Love is never having to tell the one you love...

My sweetheart and love o' my life arrived home from Grand Forks with some pretty sweet cargo. She and her mom went under the 49th to do some spring shopping and to take a mini- vacation. Though I don't expect it, each time she visits either Fargo or G.F., I am virtually guaranteed a handful of t-shirts to add to my growing collection (which she has pretty much single-handedly started) She outdid herself this time as you can see.

As Heidi showed me the ornaments, clothes, dog toys, books, and shoes (wow, a LOT of shoes) she had purchased for herself, I knew the moment was coming when she would peel open a bag of items she had bought for me. "I felt like texting you at some point to buy me a SpongeBob shirt if you came across one," I said as she rummaged through the plastic bags from Target, Kohl's, and Gordmans. Not long after I said this, Heidi reached into a bag and pulled out the first of many surprises she had in store for me. The first was:

- a Star Wars t-shirt followed by,

- a Spiderman t-shirt then,

- a SpongeBob t-shirt not to be outdone by,

- a Marvin the Martian t-shirt,

and, this last one blew my mind,

- a Kermit the Frog t-shirt

I couldn't help but feel I had just experienced Christmas in April. "How did you know?" I joked as I leaned over and gave her a kiss.

And that's just it, she just knows. We've been together long enough that when the time comes for a gift, simple or otherwise, we can pick up something and know if it will be something the other will like. I can never go wrong if I bring home flowers, bubble bath, cotton candy Jelly Belly's, or Dubble Bubble. That's just comes with the territory of sharing your life with the someone and getting to know what she appreciates (outside of a good "snuggle") To top it off she brought home several bags of Doritos, Lindt chocolate bars, and the best candy bar of all time, the Take 5 (a pretzel covered in caramel, peanut butter, peanuts, and covered in milk chocolate) If Hershey's is smart, only two people know the secret to making the Take 5 and they're not allowed to travel on the same plane together.

Yes, the Take 5 is that good.

As my school year has now wrapped up until fall, my one regret is that I can't hit the halls of Red River College on Monday to show off my new wardrobe; I'll just have to wait until August. Now, there are likely some people out there who may think it's juvenile for a 40 year-old man to be wearing what could be called kid's clothes. I'm okay with that, and so is my inner child. Once my professional life takes hold, there's little chance that I will enter a room for a meeting sporting Kermit on my chest, (though I have to admit, that type of work environment would be fantastic) so I'll make the best of the time I have left to sport my cartoon-ey fashion sense.

The best part of it is that Heidi accepts, encourages, and loves this part of my personality. If I'm lucky, once I've completed college I can work from home and continue to indulge in my taste for colourful tees.