100 Things I Like/Love About Tim

1. His eyes – I always knew I’d marry a brown eyed man!
2. His hair – brown hair was always my ideal in a man.
3. The way he used to carry around his old, tattered NLT Bible and our youth pastor called it the TVV: the Tim V Version!
4. The hulking heavy metal cross he made in metal shop and wore every day in high school
5. The way he always had his Walkman in the front pocket of his grey coat in high school. I remember how honored I was when he let me borrow it once.
6. How we were friend for years before we got together as a couple.
7. That I already knew his family, at least a little, before we got together.
8. His lifelong obsession with his hair: he used to do all sorts of wild things with a hairdryer and hairspray and he regularly got the back of his hair permed (keep in mind we were fresh out of the 80’s, his favorite decade). Later, he grew it out. Much later, he joined the military and has had to keep it short ever since. (I love it short.) Now, to his dismay, it’s thinning dramatically.
9. That he knew the history with my former boyfriends and still wanted me.
10. Those pink parachute pants he used to love so much!
11. That he introduced me to all sorts of food I’d never had growing up, including Chinese and Middle Eastern.
12. That we started going out before we could drink champagne and drank white grape juice in champagne glasses instead!
13. How, when we were going out and were walking together holding hands, he’d never let anything come between us – a stop sign or post, people. He thought it was a bad sign!
14. His strong Italian nose.
15. How much he loves 80’s music.
16. How loyal he is to his friends.
17. How forgiving he is of people who have hurt him in the past.
18. I love laughing with him. With life always barreling on ahead of us, it’s hard to connect sometimes for long enough to have a good laugh, but when we do it’s great. No one can make me laugh like him.
19. That he loves me no matter what color or length my hair is. He’s very adaptable like that.
20. That he was right next to me, sharing in my shock and fear on September 11, 2001.
21. That he joined the military because of 9/11.
22. That he is dedicated to taking care of his family financially and physically.
23. That we stayed on the Oregon Coast for our honeymoon. It’s still our favorite place.
24. How we’ve been together so long I can predict his actions and words so often.
25. The continent-shaped birth mark on his leg.
26. The scar on his chin that matches little Ian’s.
27. How he has called Sean “Friend” since he was born.
28. The stories he tells the kids.
29. How he keeps his fingernails so short.
30. That he plays the keyboard, guitar, drums, and bass.
31. I love to hear him play the piano. It makes me feel so much love for him when he creates amazing, harmonious sounds like that.
32. That he insists we all “stick together” everywhere we go. Sometimes it drives us all nuts, but he feels strongly about it and it’s respectable when I decide to see it that way.
33. How he insisted on fighting for our marriage when all hope was gone.
34. How he sings “Mr Sandman, Bring me Darice” to me.
35. He also sings “You Are My Sunshine” to me. So sweet.
36. That he tried to propose on his front porch to me, with “Everything I Do” by Bryan Adams playing in the background. I stopped him, because I wasn’t sure it was the right time. Minutes later some friends walked up the stairs and started chatting with us and I was glad he had waited.
37. That “Lovers and Dreamers” by Whiteheart was playing when he finally did get to propose.
38. I used to be annoyed by how he always wanted me to accompany him to meetings and such when I didn’t feel it was necessary that I be there. It occurred to me late last year (after many, many years) that he draws confidence from my presence and I should see it as a compliment. I doubt it we will ever fight about it again.
39. How he knows me so well he knows what to buy me for my birthday, where I’d like to go to dinner and what I’d order on a menu.
40. How we crawl into bed and watch movies at night.
41. That he learned to love Harry Connick, Jr. with me.
42. That he bought me an iPod for Christmas a couple years ago because he knew I wanted one so badly. He told me we couldn’t afford it, and then bought it when I wasn’t looking and surprised me!
43. That he almost always likes whatever I make him for dinner, and eats it even if he doesn’t.
44. That he says nice things about my backside!
45. That he has never once made me feel ugly, despite my having acne for most of my life and every day of our marriage (aside from times I have been on Accutane). I know he loves me as I am, no matter what I look like.
46. That he wrote the music to two songs that I wrote the lyrics to.
47. That funny noise he makes when he smells something stinky. It’s kind of a cross between a horse neighing and a baby sneezing.
48. His lips.
49. The way he rolls into bed when he’s tired and makes grunting noises like his old dog Duke.
50. His fake Irish accent.
51. The funny pictures and notes he leaves the kids every year from “Santa”.
52. When he makes me tea in the evening and brings it to me with a small treat in the saucer.
53. How he’s been willing to learn how to make my tea properly! No more leaving the bag in the cup!
54. That he reads my blog when he can.
55. That he encourages me to write and to take classes on photography.
56. That he tolerates whatever the latest thing is that I’m excited about doing (over the years it’s been starting a baby carrier business with Heather, having a cooking blog, saving money to invest or get started in the real estate business, going on cross-country trips, starting to make jewelry, crocheting, knitting, baking, selling on eBay, buying lots of purses, getting a sewing machine with lofty plans, etc.)
57. That he supported me in my buy-all-the-orange-underwear-I-can-get-my-hands-on phase!
58. His amazing sense of direction.
59. For the time we were asleep in Paris and every time he breathed out his tummy made a funny froggy-croaking sound. We both woke up laughing.
60. How we both like sweet red wine.
61. That he likes the way I make tea and coffee.
62. The way he oohs and ahhs over meals I put a lot of effort into.
63. That he took me to Paris.
64. He took me to London.
65. Our date nights.
66. (Stuff you don’t want to know!)
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71. That he’s the father of all my beautiful babies.
72. That he’s not anxious for our oldest to join the military, even though he himself is in and Sean seems determined to join.
73. That he has started saving money for our future.
74. That he makes plans with me for what we’ll do when we retire.
75. That he loves our hometown and wants to go back there eventually.
76. That he’s from the same town as me.
77. That he loves God.
78. That he prays with our kids.
79. That he takes time to teach them about God.
80. That he shows the kids all sorts of stupid movies. I personally hate them, but the kids laugh with him.
81. That he methodically watched all the Star Trek TV shows with the kids, starting with the oldest and moving to the newest, until they had seen them all. Now they’re watching the old Lost in Space shows.
82. That he’s committed us as a family to our current church.
83. That he remains friends with people he loses touch with and makes an effort to find them.
84. His love for his sister and parents.
85. That he readily considers my family to be his. He practically grew up with my little brother (we got married when he was 5).
86. His hairy legs. Oo-La-la.
87. His smooth arms. Not much hair there. I love it!
88. His long, piano playing fingers. I love his hands.
89. How he was among the first to call me Reese (Amber was the first, I think).
90. How he used to leave love notes in my locker in high school.
91. That we shared a locker for the last semester of his senior year.
92. How he described our first kiss as “bombs going off” and "explosions”!
93. That he was there for the births of all our children. That he still loved me after I yelled at him when he tried to give me a breath mint for my bad breath when I was panting in his face (while in labor with our daughter). I’m sorry I embarrassed him.
94. For calling me on the phone when he’s away.
95. For loving me.
96. How he holds my hand so comfortably, and kisses me with familiarity. None of it holds the “explosions” of long ago, but instead a deeply valuable steadiness and comfort.
97. Because we renewed our marriage vows and meant it.
98. The much-loved nostalgic smell of his favorite colognes. They smell like our history.
99. How he won’t kiss me when he’s sick because he doesn’t want to get me sick, but I kiss him anyway and sometimes he smiles when I do (other times he is insistent, and turns away.)
100. Our silly nicknames for each other: Rotten and Nasty. Neither of us can remember who’s who.

~Reese