Today we are celebrating one of my favorite people on Earth's 31st birthday, Devin!
One of my favorite bloggers Cara (I wrote about her here) makes these adorable signs for her family members on their birthdays and I just love them:
One of my favorite bloggers Cara (I wrote about her here) makes these adorable signs for her family members on their birthdays and I just love them:
This picture is from Cara's Instagram
My handwriting is not nearly good enough for that though so while I didn't make him a sign, I wrote down 31 things I love about Devin for today. Hopefully these 31 things can help you get to know him a little bit better! FYI these are in no particular order-- I just wrote them down as they came to me!
My handwriting is not nearly good enough for that though so while I didn't make him a sign, I wrote down 31 things I love about Devin for today. Hopefully these 31 things can help you get to know him a little bit better! FYI these are in no particular order-- I just wrote them down as they came to me!
1. He is the most loyal person I've ever met. I love to see how loyal he is to everyone he knows and loves. It doesn't matter if you are family, a friend, or a coworker. He will always be the one to back you up if someone is saying something negative about you, he will lend a helping hand around your house/yard no questions asked, he will do whatever it takes to make your life easier if you are one of his people. Which makes me feel really lucky to be one. :)
2. He is incredibly flexible. It is almost impossible to get Devin bent out of shape over plans getting changed. This is a wonderful quality to have in a husband, especially since I am not always this way and need to be reminded to take a chill pill.
Dev and I with our nephew, Landen, in 2015.
3. He LOVES my family. Not just tolerates them because they are his in-laws, but truly truly loves them, which warms my heart. Sometimes he will swing by their house on his way home from work to pick up Lily Grace and stay to hang out with my parents for a bit, which completely warms my heart. He also treats my sisters as if they were his own sisters and absolutely adores our nephew.
He may kill me for this picture :)
4. He does not take himself, or life, too seriously. Devin can be serious when he needs to be, but more often than not is the one cracking a joke. He loves to make other people laugh (who doesn't?!) and is really good at it. Which beings me to my next one...
5. He has a really quirky sense of humor and I love it because so do I :). This guy perfected the dad jokes before he was even a dad and has stayed committed to making us laugh with his cheesiness.
Dev and I in China, 2015
6. He loves to travel and encourages me to go to places I wouldn't otherwise go. Devin travels a lot for work, but he also loves to travel for fun (which I love because so do I!).
7. He is very athletic and encourages me to be too. I signed up to run my first 5k ever in 2011 and was a little intimidated.. and even though Devin was an experienced runner, he ran by my side the whole time. We have run both of our full marathons together and he encourages me the whole way.
8. That being said, he can totally appreciate a lazy day as much as anyone else. You want to binge watch something on Netflix and eat junk food? He's your guy for that too... he'll just make us go for a run the following day :)
Devin winning an award for work, 2017
9. Devin is a VERY hard worker and has thrived in his career because of this. It is very inspiring to see someone move up so many times and be such a valued employee at his company at such a young age. He is great about going the extra mile at work when he needs to, but then also taking a random weekday off to spend with the family to make up for lost time.
10. Devin is super smart (which can sometimes be annoying, because he is always right). It is a great quality to have though because I know I can come to him with most complicated problems/questions and he either already knows the answer or knows exactly what to do to get the answer.
Devin and Lily Grace (2 weeks old) twinning.
11. He is a phenomenal dad. No matter how tired he is from a long day at work, jet lag, or something else, he always has the energy to play with Lily Grace. She wants to be chased around the backyard? He's in. She wants to be tossed in the air? He's in. She wants to climb all over him like a jungle gym? He's in. That being said...
Devin and LG at the beach, 2018.
12. Devin has the perfect balance of being fun and nurturing, while also being stern without being too stern. It's to the point where Lily Grace now knows I'm the weaker one and will come to me when she wants something dad will say no to-- hah! She doesn't want to go to bed yet? She will come to me and ask for "1 more book" because she knows when dad says 1 more he actually means 1 more, not 3 or 4 more.
