Today my husband is turning 28 years old. I have had the privilege of spending 10 years in his life- when we met he was 18. Honest to God, I don’t think anything has changed about him- except he’s more successful and motivated than he was at 18. I also think he loves me a little more than he did 10 years ago. (Well, I hope that’s true.) Today, in honor of his 28 years of life and the last 8 years I’ve spent as his lady, I have made a list. (SURPRISE!)

Also, I will use his name instead of just “K.”

This is my list of everyday things that remind my of Kyle:
(Kyle, I have a meaningful 14 items on this list because that’s half of 28.)

– Fallout Boy.
We have seen 3 Fallout Boy concerts together. At our very first one he told me he loved me. (swoon) Also, back in our honeymoon-stage, when he was a romantic little minx, he would send me text messages with FOB lyrics. Any song, any album… I think of Kyle and how much fun we’ve had together.

– Pittsburgh.
When we first started dating Kyle worked and spent most of the week in Pittsburgh. Our favorite concert venue is in Pittsburgh ( Mr. Small’s Theatre ). We’ve also seen FOB, Taylor Swift, and other artists in this beautiful city. If we ever became city folk this is ranked high on our list.

– Bravo! Cucina Italiana.
We like this restaurant. A lot. Although he proposed after dinner at 91 Wood Fired Oven.

– Build-A-Bear Workshop.
We have Parker the polar bear, Suzy Q the bear, two foxes dressed in wedding garb for our wedding, and Loserface the turtle. (I used to call Kyle “Loserface.” The turtle had a leather jacket because Kyle had a sports bike back then.)

– Cold Stone Creamery.
I think 99% of our dates were at this place. Also, when Kyle proposed he took me to the parking lot of the closed-down Cold Stone [read about it here].

[ Cold Stone and Build-A-Bear also remind me of my late Aunt Kate because she was the first to introduce me to all this awesome-ness. Kyle never got to meet her, but when we’d go on these dates I felt connected to both her and Kyle. ]

– Sports bikes.
When a sports bike flies past me it still reminds me of my hubs in his early years.

– Cherry Coke.
Kyle’s movie theater beverage of choice.

– Talladega Nights.
Oh where to begin. Well, the first time I saw this movie I was inappropriately flirting with Kyle waaay before we dated. Also, he gave me the pet name “Susan” (Amy Adams’ character) because he said I was like his little assistant (I think?). That nickname was shortened to “Suzy Q” and stuck for a long time.

– Incredibly Beautiful Drums
Surprisingly, not all drums remind me of Kyle, but when I see a gorgeous drum set (or I hear him gush about a kit) I just want to spend all my (non-existent) money on him.

– Bobcats.
When we first started dating and we were in that cute ask-me-anything stage I once asked Kyle about his favorite animal. He said bobcats. Weirdo.

– Oreo Freezes from Sheetz.
Once (and only once) we had a HUGE fight. We actually broke up, but 24 (miserable, tear-filled, zombie-like) hours after it happened Kyle showed up at my college dorm with an Oreo freeze and an apology/plea to work it out. It was enough of a “break-up” to scare us into appreciating each other.

-Puppies.
Don’t let him fool you: Kyle has a bleeding heart that melts at the sight of puppies and kittens. Last week he pulled over on the side of the road and spent 20 minutes coaxing a stray husky into his truck with blueberry muffins. He then found her owner and drove her home. Seriously, I have never, ever, ever questioned why I married this guy.

– Oatmeal Scotchies.
Ew, ew, ew. But Kyle loves them.

– Very Nice Sports Cars.
Kyle has a deep appreciation of nice cars. I wish I could tell you his favorite one, but I swear it changes. (Aston Martin? Ferrari? Corvette?) Some day when we’re millionaires we will have an 18-car garage for all his toys.

Happy Birthday, Kyle! I love you! Can’t wait to see where this year takes you ( us )!!!

-A

(Louise)