A Tribute to Marty

Check out those chunky thighs and pudgy arms....and just look at that boy in blue - its not Luke, that's his daddy!!  Who would have thought this stocky wee fella would turn out to be the love of my life and the most amazing father to our three children 35 years later.

Marty, I just love you so much.  I reckon we had the most perfect start to our relationship by doing things the old fashioned way - meeting and dating via the internet!!  Seriously though, it may not be old fashioned, but we were able to spend hours and hours just talking and writing to each other, so we got to know each other inside out before we even held hands.  Because of this, nobody knows me better then you.  Nobody gets me like you do - you are my best friend in every sense of the word.    

Check out this good looking kid in the pics below - I bet all the girls at school had a crush on the sports nut and class clown.  I have seen video footage of you at this stage of your life, and It always makes me laugh to hear the total confidence and cheerfulness in your voice.  You had such character and spunk!   

These next photos make me smile too - what were you thinking!  You obviously had lots of fun in your high school years, I have heard some of the stories about your antics and they always make me laugh!  From blond hair to pipe cleaners in your curls, to getting all your friends to wear dressing gowns to church, to becoming a christian, I would have loved to have been a part of this time of your life - but our time was not yet.  I love that many of your friends from this time of your life are still in our lives now, and I have developed my own friendships with their wives - also friends you knew long before I came into your life.

Marty, your ability with numbers, facts and tables always astonishes me.  I know that you wanted to be an accountant and wish you had stuck it out.  I am always grateful for the way that you effortlessly look after our accounts and finances.   You spend hours writing quiz'es or playing  sports management simulator games because you just love tables, graphs, facts and figures...I don't pretend to understand the joy this brings you, but I am always grateful for your clever mind because you look after our family so well.  

Here we are not long after we met in Scotland.  I was 19 and you had just turned 24.  When we very first met, my mother turned to me and whispered "honey, I don't think he is the one for you".  Well, it didn't take her long to change her tune - my mother adores you!  I will never forget that you flew across the world to meet me in Scotland, or moved your life to Auckland to date me when we returned to New Zealand.  You have always put me first, you treat me so well. You are so loving and generous to me.  I love hanging out with you, watching TV together or playing games.  We have so much fun together and laugh together every day.  We talk about everything and anything and I couldn't imagine a life without you in it. 

And wow, what a father!! I just knew that you would be the kind of father you have proven you are, God has wired you for fatherhood and you do it so well.  From bathing the kids since the day each of them were born to getting up to them when they wake at night, to playing card and board games with them endlessly, to reading them their bedtime stories and devotions each night - you really are the most wonderful father.  I love the way that you don't think twice about making time with us as a family every weekend, and I love the way you 'hunt for the lost Kate' every night when you walk in the door because you know she is hiding from you in the same spot as always, awaiting her daddy to find her. You make my heart well up and then overflow with love as I watch you with our children.  

So Happy Birthday my love, my knight in shining armor.  

I love you.