Happy Birthday, Geoff

A girlfriend of mine accuses me of being too mushy about my husband. I don't blame her; I am mushy about him. I won't share any anecdotes about him the way I do the girls, but I will express how much I love this man.

Geoff turns thirty-two today. I met him when he had just turned twenty-two and was fresh off his mission. We became instant best friends from our first date on and it hasn't changed. I'm hooked on this man.

His intelligence not only exceeds most; but he is discerning, quiet and wise with it. Most people notice his stature when first meeting him (all glorious seventy-six inches); but when I see this handsome man, I notice his beautiful blue eyes and those fantastic lips. Geoff is quiet around those he doesn't know, and I've heard he is even intimidating; but when you get to know him, he is hilarious. His wit is quick (also quick are his words--sometimes I have to translate for him because he talks so fast) and warm.

One thing that I admire about him is his thirst for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We have a rather large library for our small home; it consists mostly of books written by prophets and apostles. He is well versed in the scriptures and loves them. He is a very good teacher of gospel topics because of this solid foundation. His quiet nature keeps this hidden to most, but I benefit from this and this gift of his brings one of the greatest blessings in my life.

Another great blessing in my life is his natural parenting style. He is so gentle and tender with the girls. They know that Daddy loves them, will take care of them, will help them be safe, will have fun with them. This is an empowering blessing to me to know that our parenting together is a team effort.

My mom recently said to me, "I don't know what you do for him, but he spoils you." I think she was talking about his common act of doing the dishes as soon as a meal is over. He does spoil me. And it's more than just doing dishes after dinner.

Geoff's gifts and attributes keep adding as the years go by. I love him, and even though he has to share his birthday with me, I hope this will be a special day for him. That is the best gift to me: to be able to share my birthday with his. He is my greatest joy.

Happy Birthday, Geoff. I love you.