Why I love Mandi
Hi all! This is Mandi’s husband, Phil (And no, she does not know that I am writing this post)! As I was sitting at home, I was thinking of how I could bless and surprise my wife on her birthday. Over the course of our relationship, I have been pulled away from Mandi on her birthday for a variety of reasons. This time, I had to come home early from vacation so that I could return to school this coming Monday (I teach Kindergarten). So, in an attempt to make up for my absence, I decided to write a post about her on her blog!
* I apologize in advance if the copy, pictures, editing of said pictures, wittiness, etc are not up the standards of my darling wife!
Today my beautiful, smart, amazing wife turns 28 years old. It’s hard to put into words how much she means to me. Here are some of the words that I came up in an attempt to describe my wife:
Beautiful: I think that she is so incredibly beautiful! Not to be all superficial and all, but her outward appearance is stunning! I mean, isn’t she just the most darling thing you ever did see? I love everything about her, just the way she is! Mandi’s smile has been known to light up a room. I think part of the reason why I am so silly around her is that I just want to see her smile! As you can see below, it is sometimes hard for me resist her beauty.
Thoughtful: Mandi is probably the most thoughtful person I know. Mandi loves to give gifts! And when she does, she puts so much thought into it. To her, a gift is something that should be meaningful, both in the presentation of the gift, and also in what is being given. This past Christmas, Mandi surprised me with a “12 Days of Christmas” countdown. Each day, she had me open a card. Inside, a special and meaningful activity was planned for us to do together for that day. I can’t tell you how special her doing that made me feel! Mandi goes out of her way to make others feel important, and that is just one of the many reasons why she is so special! It’s also a big reason why her blog is so AWESOME! She is very thoughtful when considering what to post and how the readers will respond to it. It takes her so much time and energy to write and create a post because she cares! In every area of her life, Mandi is thoughtful and sincere!
Funny: Mandi and I have so many inside jokes that we have created over the years…….well, I guess you just had to be there! Ha! Mandi loves to have a good time, and for her that means lots and lots of laughing! She is witty and clever and quick on her feet. Her smile and laugh are contagious. Sometimes, we entertain ourselves just by being silly! And I love her for it!
Courageous: As many of you know, Mandi was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer in 2012. In the same year she also dealt with a month-long bout with vertigo and also lost her first child by miscarriage. She has been through a lot! She was telling me about what she went through the moments leading up to her surgery, waiting to be operated on, not knowing if she would ever wake up, leaving loves ones behind. Through all of these storms, Mandi has never wavered in her faith and trust in God. If anything, her faith has strengthened! To go through a miscarriage, a pregnancy, vertigo, birth of a child (we love you Lucy!), a 7 hour surgery and recovery, cancer diagnosis, and 5 weeks of radiation all in the span of a little over a year is unbelievable! I admit that we have had disagreements about house chores, responsibilities, etc but as I write this, I realize that besides all of this, Mandi has been working very, very hard to help bring in money for our family! I love you Mandi because you are courageous! In the face of adversity, you had peace in your heart and have persevered, putting our family above everything else!
Mother: I was trying to think of a word that describes Mandi as a mom, and I just couldn’t think of anything! To see Mandi interact with our daughter Lucy is a thing of beauty. I thank God for Mandi because there is no one else I would rather have be the mother of my children than Mandi! You watch Mandi and Lucy together, and you see a mother who loves her daughter more than anything else. You also see a daughter who truly delights in her mom! When Mandi was pregnant with Lucy, we would also ask each other and wonder what Lucy would be like and what she would look like. I can tell you that Lucy looks like her mom, which means that she is beautiful beyond comparison. And as of now, Lucy I think gets a lot of her personality from her mom, which means that she is smart, funny, and loves to be loved! As I try to remember the last 15 months (plus 9 month pregnancy) of Mandi’s life, I can say that being a mom has transformed her. She gives everything she has for her daughter and for me, and that’s why I love her!
Mandi, I wish you a very Happy Birthday! I love you and Lucy with all my heart! XOXO
I love this! I’m a longtime lurker but I had to comment here to say how sweet this is!! Happy birthday!
A beautiful tribute to a remarkable woman!
This is the absolutely sweetest thing, so much love in one post!
This is a very sweet gesture. Your little family is beautiful.
I’m sure you’ll get a lot of comments on this one, but Mandi, you are a lucky woman to have a husband do something so loving for you on your birthday! I loved reading this, maybe because I could see a lot of my own husband’s potential thoughts reflected here about me. So sweet. I love reading how others view those closest to them!
-Jenni
Well this is just the best birthday present ever. How lovely. Happy Birthday Mandi! xx
Happy Birthday, Mandi!
Phil, this is a very sweet post. I’m sure Mandi will be so thankful and encouraged by the lovely words you wrote.
-Hannah
This was so wonderful! I hope she will cry when she reads it. I love how your relationship shines out so much more to see it written by you, Mandi’s husband Phil! She really is an amazing person, and though I don’t know her personally, it definitely shows from the posts I’ve read over the past few years and small amount of tweets exchanged. Happy 28th birthday Mandi!!
So sweet. Happy birthday Mandii! I am fairly new to your blog, but LOVE your projects I’ve seen. It’s fun to learn more about you through your husband’s eyes!
This was so beautifully written. I loved reading this, what a wonderful thing for a husband to do for his wife.
