For the first year I dated Mr. Wonderful, I wrote him a love letter marking every month we were together. In those letters, I would list the things I loved about him, most of them pertaining to things that had happened in the preceding month.

I was thinking about Matt and how much I love him the other day, and I realized that I shouldn’t stop making those lists. So here are five reasons I fall in love with my husband every day.

1. He never shies away from saying something loving. One of the things that I loved about Matt very early after meeting him was that he has never been afraid to let me know how much he cares about me. He never tires of telling me that he loves me. He’ll tell me I’m beautiful, even if he’s said it in the last day, or the last hour, or even the last minute for that matter. Even if I’m wearing sweats. Even if I just woke up. He always has a kind thing to say, and he can’t say it often enough. I appreciate it every time.
2. He uses pet names. He’s not too macho to call me by pet names, and he’s given me many. I love them because they’re playful and they reveal the tenderness he has toward me. Also, he would never use them on anyone else, so they remind me of the special bond we have.
3. He takes care of the dogs at night. The other night our dog had an upset stomach and woke up at 3:00 a.m. barking at the bedroom door. Neither of us was sure what was going on, but Matt took her outside immediately. When that didn’t satisfy her, he sat out in the living room with her, trying to feed her something. When she wouldn’t eat, he sat on the couch with her for a while. He earns major love points for taking the initiative and caring for the dogs at night so I don’t have to get out of bed and go out in the dark.
4. He does the laundry. I’ve never understood why men can’t do the laundry. It’s using a machine, for heaven’s sake. It means a lot to me that Matt is willing to lug the laundry to the basement (and down that long, creepy hall to the laundry room), especially at night.
5. When I’m around he is attentive to me first. When Matt comes home from a long day at work (and they’re all long days), he doesn’t automatically turn on the XBOX or go look in the fridge. He greets me and asks me what I’m up to. He shows me that he’s interested in spending quality time with me. Last night I was on the computer and he was playing Fable II, and when I sat down on the couch he went to turn off the XBOX. I hadn’t asked  him to do that, and I let him keep playing, but it showed me that he puts me before video games.

These are just five of the many things that make Matt my Mr. Wonderful.

EDIT ADD:

6. Chocolate. I ask him to stop by the grocery store on his way home and he not only does it, but brings back a couple of Seattle chocolate bars as well. This man speaks my love language!