Check out 28 reasons why I love my boyfriend!
It’s Kyle’s birthday! He turns 28 today, and I thought it’d be fun to celebrate by sharing a few things that I love about him. This is the kind of blog post that will make him blush, but I don’t care because he deserves to be loved on. For those that don’t know, Kyle and I celebrated our two-year anniversary in May. We first met in February 2016, so we were friends for awhile before we decided to make things a little romantic. The things I could talk to anyone about for days are my love for Kyle, my love for Gunther, my love for Harry Potter, and my love for Taylor Swift – in that order. Anyone who knows Kyle knows how special he is, so why not brag about him on his special day? Here are 28 reasons why I love my boyfriend.
1. HE’S HANDSOME.
Okay, so this isn’t a reason why I love him, but I do love how handsome he is. I genuinely love looking at my boyfriend, and I often think about how lucky I am that he fell in love with me.
2. HE’S HUMBLE.
Kyle is an incredible human for so many reasons (including the ones that are listed here), but he’s never one to brag. He’ll get excited about his accomplishments, but he’s never one to gloat.
3. HE’S CONFIDENT IN HIMSELF.
Even though he isn’t one to brag, he is aware of many of the things that make him awesome, and he’s confident in his abilities. This is something that I envy and really, really love about him.
4. HE IS THE SMARTEST PERSON I KNOW.
I say this to him all the time, and I genuinely mean it. He just has vast knowledge about so many different topics. He reads so many articles, listens to all sorts of different podcasts, and he, of course, loves NPR. He is curious about life, and he is constantly soaking in information from all kinds of resources. And when he doesn’t know the answer to something or is skeptical about something that someone has said to him, he’s quick to, not only Google it, but he’ll read several articles and learn way too much information about it. He’s just smart, y’all.
5. HE ACTUALLY LIKES TO GO GROCERY SHOPPING.
As someone who doesn’t like shopping in general, I appreciate this so much about Kyle. When we do go grocery shopping together, we’re always laughing, and it’s a fun time (seriously, he makes grocery shopping fun), but 9 times out of 10, Kyle is doing the grocery shopping on his own, and he doesn’t mind because he actually enjoys shopping for grocery. #blessed
6. HE’S AN AMAZING COOK.
Speaking of grocery shopping, Kyle is an amazing cook. He has a very diverse palette, so he’s always up for trying new recipes. He also likes to make up his own recipes, throwing in spices and ingredients that I wouldn’t have even thought of. I have a couple recipes that I’ve been cooking for years, and he’ll suggest a little tweak to it, and it makes it so much better. We also have so much fun cooking together, and honestly, we make a great team in the kitchen.
7. HE LOVES WHAT HE LOVES, AND HE’S NOT ASHAMED OF IT.
One quality that I’ve always admired about Kyle, even before we started dating, is that he’s shameless. Of course, he gets embarrassed, and he does care about what people think, but from an outsider’s perspective, he just exudes confidence, and he’s not ashamed of things he enjoys. He wears the most ridiculous shirts, and has the most diverse taste in music (I always thought my taste in music was diverse, but he definitely takes the cake on this one), and he’s not ashamed of any of it. He makes me want to be like that too.
8. HE’S INCREDIBLY PATIENT.
Let’s be honest. I’m a lot to handle. I have anxiety. My moods are all over the place. I change my mind frequently. I’m just a lot. Kyle has become the most patient person I’ve ever had in my life. Even when we get into arguments, he’s still so patient with me. And beyond that, as an uncle, he is such a patient person. As someone who has spent many years working with kids, I know how tough it can be to take care of other people’s children, and I’ve witnessed more than one instance where Kyle had to play referee with his niece and nephews.
9. HE’S A WONDERFUL DOG DAD.
Kyle was hesitant to adopt our dog, Gunther, but as soon as our pooch came into our lives, Kyle has embraced the role of dog dad. He takes such good care of our little boy, making sure he goes on long walks and to the dog park and also taking him to his vet and grooming appointments. Plus, seeing the two of them playing together or sleeping at the same time just warms my heart.