13. He is a great friend. He makes a big effort to try to stay in touch with his friends he doesn't see very often. He is great about calling an old friend on the way home from work, or calling a friend to catch up while waiting around at an airport (something he does a lot of). He could just as easily be doing anything else, but it is important to him to keep in touch with those he loves. He is also happy to give up his time to help friends with projects around their houses. Here he is spending a Saturday helping friends build something (I honestly have no idea what this was!):
14. He is a devoted grandson. We recently lost Devin's grandfather at age 96 but luckily Devin made sure we spent as much time with his grandparents as possible. We try to go visit them in Jacksonville, FL at least twice a year. His grandmother is still there and we have plans to go see her this June, July, and also December. It's a 6+ hour drive each way, but worth every single minute we get to spend with family.
One year Devin made heart shapes ravioli for Valentine's Day. They were delicious! That little ball in the middle was just extra dough and stuffing.. and yes he dyed the dough pink/red. 😂
15. He LOVES to cook, and is really good at it! This might be one of my all time favorite things about him because when I am tired at the end of the day and he offers to cook, I know it will be a delicious meal that I had nothing to do with, which always makes it taste even better right?
16. He is adventurous with trying new foods. He is always down to try something new, despite how weird it seems. When we were in China he ate a fried grasshopper (I did not!) and tried some other unique foods that most people would shy away from. I think this just adds to his fun personality, he will always be down to try something.
17. He is kind/polite to everyone, no matter what. I have never EVER seen him lose his temper on someone, no matter how frustrated he gets. Which leads me to...
18. He is very patient. I can sometimes be that person who changes her mind about 47 times before I settle on a decision, which I know drives him crazy, yet he rarely loses his patience.
19. He can have a conversation with anyone-- it doesn't matter if he's known you for years or for 5 minutes, he can find some common ground that you two have and have a conversation. Which makes him a great date for parties where I don't know everyone! I am a little more reserved at first but Dev can make anyone feel more comfortable right out of the gate.
Here we are hiking the trails at the USNWC last summer
20. He loves to be outside and do all types of outdoorsy things.. which makes me happy because so do I! Before Lily Grace was born we used to get season passes to the U.S. National Whitewater Center every year and we would go as often as possible either with friends, or just on our own. Lil is too young to really appreciate it now, but I know we are both looking forward to when she (and baby #2!) are old enough to be able to go and enjoy the activities.
21. He is always very supportive of me and whatever thing I am passionate about at the time. I wanted to learn Italian? He listened to me attempt to speak it for months and then encouraged me to actually use it when we went to Italy. I wanted to improve in photography? He helped me find a DSLR camera and agreed to be my muse. These things and so many more and I love him for that.
22. He's always pushing me to be my best self and to grow. As I used to tell my students parents in parent teacher conferences, no human being on Earth is perfect and we all have room for growth. Devin loves to encourage me to improve myself without ever making me feel like I am lacking or not good enough. He's just there to help me if I want to get better.
23. We are on the same page about most of the important things in life, which makes life (and marriage!) a lot easier!
24. He is a great compromiser. While we are on the same page about most of the important things, we are pretty different in a lot of areas too so we don't always see eye to eye. Luckily he knows and appreciates the importance of compromise.
Lily Grace at her first sporting event-- a Charlotte Knights game!
At a Boston Red Sox game summer 2017
25. He loves sports and going to sporting events, which I do too! I grew up watching or going to various sporting events with my dad and am so happy to have a husband who loves it too. His favorite is football, hands down, but he also loves to watch soccer. He loves to go to basketball and baseball (my favorite!) games with me and it makes me so happy!
27. So this one used to drive me nuts, but now I LOVE it-- he cannot sit still when at the beach. I love to sit in my chair, drink in my hand, and read book after book after book. Devin on the other hand, can't sit for more than 5 minutes without getting bored. This used to drive me crazy but now that we have Lily Grace, he spends his beach time playing with her while I get to read.
