February 11,1980

***Happy Birthday Thomas***

29 REASONS I LOVE THE BIRTHDAY BOY

1- He is the sexiest man I know!

2- Tom has a great sense of humor, he always makes me laugh. I have been known to cry, snort, and stop breathing while he is making me laugh!

3- He has good taste in music. You may think that is a dumb thing to like about someone, but music is a very important thing in my life, so it's huge that he likes the same genres.

4- He graduated from University of Washington. First of all, it's not the easiest school to get into, but he did. Second, he graduated with working full time as well. Third, it shows he is able to accomplish things and that he wanted to better his life. He also has a great group of friends that he met while in college and has become best friends with them...they have now turned into my friends as well, and they are all solid guys just like Tom!

5- He can talk to anyone. I love this about him! It usually means it takes us longer to get anything done because he is a "Chatty Cathy" but he makes everyone smile when he talks to them.

6- Tom is a giver. He would give the shirt off his back to someone in need.

7- He always stops to help people in distress. We stop for every broken down car on the road, even when we need to be somewhere. He has helped change tires, push dead cars, push cars out of the snow, etc. Every time I tell him thank you and he always says, "It only takes being stranded once!"

8- He totally LOVES to cuddle! Guys always complain about having to cuddle with their girlfriends or wives, but Tom loves it and expects it! Every night we cuddle up on the couch and I love it.

9- Tom is a good cook. I suck at it, so it's good that one of us can make tasty meals.

10- He draws on the steamed glass shower doors...it's cute.

11- Tom has amazing lips! They are big and full and totally kissable!

12- This may be too much for some of you, but he also has the best rump out of anyone I know!

13- He likes to explore. He rarely takes the same roads to get to one location, he likes to see what else is out there.

14- He is good with mechanics. Tom has fixed multiple things on my car and others since I've known him. That part of my brain is completely underdeveloped! So I love that he can figure it out. I'm sure my dad is happy about that too because I don't call him as often saying, "my car is making a put put noise again, what does that mean?"

15- He plays into my hypothetical conversations. "What if.....?"

16- He plays with Champ and Holly like they are our kids. He even refers to me as mom when he is talking to the dogs.

17- He always talks out problems. This has come in very handy. I was used to bottling everything up for months until it all exploded. Now, we talk everything out and never go to bed upset.

18- He puts up with me! As much as I hate admitting it, I'm high maintenance. There is a reason my dad calls me DIVA. He knows just what to do to keep me going every day and he even enjoys it! (Well at least I think he does.) :)

19- He helps around the house. I've seen him clean toilets, wash dishes, vacuum, etc. Who else has a man who does that???

20- Tom is successful. He got himself a job out of college and has stuck with it even though there have been other better paying opportunities out there. He sees the value of his company and has signed on for the long haul.

21- He treats me like a princess. The other day when I was having a hard time with the job search and he gave me a list of things to do for the rest of the day....go tanning, buy a new book, etc.

22- He likes my family! Come one, the Perez family is CRAZY. Both in a good and bad way, depends on the day. And he likes all of them! He might even like Tony more than he likes me!

23- He has a million dollar smile. My favorite is when we are in a large group of people, sitting across the table from each other, and he will smile at me with a wink. Love it!

24- Tom is always upbeat. (ok not always, but like 97% of the time!) He is just generally a happy man all the time!

25- He is trustworthy. Sadly enough, many people can't say this about their significant other. But I am proud to say that Tom is a very honest and trustworthy guy. I don't ever worry about our relationship.

26- He is ambitious. Tom wants to own his own business one day and he has tons of ideas about what type of business he could start. He is always thinking of things to do to better our life or to keep himself entertained.

27- Tom is a hard worker. When he has put his mind to something, he will do anything to get it done. When he was interviewing for the Ferndale job, he studied for weeks and weeks, and he got the job! He does that with anything he wants to accomplish.

28- He loves to spend time together. He takes me along everywhere he can. There are even times when I say, "Isn't this just a guy thing?" (Like football games, or whatev) But he always looks at me like I've lost it and says, "No, you are coming with me." It's so much fun to be able to do anything together and knowing that he wants it that way.

29- Last but not least, Tom is just amazing. He has accomplished so many things in his lifetime. He is a kind hearted, outgoing, hilarious guy who would do anything for anyone. He loves his family and his friends, and best of all he loves me! I'm so glad he is in my life and at this point in time I don't know what I would do without him. He deserves the best that life can give him because he is wonderful!

I love you Tom!