Happy Anniversary, Janell!

Unfortunately, it's officially past my anniversary for me. But, it's only 5pm back home, so hopefully I'm not late with this post. Today marks 12 years of marriage for Janell and I. I know I've mentioned in past posts some of the things that I appreciate about Janell but I thought this would be a great opportunity to expound on why I love being married to her. So here goes...

1. Janell knows my strengths and weaknesses. She leans on my strengths, which makes me feel valued and respected, and she encourages me through my weakensses and continues to demonstrate love toward me, even when my failures hurt her.

2. She is the most patient mother I think I have ever met. Granted, our girls are very well behaved most of the time, but that's not by chance. She has invested an incredible amount of love, wisdom, and training into our kids. I wish I could take credit for their maturity, but Janell is with them all day, every day. Her influence in their lives is unmistakeable and undeniable.

3. Janell has an adventerous spirit. All you have to do is look back over the past four months of Janell's blog entries if you have any doubts about this one. Who else in their right mind would attempt a monster road trip like the one she pulled off? And she had fun doing it. She has flown half way around the world by herself to meet me before, and she's about to do it again. When we first met, Janell had lived in the same house her whole life. She had moved bedrooms once. Now, when we've been in a town for more than two years, she starts to get the itch to move on!! When we first met, she had dated guys who had gone on to join the Marines, Air Force, and Coast Guard (and they never wrote). Then she meets this guy who is planning to join the Navy. You can imagine what must have gone through her mind. I remember vividly sitting in the bowling alley in Thousand Oaks, CA, on our first "unofficial" date in early July 1990 when I first shared my plan with her. I remember the immediate dejection in her eyes as she related her past experience with "military men". Doubt crept in for just a moment. Seventeen years later, here we are. It's not just a Marriage, it's an adventure.

4. Janell is an awesome navigator. In Janell's blog I'm sure you've noticed a few entries that talked about her GPS steering her wrong on a couple occassions. It's only recently that we invested in a navigation gadget for the car. Whenever we go on road trips (and we go on lots of road trips), Janell has always been our navigator. She has an excellent sense of direction and loves maps almost as much as I do. That's not to say that she never drives, either. Many times, when I have grown too tired to drive safely, Janell has taken my place in the left seat to get us through the last 30 minutes of the drive, usually with a Vente Mint Cafe Mocha in her hand. Obviously, she does very well driving even in the worst of conditions. It's only when we try to let the GPS guide us with no knowledge of the area or route that we tend to get into trouble. Usually with me driving and Janell navigating, it's smooth sailing on the road (and in marriage).

5. Janell has the sharpest mind I know when it comes to numbers, dates, and events. She often jokes that with the birth of each child, she loses one half of her mental capacity. So, that would put her at about 1/16th of her 1997 ability. Focusing on preschool third grade each day with limited adult contact also can't help. But still, her ability to process numbers amazes me. I know she enjoys quilting and baking so much because they are so number-intensive. They give her a chance to stretch and flex those mental muscles that she was gifted with. She has reminded me on many many occassions of coming birthdays or events that I should have known about, but completely forgot. Like I said, she compliments my weaknesses to tee.

6. Janell laughs at my corny jokes. Even when she knows they're not funny and no one else is laughing. That's love.

7. Janell and I share an amazing level of trust. I've never had any cause to doubt Janell's ability to handle our finances, our home, our children, or our time apart. At the same time, she is aware of her own limitations and knows when to ask for help. Her maturity and humility are astounding and I learn from her all the time. I know she trusts me in the same way, and that trust is one of the bedrock foundations of our marriage. We both know we're not perfect and we don't expect each other to be. We learn from our mistakes together and grow past them. Sometimes slowly, but we do.

8. Janell is my best friend. As a guy, it's important to have other guys I can turn to as friends and brothers. No woman can fill that role. But Janell truly is my best friend in the sense that I can talk to her (or not) and she will listen (or just be there) and I can be totally transparent with her. I love spending time with her, sharing new experiences with her, and remeniscing old experiences with her.

9. Janell is an artist. Her artistic and musical talent are truly gifts from God. She brings a touch of class to anything she does and makes our home a pleasant place to be (when she's not fighting against the 4 winds blowing Barbies and Little People all over the house, that is). Her artistic talent was one of the qualities that attracted me to Janell when we first met. Sure she was a band geek. But at least she was the queen band geek. The sergeant major. or majorette, or major floutist; -- oh yeah-- the drum major! Can you tell it's 4:20 am? Anyway, I loved the fact that she was a musician and an artist. I still do. She's traded in her flute for hand bells, and her oils and pastells for crayons and fingerpaints, but her gifts still shine.

10. Janell makes me a better man. I've said it before, but she brings out the best in me, and helps me to make my rougher edges sharper. Her encouragement, comfort, accountability, and honesty all lift me up to accomplish things I never would have done on my own (from laundry to Masters Degrees).

11. Janell is my perfect mate. I can't imagine anyone better suited to be at my side for my entire life. Eve was presented to Adam as his "helper suitable". Janell is so much more than my helper, and she is immesurably more than suitable. I know beyond a show of a doubt that God built me to be with her and her to be with me.

12. Lastly, and most importantly, Janell is an inspiration to me as a Christian. She is a godly woman. No, she's not perfect. She makes mistakes and doesn't always live up to the standard she strives for. But she keeps getting up, knocking off the dust, and returning to her knees in prayer. I should be the inspiration for our family, but more often than not, Janell is setting the example for me. She is great about reminding me or encouraging me to get some quiet time in God's Word. She sets a great example for our girls to follow. The fruit of the Spirit are evident in her life. She is sought out by other women for her wise counsel and she is respected among other homeschooling families. I love how much she loves the Lord.

I could easily go on, but I think 12 qualities for 12 years is a good place to pause for now. Come back in 30 years and I'll have an easy list of 42 things I love about Janell! It grows all the time.

I love you, Janell!! Happy Anniversary, sweetie!