28. Whenever we are on a flight together and only one of us gets upgraded, he gives it to me every single time. He gets upgraded a lot because of how much he travels and insists that I take it... and who will say no to that??!
29. He has learned to appreciate history, which he did not used to like. He is very much a math/science guy who used to hate reading and found history boring. But as he begins to travel more (and read more!) he has learned to love it. Not quite as much as I do, but he's getting there :) Which brings me to...
30. He has learned to love to read! He used to never read for fun and told me he hated reading growing up. I guess all the required books for school and summer reading were never his type of books and he struggled to find something he loved to read about. Now he reads probably about 1 book a month, which is about 1 book a month more than he used to!
31. He makes me feel good about myself without putting me on a pedestal. He has realistic expectations of what a wife/mom/friend/daughter/etc. should be and always makes me feel like I'm doing a great job at any of the above.
Happy birthday Devin!! I love you so much!
3. He LOVES my family. Not just tolerates them because they are his in-laws, but truly truly loves them, which warms my heart. Sometimes he will swing by their house on his way home from work to pick up Lily Grace and stay to hang out with my parents for a bit, which completely warms my heart. He also treats my sisters as if they were his own sisters and absolutely adores our nephew.
4. He does not take himself, or life, too seriously. Devin can be serious when he needs to be, but more often than not is the one cracking a joke. He loves to make other people laugh (who doesn't?!) and is really good at it. Which beings me to my next one...
5. He has a really quirky sense of humor and I love it because so do I :). This guy perfected the dad jokes before he was even a dad and has stayed committed to making us laugh with his cheesiness.
6. He loves to travel and encourages me to go to places I wouldn't otherwise go. Devin travels a lot for work, but he also loves to travel for fun (which I love because so do I!).
8. That being said, he can totally appreciate a lazy day as much as anyone else. You want to binge watch something on Netflix and eat junk food? He's your guy for that too... he'll just make us go for a run the following day :)
9. Devin is a VERY hard worker and has thrived in his career because of this. It is very inspiring to see someone move up so many times and be such a valued employee at his company at such a young age. He is great about going the extra mile at work when he needs to, but then also taking a random weekday off to spend with the family to make up for lost time.
10. Devin is super smart (which can sometimes be annoying, because he is always right). It is a great quality to have though because I know I can come to him with most complicated problems/questions and he either already knows the answer or knows exactly what to do to get the answer.
11. He is a phenomenal dad. No matter how tired he is from a long day at work, jet lag, or something else, he always has the energy to play with Lily Grace. She wants to be chased around the backyard? He's in. She wants to be tossed in the air? He's in. She wants to climb all over him like a jungle gym? He's in. That being said...
12. Devin has the perfect balance of being fun and nurturing, while also being stern without being too stern. It's to the point where Lily Grace now knows I'm the weaker one and will come to me when she wants something dad will say no to-- hah! She doesn't want to go to bed yet? She will come to me and ask for "1 more book" because she knows when dad says 1 more he actually means 1 more, not 3 or 4 more.
13. He is a great friend. He makes a big effort to try to stay in touch with his friends he doesn't see very often. He is great about calling an old friend on the way home from work, or calling a friend to catch up while waiting around at an airport (something he does a lot of). He could just as easily be doing anything else, but it is important to him to keep in touch with those he loves. He is also happy to give up his time to help friends with projects around their houses. Here he is spending a Saturday helping friends build something (I honestly have no idea what this was!):
14. He is a devoted grandson. We recently lost Devin's grandfather at age 96 but luckily Devin made sure we spent as much time with his grandparents as possible. We try to go visit them in Jacksonville, FL at least twice a year. His grandmother is still there and we have plans to go see her this June, July, and also December. It's a 6+ hour drive each way, but worth every single minute we get to spend with family.
15. He LOVES to cook, and is really good at it! This might be one of my all time favorite things about him because when I am tired at the end of the day and he offers to cook, I know it will be a delicious meal that I had nothing to do with, which always makes it taste even better right?
