August 1, 2023

Today I would like to share a very special tribute to the man that make every day a new and exciting adventure.  He’s my better half, my sounding board, the one that keeps me ground, and (mostly) sane.  For those of you that know us, you know that he’s nicer than me, kinder than me, sometimes funnier than me, and most of the time he thinks he’s smarter than me, but we all know that is not true. 

I want to start by sharing the things that I love about Mano with all of you and then offer you the opportunity to do the same. 

• I love that he calls me Beautiful every day, in fact, multiple times a day. I wake-up to “Good Morning Beautiful.” I go to bed to “Good Night Beautiful”. He answers the phone, “Hello, Beautiful” when I call and there are many more moments in between. This small sentiment of love was so important when I had no hair, or eye brows, and I was tired, and often in bed asleep. Mano made me feel beautiful in the moments when I didn’t feel beautiful myself, and for that I will always be grateful.
• Mano is the BEST father that any kid could ask for. He’s attentive, kind, caring, and goes above and beyond in ways that his children will never, and I mean never, truly know. I truly hope one day that they see through all the rules, guidelines, and consequences, and sees the way that he loves them unconditionally. Mani would do anything, and I mean anything for his children.
• He’s an amazing provider.  A provider of his time, his attention, his energy, his efforts, his love, and laughter.  He puts everyone else’s needs ahead of himself, often to the detriment of himself. 
• His laughter.  Y’all if you know Mano and have spent longer than 10-minutes with him then I know you’ve heard his laughter.  When Mano laughs he fills the room with sunshine.  His laughter is contagious and it’s next to impossible not to laugh with him.  It is truly the best.
• His smile.  Mano is someone that has a smile that is so big and genuine.  It’s rare to see someone with a smile that pure. 
• Mano’s love for God and unending faith.  Mano has such a servant’s heart and a huge love for God.  Ever since he was baptized, he has shown his faithfulness to the Lord.  He has been part of mission trips, helped those who needed him, offered prayers, fellowship with his friends, and so much more. 

The above list is not an inclusive list of all the amazing things that I love about Mano but just a few callouts that I wanted to share with you all about how wonderful my husband is.  I can tell you that from the day that Mano and I re-met each other, our lives have been a whirlwind, we have been through so much in just 13-short years; some good, some bad; and some downright just horrible.  The past three years have proven to us that we have what it takes to dig in our heals, pull up our bootstraps and continue walking forward. 

The things that you don’t know are the things that I am blessed to experience with Mano each day.  These are the things that couples don’t often share with others.  These are the things that form that glue that bind us together.  These are the things that fill the foundation of our marriage, our love, and our bond.  These are the things that fill my heart with such love and such emotions.  These are the things that I would not trade for all the money in the world.

Some of these things are the many times that we laugh, and I mean really laugh at each other, for something stupid that one of us said or did. These are the times when we lay in bed watching dumb Tik-Tok videos, or Instagram posts, or videos and just giggle until our bellies hurt. These are the times that during the darkest moment we’ve shared where we just grabbed onto each other and held on tight fearing what the next day would bring but trusting that God had his arms around us. These are the times when we prayed together in the car before entering the hospital for the next scan, procedure, or doctor’s appointment. These are the times when we were terrified, or afraid of what the next second, minute, hour, day, week, or month would bring. These are the days when we bonded together as we said goodbye to Yia Yia. These are the days that make all the moments I spend with this man worth every single second. These are the days that I am grateful that Mano is the man by my side.

So today, I would like to wish my husband, my better-half, the happiest and best birthday ever.  Today, I want to share how blessed I am to have been chosen to be the gal that gets to wake-up with this guy every morning and lay day with him every night.  Today, I want Mano to know just how loved he is.  Today I want Mano to know that our world, MY world, is a better place because of him.  Today I want to say . . .

Mano,

You are the best thing that has ever happened in my life.  Your unconditional love, laughter, smile, and hugs fill my days with more happiness than you will ever know.  Today and every day, I wish you nothing but all the best that God has to offer.  I pray that he covers you with his grace and provides us with a (long) lifetime of laughing at ourselves and each other.  I can’t wait for our “Forever home” to be built so we can begin our next chapter, on the ranch – together.  You are my everything.  Happy Birthday honey.  I love you!

Xo,

Tracy