Happy 40th Birthday, M.

Happy Birthday to an incredible person. I've shared 15 years of my life with M, and I feel so lucky. In that time, we have travelled to 19 countries, lived in 10 apartments in 6 cities, completed 5 degrees between us, bought one house, and had 2 kids.

I have learned so much about love, happiness, success, forgiveness and parenting from him. He is an amazing partner and father. He is a superstar in his chosen career. He loves family. He loves to experience new things. He is fearless. He is a provider. He is a protector.

This momentous occasion is giving me the opportunity to brag about him a bit. He can be pretty modest, so he'll be embarrassed about this. But this blog is just for friends and family.

In honor of his 40th, I've compiled a list of the Top 40 greatest things about M. Casey Casem would be proud.

40. M. loves to do everything in flip flops. So do I.
39. M. is my own personal IT guy. And he's on call 24/7
38. M. loves to ride his bike, and he loves biking with the kids in their baby seats
37.M. isn't into cakes or cookies, but he loves ice cream, Popsicles and candy. Especially black wine gums and sour gummies.
36. He loves to dance around the house with the kids
35. He loves The Big Lebowski. A LOT.
34. M. teaches Big J so much, from how to fly a kite and how to snorkel to how to play gently with his little sister
33. He favorite food is french fries, and looks for any excuse to order them.
32. He loves olives, chilies, coffee and good beer.
31. M. is a great cook. He taught me much of what I know.
30. M is generous
29. M. is very loyal. He never gives up on people, and can always see the good in them.
28. M. is very loving
27. M. is an extremely involved and hands on father. The kids love being with him.
26. He loves hockey, and the Habs. A little too much.
25. He is a career superstar. Articles about his work have been published by the New York Times and the Globe and Mail, among many other sources. His work is cited in several textbooks, and he has over 50 scholarly publications. Over the last several years, he has been the most productive faculty member in his entire department, and one year, on his entire campus.
24. M. is a gifted and engaging speaker. He is invited to give talks all over North America and Europe.
23. He is very dedicated to nurturing and helping his graduate students, and works tirelessly to help them get their research published. He gives each of them substantial money from his own grants so that they can travel to conferences. A couple years ago, they awarded him Most Valuable Faculty Member.
22. He is awesome at putting stuff together. Which means I can buy whatever I like at Ikea.
21. He knows I don't like to drive unless I have to, so he always drives for us
20. He's good at watering plants. I kill all plants I touch.
19. M. is a family man. He always sets aside weekends for family time.
18. M. wrote a book! He edited an academic volume about one of his research areas.
17. He is not materialistic. M. doesn't care about status items. This makes it almost impossible to shop for him.
16. M. loves to have new adventures. He gets giddy like a little boy whenever we travel to a new place.
15. M. does a lot around the house. He is very neat, and he cleans up after himself (and me!)
14. Through M., I have had so many opportunities I otherwise wouldn't have had, like living in New York and traveling to Australia and Bali
13. M. helps me when I'm scared or feeling down
12. M. is great at getting our kids down to sleep. Way better than me.
11. He is a daredevil, who will try just about anything from bungee jumping to going off road in the mountains on an ATV.
10. M. is thoughtful. He spends a lot of time figuring out what to buy me on special occasions, and sometimes brings me flowers for no reason at all. He always brings the kids gifts when he's been away
9. He is funny. We have tons of inside jokes and expressions.
8. M. loves to be outdoors. He loves hiking, biking, camping, being at the beach, surfing and gardening.
7. He is super organized and efficient in both work and life. For example, he opens a bill and pays it immediately.
6. He's LOUD, but he's enthusiastic
5. M. thinks a great deal about what makes the world and the mind work.
4. He is passionate about many things, from research to food to hockey
3. When M. and I have a conflict about something he is doing or not doing, he listens. And then most times, he works hard to actually change.
2. He easily forgives, gives second chances, and doesn't hold grudges.
1. He always says "I'm sorry" first. :)

Happy Birthday, M!! I wish I was more like you. ;) Looking forward to another 80 years together!