16. He is adventurous with trying new foods. He is always down to try something new, despite how weird it seems. When we were in China he ate a fried grasshopper (I did not!) and tried some other unique foods that most people would shy away from. I think this just adds to his fun personality, he will always be down to try something.
17. He is kind/polite to everyone, no matter what. I have never EVER seen him lose his temper on someone, no matter how frustrated he gets. Which leads me to...
18. He is very patient. I can sometimes be that person who changes her mind about 47 times before I settle on a decision, which I know drives him crazy, yet he rarely loses his patience.
19. He can have a conversation with anyone-- it doesn't matter if he's known you for years or for 5 minutes, he can find some common ground that you two have and have a conversation. Which makes him a great date for parties where I don't know everyone! I am a little more reserved at first but Dev can make anyone feel more comfortable right out of the gate.
20. He loves to be outside and do all types of outdoorsy things.. which makes me happy because so do I! Before Lily Grace was born we used to get season passes to the U.S. National Whitewater Center every year and we would go as often as possible either with friends, or just on our own. Lil is too young to really appreciate it now, but I know we are both looking forward to when she (and baby #2!) are old enough to be able to go and enjoy the activities.
21. He is always very supportive of me and whatever thing I am passionate about at the time. I wanted to learn Italian? He listened to me attempt to speak it for months and then encouraged me to actually use it when we went to Italy. I wanted to improve in photography? He helped me find a DSLR camera and agreed to be my muse. These things and so many more and I love him for that.
22. He's always pushing me to be my best self and to grow. As I used to tell my students parents in parent teacher conferences, no human being on Earth is perfect and we all have room for growth. Devin loves to encourage me to improve myself without ever making me feel like I am lacking or not good enough. He's just there to help me if I want to get better.
23. We are on the same page about most of the important things in life, which makes life (and marriage!) a lot easier!
24. He is a great compromiser. While we are on the same page about most of the important things, we are pretty different in a lot of areas too so we don't always see eye to eye. Luckily he knows and appreciates the importance of compromise.
25. He loves sports and going to sporting events, which I do too! I grew up watching or going to various sporting events with my dad and am so happy to have a husband who loves it too. His favorite is football, hands down, but he also loves to watch soccer. He loves to go to basketball and baseball (my favorite!) games with me and it makes me so happy!
At Disney for our first marathon in 2016
And our second one in 2018
26. This is random, but he loves Disney World about as much as a kid-- and it brings out the inner kid in him! Devin had only been to DisneyWorld once as a kid, and he was so young he doesn't remember it. We went together for the first time when we ran the marathon in 2016, and he LOVED it! He wanted to go back to run again, and is probably more excited than anyone in my family that we are going later this year-- and my family loves Disney!27. So this one used to drive me nuts, but now I LOVE it-- he cannot sit still when at the beach. I love to sit in my chair, drink in my hand, and read book after book after book. Devin on the other hand, can't sit for more than 5 minutes without getting bored. This used to drive me crazy but now that we have Lily Grace, he spends his beach time playing with her while I get to read.
28. Whenever we are on a flight together and only one of us gets upgraded, he gives it to me every single time. He gets upgraded a lot because of how much he travels and insists that I take it... and who will say no to that??!
30. He has learned to love to read! He used to never read for fun and told me he hated reading growing up. I guess all the required books for school and summer reading were never his type of books and he struggled to find something he loved to read about. Now he reads probably about 1 book a month, which is about 1 book a month more than he used to!
31. He makes me feel good about myself without putting me on a pedestal. He has realistic expectations of what a wife/mom/friend/daughter/etc. should be and always makes me feel like I'm doing a great job at any of the above.
Happy birthday Devin!! I love you so much!
What a nice post about your husband; it is nice to appreciate those things about him. My husband is the same way at the beach, can't sit still, meanwhile I could fall asleep after being there for five minutes. But he loves to play with the kids!
ReplyDeleteIt's so nice NOW! A few years ago when I was trying to relax.. less nice 😂
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