23 Things I Appreciate About My Husband

Hello and welcome to a pretty spectacular Saturday here at the Wannaskan Almanac. Today is September 23rd.

Last weekend, hubby and I celebrated 23 years of marriage, 17 of which have been here in Wannaskaland. Like most marriages, I'm sure ours lands somewhere between "Good Grief!" and "Thank Goodness!" on the dysfunctional scale. But big picture-wise, I think we're doing okay so far.

In honor of our 23 years, on this 23rd day of September, here are 23 things I appreciate about my husband.

1. He can fix anything. Seriously. Anything.
2. He is a big adventurer. For example, he hiked down into the Grand Canyon and back up in one day. Twice. Once in his twenties and the second time 4 weeks ago.
3. He made sure our entire family learned how to ski. Even me. Today, we all love to ski. Well, everyone except the youngest who'll need some convincing after last winter's broken leg.
4. He's also the reason we do the crazy kind of camping trips we do. One of my absolute favorite (and hard and a little bit scary) camping trips was this one in Montana in 2018.
5. He doesn't care what other people think. This helps to remind me that I don't have to please all the people all the time and that sometimes what I think is going to be different - and that's okay. (Hat tip to College Kid 2.0 who gave me this one when I asked, "What do you appreciate about your dad?")
6. He has a very strong Catholic faith. He makes sure we pray together daily as a family, even when we "don't feel like it."
7. He has "fast hands." This is the term I use for people who are gifted with the ability to work quickly. I have "slow hands" which is also a gift and can be valuable in certain situations, but not when you're trying to pick buckets and buckets of blueberries.
8. He's musical. He has a gifted ear and plays guitar and trumpet. We sound nice together when we sing. I like that. He'll pull the guitar out and sing on a whim. I like that, too.
9. He has mastered the English language. While I do have a sizable Czech vocabulary and can mostly communicate what I mean, our daily lives and relationships are primarily in English.
10. He also has adjusted and adapted to American culture and life in the U.S. Can you imagine not living in the comfort of your own culture? I did it for 4 years, and I can tell you, it's not always sweet-smelling roses.
11. He is committed to me, as a spouse, and to our family. He feels responsible for all of us and I appreciate knowing that he's always got our back.
12. He can be really funny. He's the one who inspired one of my most popular posts, My Jalopia and one of the WAKWIR's posts, My Jalopia: A Rebirth, about my husband's beloved 1987 Jetta.
13. He follows the news. He values knowing what's going on in the world and this makes me more informed about the world.
14. He can carry a conversation on just about any topic. He even has opinions on bras. My dad once commented that my husband had an answer for every questions. To test his theory, my dad asked him, "What's in the center of chicken poop?" And, sure enough. Hubby had a serious and long explanation which was basically urine. My dad guffawed til he cried and said, "I would have been happy with "more chicken poop."
15. He watches Czech cartoons with the kids. Later, he and kids will sing the theme songs together.
16. When the kids finish their Czech homework, he gives them gummy bears. This, coming from a guy who is like a dental drill sergeant. "Brush! Floss! Rinse! Fluoride!"
17. Sometimes he acts out bedtime stories or makes up his own stories. 
18. He practices French on the Duolingo app. Every day. He recently celebrated 1,100 days of practice.
19. I never have to worry about taking care of our vehicles. Ever. He also always notices if I ding an occasional bumper.
20. We like the same kinds of movies and TV shows. Our latest indulgence is New Girl. Thanks to this blog post, he'll be thrilled to know that Season 3 of The Great has already dropped and aired. He told me this week, "Good news! Sci channel works!" 
21. We agree that a walk together is better than a dinner date.
22. He not only makes beer; he makes kombucha! He even serves me. Awww.... He likes to share his creations and is happy to serve drop-in guests. *wink wink* (Yes, that's an invitation.)
23. He's often willing to do last-minute tasks for me. Have you ever been in a situation where it's 11pm at night and you suddenly slap your forward and say, "I forgot to put out the Easter candy!"? Or it's 5am and you sit upright in bed and shriek, "The tooth fairy!"? Bless his heart.
24. He likes to play with the kids. He has a chasing game with the youngest that involves rubberbanding the two doors of the downstairs bathroom open so they can run in circles around and around from the bathroom, through our bedroom, into the hallway, and back to the bathroom.
25. He likes everything I cook. As long as it isn't burned and doesn't involve string beans.
26. He always says thank you.

That's more than 23, but, as I learned from my Wannaska Almanac peep, Ginny (aka Tea Poetry), and her "Ginny’s List of One Hundred and One Things to Write About" post, once you get on a roll, the ideas (and this case, gratitude) just keep flowing!

Love your people, reflect on the ways you appreciate them, and make it a great Saturday!

Happy Anniversary!