This was so lovely. Happy Birthday!!
Aw, how sweet! Happy Birthday Amanda! What a wonderful surprise post. I really enjoyed reading Phil!
What a sweet gift!!! Happy Birthday Mandi and way to go Phil!!
xo
THIS IS TOO CUTE! Since my name is also Mandy, it’s strange reading what sounds like my name and what this awesome husband did for the other Mandi, it’s just great. Nice to hear what Phil has to say, I just hope I have any shred of luck finding a guy like Mandi found Phil. Happy Birthday, Mandi! (Mine was New Year’s Eve, the slight similarities keep growing! Hehe.)
this is so sweet! you guys are both so lucky to have each other.
This is the single sweetest thing I have ever seen!
Happy birthday Mandi.
Happy Birthday Mandi! So wonderful the precious bond you both have to each other and God. You are great role models and your story so far is remarkable, with God all things are possible ;)
Take care and God Bless, love from Oz x
Happy Birthday/Tillykke med fødselsdag Mandi. Best wishses from Denmark and I love your blog. What a great hubby you’ve.
This has got to be the sweetest thing! Happy birthday, Mandi! Hope this makes you happy too :)
Gah! This is just the CUTEST!!!!!!!! Excuse me, I’ve got something in my eye… [sob] What an absolutely gorgeous gesture for a gorgeous gal. Happy birthday, Mandi! x
Oh my goodness! What a lovely family.
Happy Birthday!
x
I’ve been a reader for several years and loved following your family/getting inspiration from Mandi. I’ve never really felt the need to comment, but this made me so happy. The last picture of your family is absolute perfection, and the commentary by Phil really let your love shine.
Happy Birthday, Mandi! I’m happy for you.
Happy Birthday, Mandi!!!
Aww Phil, you are such a dear! This made me misty for sure! I miss you guys, you’re one of my favorite couples…so full of love and silly. Happy Birthday Mandi! You’ll always be one of my favorite people and dearest friends! <3
Best post ever.
Beautiful Family. Beautiful Life. Happy, Happy Birthday Mandi!
So lovely :) Happy Birthday!!
Phil just scored major brownie points. Well done sir!
What a wonderful post. It was so lovely to hear in your husband’s words how much you have been through as a family, and to hear your faith is still strong is a blessing! Praying you have a fruitful and happy year, and Happy birthday Mandi!
Happy Birthday Mandi!
Phil, this is the absolute sweetest, it truly shows the great amount of love you have for your wife!
Amia
Naww! This is just so adorable! Your hubby is such a sweetie!
Big birthday hugs from Sweden!
Simply beautiful!
This is so sweet, it brought a tear to my eye.
Beautiful. Happy Birthday Mandy!
I’ve been reading your blog for such a long time and I finally had to leave a comment. This post was so wonderful and it is so incredibly obvious how much your husband adores you. You’re so lucky to have found each other. I wish you and your family all the happiness and good health this year and every year after can bring. Wishing ya’ll the best from Texas!
Happy Birthday Mandi! And what a sweet present, Phil :) I’m sure she’ll love the special gift!
That has to be one of the sweetest things I have ever read! And your strength is encouraging!
Happy birthday! Hope you had a fab time, what a gorgeous post :) x
Awww! Such a beautiful loving post from your husband!! Wishing you the most splendid birthday :)
This was lovely! Can I hire you to give hints to my husband? ;)
What an amazing husband!This is one of the sweetest things anyone could do to surprise the love of his life! Happy birthday Mandi!
So sweet!!! One strong and beautiful woman!!
Happy Birthday Mandi!
This is really a beautiful gift, good idea Phil, I’m sure she will love it!
I’ve been following your blog for many years, thank you for inspiring our daily lives, hope you have a great day and an even better year!
This was truly a heartfelt and loving description of your wife! Well done and so beautiful!! God bless you all!
ok i am sobbing! so sweet…you both are blessed!
this is the sweetest lil’ post! you both seem so amazing:-) and happy belated birthday, mandi! xx
…………….. ok, these dots want to show that I’m speechless!!! that is one of the greatest gifts ever!!! Having someone love you as much! It’s so nice to see people loving each other! I’m really happy for you (even though I don’t know you personally). Happy birthday Mandi!!! Wishing you all the best! Keep this love in you life. xxx from Greece (PS. I really hope that God will bring in my lfe a man who will love me that much)
Just had to say how touching it is to see a man still so in love and appreciative of his wife. Happy Birthday Mandi!
W.O.W.
this was the sweetest thing Mandi is a lucky woman
Landed here by accident while blog hopping. First of all, love the blog and am now a follower and secondly this is about the sweetest thing I have ever seen!
This is the sweetest thing!
This is my first time reading your blog and I’m excited to read posts from such a creative and great woman!
that is so sweet that I cried!
Katrina Sophia Blog
I cried readiing this! So very sweet and thoughtful; your love for Mandi is truly a gift from God. Happy Birthday, Mandi!
I’m not witty, or creative, or beautiful but I can see amazing – and this is an amazing post! Bless you Phil and Happy (belated) Birthday Mandi.
Phil, you’re a lucky man!
Mandi you go girl!
Lucy, watch and learn from the best! :-)
Happy Birthday Mandi! :D
Happy (belated) birthday, this is the cutest thing ever!