him so much as a man of God. It’s really what I love about him most.

Now, there is ONE thing he doesn’t do that I have never liked very much at all: he doesn’t play his saxophone for me at home. Can you imagine that? I mean, of all things! Well, I guess nobody’s perfect.