he carefully nudges the door open with an elbow and walks into the sunlit bedroom with an excited grin. light brown hair is tugged in different directions from sleep and he’s clad in a black, silky robe with embarrassing kitten pajamas underneath. however, no amount of normalcy could dull his brightness for the special day. in soft palms sat a pretty cake, decorated with fondue sushi of all kinds and a small, burning candle right in the middle. an airy giggle and he begins to sing, walking towards the sleepy bump on the bed that consists of you.

Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday to you,

he reaches the bed and lifts a knee to dip his weight into the memory foam mattress.

Happy birthday, Dear Orion ~

he sits completely on the bed now, grinning from ear to to ear with all the fondness in the world.

Happy birthday to you!

on this month and day, an angel was born.

every passing day, you continue to be a blessing to everyone around you- including me. some may not realize it and may take it for granted but none of that can erase how important you really are to our daily lives. your family, your friends, your kids at work, and i are lucky to know you, love you, and receive all that you give both intentionally and unintentionally. the hard work, effort, time, and energy that you have put into loving me the best that you can doesn’t go unnoticed. with all of your responsibilities, i’m really the luckiest wife to have you not give up on me and stay despite how hard it gets. you work and tend to so many people yet voluntarily choose to keep me around too when time given to me could be given to multiple other things. thank you for that. thank you for your patience and generosity and never ending affection. i’m so so so proud to be able to call you mine. i’ll always be grateful to be able to wake up in the mornings and know that you’re healthy and breathing and living your life right next to me. i will never stop feeling the joy that i do every single time you come home from work and shower me with attention even though i know you’re exhausted from working for hours.

i sound like a broken record but you work so hard. you do so much without complaint. so selfless and giving. you may be quiet but you’re so, so important. i hope you never lose sight of that truth. i hope that during the times you feel like you aren’t enough, these words are able to ring back inside your head: you are more than enough. your worth is so vast that it’s immeasurable and even if you decide not to work so hard one day, not to do much and relax, be selfish for a little bit instead, you will still be worth an infinite amount in this world. i know you love to work and to be productive but i hope you don’t beat yourself up for needing breaks from, well, everything. you need a break sometimes. don’t be too stubborn! if you don’t give yourself a break then you burn out and can’t go on at all. so sit back from time to time and let yourself be okay with making mistakes and failing sometimes because it won’t make me stop loving you and it’ll only make you better. you’re such a perfectionist and it takes a toll on you. there’s nothing wrong with being ambitious and having big goals but let’s make sure to enjoy the journey there, yeah? if you don’t, you’ll feel unsatisfied once you get your end result. the journey and how we spend it is what matters most, at the end of the day. let’s live in the moment a little more, my love!

behind the arrogance that i once thought you held, behind your confidence that i guessed to be unyielding, lies a soft-hearted baby puppy that wants to be loved and wants to learn how to love better. you act tough but you can’t even watch movies with animals because it makes you sad. you protect me fiercely but scream for momma and run into my arms with a childish frown whenever you miss me. you are precious beyond words and i feel so lucky that you have let me in and that i get to love you. you’re a goddamn blessing. to have you trust me enough to allow me to see you vulnerable and to take care of you is a privilege.

my wish for you is to always be healthy and able. i wish that you achieve all of your dreams even if it’s one step at a time. i hope you never have nightmares and that you sleep well always. and that no amount of difficulty in a life obstacle will stop you from flourishing into a better version of yourself. i wish you growth and a long life.

i love you so much. to pluto and back.

make a wish! for all the sushi in the world, for a trip to japan, for anything at all—you deserve it and more.

happy birthday, puppy. no matter what you choose to do, you will always be my best boy.