"I love you more than I am tired."

Friday night, B's parents offered to watch the twins while we attended the BYU vs. USU football game at LaVell Edwards Stadium. B even ordered a new Aggie shirt for the occasion...it was that big of deal! We didn't lay our heads down to bed until after 2:00 am. We were absolutely exhausted. But, as we turned the lights out and closed our eyes, I heard my husband whisper in my ear "I love you more than I am tired." Knowing we would be up again anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours later to feed hungry babies and that the word tired wouldn't even come close to describing how we felt, my heart wanted to explode with love for this man laying next to me. How did I end up here? How did my story become so joyful?

Don't get me wrong, we are TIRED. I mean, I thought I knew what this meant before babies, but the last couple months have brought that word into a whole new light. Just when I think I can't be any more exhausted than I already am...I become more exhausted than I already was. But, amazingly enough, we keep going. 14+ diaper changes a day? Pfff. Piece of cake. Over 10 1/2 hours daily of just feeding? C'mon, give us something hard. Non-stop laundry and dishes, only 5-6 hours of sleep a night (depending on if I decide to get up to go early-morning walking with my father), and an endless amount of spit-up? Yep, this is the LIFE.

But, really, we are happy. Really happy. Because every day we get to look into Finn's bright, brilliant blue eyes and listen to Liam snort and coo. Some of my sweetest moments are changing diapers and looking down to find a baby boy smiling up at me. It's my favorite. ABSOLUTE favorite. I get so giddy when I see my babies follow my movements, whether that's getting up to fix a bottle or throw a diaper in the pail and their little heads move to make sure I'm still there.

Liam and Finn are receiving a blessing on Sunday from their father. I get emotional when I think about these sweet babies being held by this strong priesthood holder who loves them so much. He is the patriarch of our home, our provider, and my best friend. I hope our children (current and future) never forget the sacrifice he has made and the sacrifices he continues to make on their behalf. He LOVES his family. They are his greatest joy and he does so much to make sure they are safe, comfortable, and taken care of. I hope our children never doubt that their dad loves their mama. He always has and he always will. He honors me as a wife, a mother, and a woman. Even if things get hectic, people get frustrated, and life is upside down, I could not imagine a more joyful relationship than the one that exists between Brandon and I.

When kids are thrown into the picture, sometimes "passionate romancing" is placed on hold for a minute so babies can be burped and bathed. Greater effort is required to make sure your hunk of burnin' love stays burnin' when you smell like baby throw-up, your hair looks like a bird's nest, and you can't even keep your eyes open long enough to say "Good Night." But I don't think anything could have been more romantic at that moment, at 2 o'clock in the morning, than for a dad of newborn twins to profess to his weary wife that his love for her exceeded the deep, heavy exhaustion that plagued his very bones.

To quote The Office's Pam Halpert: "I didn't even look cute. That's how I knew he meant it."