30 Things I Love About Denise

[If you haven't already guessed it from the title -- this is Troy writing. Denise has asked me for some time to guest blog, and so (as I leave for a week again on business to Spain later today), I thought I'd surprise her and publish this before she gets back from running errands. This is my first (and maybe my last) blog post, so don't get your hopes up that you'll be hearing more from me in the future (but you're probably thinking that this is a good thing). If I was more technologically sophisticated, I'd publish a picture of her....but then I'd be pushing it, and publishing a pic might just cause her to take this post down.]

To start with the obvious, I love Denise because:

* She has an unwavering testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ;
* She's beautiful (and sexy!);
* She's smart (much smarter than I!);
* She's passionate about life, which I find very attractive;
* She's loyal, to a fault, to her friends;
* She's service-oriented;
* Once in a while, she has been known to tease;
* She's a great cook;
* She tells it like it is (if you've ever been on the receiving end, you know what I mean);
* She's a wonderful mother, and our kids don't realize how fortunate they are (I, too, take her for granted far too often....);
* She's very funny;
* She's very crafty (And I don't mean sneaky, either); and
* She's a fabulous wife in all the right ways.

And maybe a few things you didn't know (or maybe you did). I also love Denise because:

* If she was extremely tired and had to choose between (i) staying up late with some friends (or finishing some project) and (ii) going to bed to get some rest, she'd definitely choose the former;
* She likes to sleep in;
* She has a very special relationship with and close affinity towards Coke Zero (good thing for me that I'm not the jealous type);
* She's an awesome writer (having been published in the Washington Post);
* She likes to stay current on news about celebrities by reading People Magazine and watching ET (and I don't mean the movie about the extra terrestrial) or Access Hollywood (I guess we're all allowed one vice.......);
* At times, but only very rarely, she can be a bit competitive ;-)
* She's a wonderful seamstress;
* She oftentimes can't seem to locate a trash can in the house (don't ask; but I try to remind myself that it's endearing);
* She is emotionally grounded, experiencing very deep feelings;
* She can hold her own in an argument (although we've NEVER argued in our marriage :-), but I've heard this is true about her);
* She likes to swim;
* She likes to fish;
* She has a penchant for picking up phrases her girlfriends use (such as "TMI") and using them in her conversations with me;
* Although she enjoys new clothes as much as the next woman, she'll forgo expensive outfits for herself so that I can have a new business suit;
* She ownes about 1,000 stamps (and, no, she's not a philatelist) and every other imaginable scrapbooking supply (Who knew circle cutters were so important?);
* She's a talented, budding photographer; and
* She loves me.

Denise, I Love you.

[Well, that's all I can think of, off the top of my head, although I know there are many other reasons. Am I a lucky guy, or what?!?!?!?]

[P.S. I think I figured out how to post a pic, but I don't know how long she'll leave this up because it's the only picture I could quickly find of her:]

ETA: Photo deleted by blog owner (That would be me!). Grrr.