Warning: may contain sappiness

So as Steve pointed out, I have teased him a bit in this blog. And no fair only calling out the quirks, right? Plus, he is pretty much the most thoughtful guy I know, so he deserves some public recognition. (Kudos to me on landing the sweetest one out there.)

Ten of the sweetest things Steve does/has done for me (I can't rank them, so no top ten):

• Egg nog and snickerdoodles. Before we started dating, Steve showed up at work (where we met) one day with egg nog and snickerdoodles. He left them in the breakroom to share with everyone, but he brought a glass of nog and a napkin of cookies over to my desk. He later confessed that the breakroom was a cover - he really just wanted an excuse to bring me a treat. Does it get any cuter? I waited a few months before I confessed I was lactose intolerant and had only pretended to drink the egg nog.
  
• Homemade valentines. Last year, he learned to make chocolate covered strawberries and filled a heart-shaped box for me (which he also made). He also learned to make chicken cordon-bleu for the same occasion. (If you're not impressed, read the kitchen post and you will be.)
  
• Morning carpool. I ride to work with a few other people, so 3 or 4 days a week I have to get my butt a quarter mile down the road while it's still dark outside. Most people would probably tell me to buck up and walk (I would), but Steve gets up early to give me a ride. EVERY DAY. Did I mention he's not a morning person?
• Angel food cake. My aunt was in town and I had a specific dessert I wanted to try, involving angel food cake. Steve knew by the time I got home from work, it was going to be a stretch to just get dinner ready and I was stressed about everything being nice. So he braved the kitchen (once again) to make the cake for me. He didn't quite follow the directions, and it turned out wrong, so he made a second one, which also turned out not quite right. So he made THREE angel food cakes to make my night easier. Who does that? Seriously. I am super lucky.
• Dishes. One week I was particularly stressed about all the things on my plate. I feel like there's never enough time to get the things done around the house I want to. I should specify that Steve's least favorite chore is washing dishes, but he knows what a difference it makes to me when I come home to a clean kitchen. So now he washes the dishes on weekdays - all of them - so I don't have to stress.
• Carmel apples. Autumn is my favorite season and at least once a year I like to indulge in a rich, chocolate-y, candy-coated carmel apple. This year, I came home on my birthday (which is in October) to find a plate full of hand-dipped carmel apples with assorted candy bar coatings. Best carmel apples I've ever had.
• Breakfast in bed. The birthday before we got married, Steve snuck in and surprised me with breakfast in bed (chocolate chip waffles with raspberries - my favorite). When I got to work (he was at a new job by then), I found a rose for every year old I was on my desk. Sly little surprise. Maybe he was just trying to butter me up to marry him, I don't know. (It worked though.)
• Nicknames. Steve is a master at coming up with funny, endearing terms for me. I won't embarrass myself by listing them (you're welcome).
  
• Doors. We've been married for more than a year now, and he still opens doors for me (including the car door at the crack of dawn when he drives me to carpool).
• Foot rubs every night for 30 minutes. OK, I made that one up (come on, this is my real life, not the Hollywood version).

It's funny - I know Steve thinks I value the "big ticket" romantic stuff more - like 2 dozen roses and breakfast in bed (don't get me wrong - I love that stuff as much as the next girl, maybe more). But really, it's the little things, like opening my door every time we go somewhere, remembering little details from stories I've told him and just being happy to see me at the end of the day that make me feel like the lucky wife I am.