Jeff and I have been through what some might consider challenging times. Before we got married, Jeff joined the Army and we were long distance for a year. Right after we married, Jeff deployed to Iraq. Shortly after he came home, he was medically retired from the Army. I came back home to Washington and lived here alone for a while before he followed.  We bought a house. Not too long after that, Kenley was born. A short 17 months later, Blakey made us a family of four. Blake’s diagnosis, by far, has been an impossibly painful time for both of us. 

I always knew Jeff would be a great Dad. He didn’t have a ton of kid experience when we met, but I could just tell. I wouldn’t have married him had I thought otherwise! I really had no idea he would be the most amazing Dad any wife or kid could ask for. He has such a special relationship with both Kenley and Blake. Kenley asks for him as often as she asks for me (alright; probably more). She follows him around all the time. She wants to do all the things that he does. He makes Blakey laugh the hardest. She gives him a special look that no one else gets. I’m super jealous, because she always smiles for him. Blake looks so much like her Daddy. Both of our daughters are seriously a couple of Daddy’s girls! You know that saying, about how “you don’t know how much you love your husband until you see how much he loves your children”? It is SO true.

I’m grateful for my husband in all that has come with Blake’s diagnosis. We get to share all the memories we’re making with our girls together, forever. We get to talk about them and be those crazy people who almost wake them up just to play with them. He sees the little moments that I see and knows just how valuable they are. We’re doing our best to come together for each other and for our girls. We are united in creating the best life we can for our family.

Jeff knows my pain like no one else. We’re the only two people who know what it’s like to watch our Blake go through this as her parents. Jeff has always been my calm in the storm; Blake’s diagnosis is no different. He holds me up when I cannot hold myself. He helps me navigate the things I wouldn’t be able to tackle alone. He cries with me during times of fear and during times of happiness. He reassures me when it feels like I can’t go on. He protects my broken heart, and all the while, his is broken too.

I love that guy more today than I did almost 5 years ago when we got married. He still drives me crazy, too, but these days it’s pretty mild. In all seriousness, I would be completely and totally lost without him. He makes the good times better and the hard times just a little bit easier.

Our anniversary is tomorrow. We usually take a trip to celebrate, but I really don’t mind hanging out at home with him and the girls. Living this life with him, together, is the most I could ever have asked for.