10. HE’S ALWAYS WILLING TO TRY NEW THINGS.
The thing about Kyle is that I have no idea where his comfort zone is. Every time I suggest a new idea, he’s always ready and willing to try it out. He embraces the unknown, whether it’s tasting a new food, trying a new activity, or traveling somewhere we’ve never been before.
11. HE ADDS VALUE TO THE PEOPLE IN HIS LIFE.
I love watching Kyle interact with his friends and family because it’s easy to tell how important Kyle is to everyone who is lucky to have him in their lives.
12. HE’S DEPENDABLE.
One thing I admire about Kyle is that when he says he’s going to do something, he always follows through, even when he changes his mind last minute about wanting to do it. If he says he’ll meet someone somewhere, he’s there. If he makes plans, he doesn’t break them. I wish more people could be as dependable as he is.
13. HE HAS BEEN INSTRUMENTAL IN TURNING MY MENTAL HEALTH AROUND.
It’s impossible for me to talk about the things I love about Kyle without mentioning my mental health. Kyle has witnessed some of my lowest lows, and a fear of mine when we started this relationship was that my dark places would scare him. Instead of ignoring the bad things, Kyle has embraced every part of me and has worked so hard to help me get to the healthier state I’m in mentally today. After every single one of my therapy appointments, Kyle calls me to ask how it went and to make sure that I’m okay. It’s such a small gesture that means so much. And even my therapist agrees that Kyle is amazing.
14. HE’S AN INCREDIBLE LISTENER.
Anyone who knows me could tell you that I could babble on for days about nothing. Kyle hears all the good, bad, and ugly in my life, and because I have ADD, he also hears all the monotonous stuff. Yes, there are occasions when he tunes out, but for the most part, he’s an incredible listener, and he’ll often remember things I told him that even I later forget.
15. HE’S NOT FULL OF SURPRISES, BUT THE SURPRISES HE COMES UP WITH ARE SO MEANINGFUL.
I always thought I wanted a boyfriend who would surprise me all the time with little gifts and trips and surprises, but the older I get, the more I realize that none of those things matter to me (gifts is the last thing on my Love Languages list). Kyle doesn’t surprise me with big romantic gestures, but when he does surprise me, my heart can barely handle it. One is example is this past Valentine’s Day, he got me flowers. That may not sound like a big deal, but 1), Kyle had never bought me flowers before that, and 2) we don’t celebrate Valentine’s Day. The flowers were to commemorate 15,000 hours of dating, because those are the kinds of anniversaries we like to celebrate.
16. HE MAKES LIFE FUN.
Kyle can make even the most monotonous things fun. As mentioned, even grocery shopping and cooking is always full of laughs.
17. HE’S SILLY AND NEVER ASHAMED TO SHOW IT.
One thing I love about Kyle is how carefree he is. He’s one of the silliest guys I know, and that silliness just comes naturally. Things that I find embarrassing, he just goes for it. He dances like no one’s watching, which makes me bust out my moves. He’s always willing to try something once, even if he looks crazy doing it. He also yells things into crowds that would make me blush (if I wasn’t black).
18. HE IS ALWAYS WILLING TO TALK THINGS OUT.
I’ve always been the kind of person that feels all the feelings, and then I bottle up those feelings and walk away from it like I’m fine (spoiler: I’m not fine). Kyle is the opposite. He wants to talk things out, and he’s pushed me to do it too. Even when what I’m saying doesn’t always make sense to him, and I come out of left field with something that wasn’t resolved weeks ago, Kyle is so patient (as mentioned) and is always willing to talk things out until we come up with an ending that satisfies both of us.
19. HE HAS AN AWESOME RELATIONSHIP WITH HIS FAMILY.
As someone whose conversations with her family are few and far between, it took me awhile to understand the dynamic of Kyle’s family. I envy the strong relationship he has with his family members, but I also love that they’ve embraced me as part of the family and always make me feel welcome when I spend time with them. I genuinely love watching Kyle interact with his family members and witnessing the love they have for one another. Their conversations are so genuine, and every get-together is special.
