Wives

“I fell asleep in the chair again on Sunday and woke up under a blanket. You did not mention it at breakfast and you have never mentioned it once.”

“You give every student a clean slate every single morning. It is one of the things I love most about you, and you give it to me too.”

“We are closing the book on a hard year, and I am glad to see it go. But I would not trade the way we leaned on each other for anything.”

“You have handed out more gold stars than anyone could ever count. Today is your birthday, so for once the gold star goes to you.”

“If this year taught me anything, it is that we are a good team. When one of us stumbled, the other was always there to help them up.”

“The day our baby was born, a mother was born too. And she is every bit as wonderful as I knew she would be.”

“Our house has a new little voice in it now, and it is a loud one. I would not trade the noise, or the sleepless nights, for anything.”

“I have loved you for years, and I thought I knew every side of you. Then I watched you hold our baby for the first time, and I met a new one.”

“Watching you hold our baby for the first time is a picture I will keep forever. You looked tired, amazed and more beautiful than I had ever seen you.”

“After the year we have had, you deserve a quiet weekend away from everything. No schedules, no worries, just the two of us and a lot of sleep.”

“I started a list of my favorite things about you, and it got long. Your laugh, your kindness, your terrible puns and the way you hum while you cook.”

“I am serving myself a large slice of humble pie with this card. I was wrong, you were hurt, and I am sorry from the bottom of my heart.”

“You have answered the same question about snacks at least a thousand times. And you still smile, which is one of the most amazing things I have ever seen.”

“Tonight I will raise a glass to the kindest, funniest woman I know. The one who makes every ordinary day feel like a celebration.”

“Even on the cloudiest days this year, you found a way to make me smile. That is a gift I do not take for granted, not for one minute.”

“One day is not nearly enough to celebrate someone like you. So I am declaring this your birthday week, with treats on every day.”

“I hope this new year of yours is full of good news and easy days. And I hope you let me spoil you at least once a week.”

“I used to think love was the rush at the start, and I was wrong. Love is still wanting to tell you about my day after all these years.”

“We have so many inside jokes that nobody else can follow our conversations. I would not trade a single one of them, or a single year with you.”

“School runs, practice pickups and a thousand car rides with the radio up. You turned every one of them into time that our kids will remember.”

“You warm up the car, save me the last bite and remember every birthday. It is the little things you do that make this life feel so big.”

“For your birthday, I am giving you a whole afternoon to yourself. Read, nap or do nothing at all. Everything else can wait.”

“This is not for an anniversary or a birthday. It is just an ordinary day. And on ordinary days, I love you every bit as much as on the big ones.”

“Another trip around the sun, and you only get more wonderful. I feel lucky every year that I get to spend it right beside you.”