20. HE HAS HIS OWN LIFE.
This may sound like a weird one, but I love that Kyle and I have our own separate lives. I love that we have different friend groups. I love that we have different interests. I love that we have different jobs. I appreciate that not every single part of our lives are entangled. Don’t get me wrong, I love Kyle. I love spending time with him, and I miss him when we’re apart (probably too much), but I also love that we have our own lives separate from one another.
21. HE THINKS ALL DOGS ARE “GOOD BOYS.”
Kyle points out every single dog he sees because he loves all of them. We’ll be in the middle of a conversation, and he’ll point and say, “Look at that good boy.” Not that he thinks all dogs are boys, but the phrase just comes out naturally. Of course, he agrees that our dog is the best boy (obviously).
22. HE LITERALLY MAKES ME LAUGH UNTIL I CAN’T BREATHE.
I can think of so many occasions where Kyle has said something off the cuff that just made me laugh until I started crying and was physically hunched over in pain because I couldn’t breathe. I love how much we laugh together.
23. HE SUPPORTS ME, MY PASSIONS, AND MY CAREER CHANGE.
After our move to Dayton, I found a new love of working with kids and wanting to be a teacher, and Kyle has not only been patient with me while I try to navigate the change and add schoolwork to my schedule, he’s also been my biggest cheerleader and supporter through the whole process. Beyond that, he’s also the first person to read my blog posts, and he’s a willing participant on my YouTube channel. No matter what my focus is for the day, Kyle is always there making sure I have enough space to get things done, and only interrupting to remind me how much he supports me and loves me.
24. HE MAKES ME EXCITED ABOUT THE FUTURE.
I’m guilty of looking at things short-term. I love the idea of goals, and I love to make them, but 9 times out of 10, they go out the window. With Kyle, I just love doing life with him. I enjoy all of the moments we share in the present, and I like thinking back on all of our memories of the past, but best of all, he makes me excited for our future together. More than that, he’s willing to talk about our future, and it doesn’t scare him. We talk about getting married and having kids and adopting another dog (okay, it’s mostly me trying to convince him Gunther needs a friend). We talk about future travel adventures, and what our lives are going to look like in the future. Don’t get me wrong, I love living in the present with him, but every once in awhile, my mind wanders to what our futures will look like, and it puts a smile on my face.
25. HE HAS A BIG HEART.
Kyle isn’t one to wear his heart on his sleeve, but hearing his opinion on certain topics is proof of how big his heart really is. He believes in equality. He cares about animals. He loves his niece and nephews (and is open about when he misses them). He has a big heart, and he shows it with his actions and his words.
26. HE LIKES TO HELP OTHERS.
When Kyle’s friend was moving across states, he was the first to jump at the chance to help him. When a new set of students were about to start at his grad school, he reached out to all of them and had multiple conversations (both on the phone and via email) to help them out because he remembered how little information he got about the program when he first started. When Kyle and I decided to start volunteering at the Humane Society, Kyle was always the one making it a priority for us to go. Kyle is always willing to lend a helping hand, whether it’s for friends, family, animals, or even my friends.
27. HE’S ATHLETIC.
I love how passionate Kyle is about making sure he regularly works out. In high school and college, he played several different organized sports. When we lived in Shreveport, we were both part of a taco Tuesday run club, but while I walked, he always ran. Now, he goes to CrossFit several times a week, goes rock climbing with a friend, regularly plays games of racquetball with his classmates, and takes the occasional run. He even won a CrossFit competition earlier this year. My man is already so handsome, and his muscles make me swoon even more.
28. HE LOVES ME.
There are so many days where I still don’t understand why Kyle is in love with me. I genuinely feel like the luckiest girl in the world because I hit the jackpot when it comes to boyfriends. He still gives me butterflies. He still makes me giddy. I’ll forever be baffled by why he chose me, but I’m so glad that he did. For all the reasons listed and many more, I am so in love with my boyfriend, and I feel so lucky that he loves me back.
What is your favorite thing about your significant other?