The Sweetest Mother's Day Gift!

When my husband and I were first getting to know each other, I could tell he was really into me. No, he really had it bad. So much that he pointed me out to his dad and declared, “I’m going to marry that girl one day.”

Of course, I didn’t know any of this until much later. But I could feel something building, and I had to squash this idea immediately by making a declaration myself that I wanted to be friends. I had no idea what I was really saying because a friendship was exactly where it was headed and was exactly what I needed and wanted. And not any friendship, a best friendship.

My husband is my bestie. He’s my best bud, best friend, best companion. This is coming from a girl with a lot of amazing girlfriends, many more than 10 years, and some more than 30. Some knew me as a kid, went through college with me, and walked me through breakups. These are girls I can call upon and rely on.

But none of those friendships compare to the friendship I have with my husband.

I enjoy living each day with him. We love being alone and have always looked forward to monthly dates. We have a similar vision and similar goals, we share favorite songs and shows, we have a ton of inside jokes, and we even make the same joke at the same time, his stated more loudly, of course. I look forward to telling him about my day, even giving him the most trivial details. I enjoy hearing about his day, too.

RELATED: Dear Husband, I Loved You First

They say love is blind. But I think true love allows the other to truly see. To truly see each other. I’m honest with him even if it means that honesty may start a fight. It’s worth the risk and worth being accepted even after truly being seen. And just like besties, if we get into a fight, we find a way to make up again.

My husband is my bestie.

I cheer him on, and he cheers me on, too. It’s not a competition. It’s a friendship of mutual respect and admiration.

People sometimes treat marriage like you can’t lose it. They treat it like it’s a guaranteed forever, a vow that can’t be broken. And although you may decide to stay married, you can lose the friendship. Have you ever lost a best friendship before? I’ve seen many walk through divorce and the saddest thing about a dissolved marriage isn’t when the divorce is final, it’s when the marriage on paper is no longer a friendship. I don’t want to lose my best friend, even if we stick it out and stay married for life.

RELATED: I Ask My Husband’s Permission

So, as cheesy and annoying as it may seem, we’ll continue to wear matching colors to weddings, we’ll finish each other’s jokes, and we’ll say, “I need to check with my spouse first.” It matters that my husband is my bestie.

Being each other’s best friend is the greatest benefit a marriage can offer.

I choose each day to keep my husband my best friend, my confidant, and my person I check in with and tell everything to. I’ll make this friendship last through the end and will work each day at being his bestie, too.

RELATED: I Love My Girlfriends, But My Husband is My Best Friend

So, if your husband is your bestie too, hold on tight, cherish him, spend time with him, have fun together, pray for him and with him, listen to him, tell him how much he means to you, stay connected, believe in him, don’t keep secrets from him, and choose him each day. Take that risk to be vulnerable and honest.

Make it a friendship that lasts until the end. And not just a friendship, but a best friendship.

So God Made a Grandmother book by Leslie Means

If you liked this, you'll love our book, SO GOD MADE A GRANDMA

Order Now!

Aneece Alicea

Aneece Alicea is a part-time therapist, writer, and speaker. She's a full-time mom, wife, Jesus follower, and dog lover. She enjoys a good cup of coffee and a good laugh.

I Still Can’t Believe You’re Mine

In: Marriage
Man and woman dressed up dancing

I still can’t believe you’re mine. Lately, I’ve found myself reflecting on how far we’ve come—two babies, multiple moves, and the weight of a world that hasn’t always been kind. There were seasons when things felt uncertain. Seasons when growth hurt. Seasons when staying required more strength than leaving ever would have. I know not everyone believed we would make it this far. But it was always you. God was leading me to you long before I understood it. In ways I couldn’t see at the time, He was writing a story bigger than my fears, bigger than my doubts,...

Keep Reading

True Love Is Built In the Moments No One Sees

In: Marriage
Two pinkies hooked with wedding rings

There is nothing simple about raising a medically complex child. We carry emergency plans the way others carry wallets. Med lists are memorized. Hospital routes are second nature. We measure time in seizures, appointments, medication schedules, and recovery windows. Early Monday morning, after our 10-year-old autistic son was sedated for stitches following a seizure fall, he was sick. My husband held him upright while he vomited. I grabbed towels, trying to catch what I could. We moved in sync—no discussion, no drama, just instinct and practice. And I thought about our marriage. It isn’t glitz and glamour. It’s not candlelit...

Keep Reading

We Fall In Love a Million Times

In: Marriage
Man kissing woman on forehead

Recently, I read a picture book to my children titled Would I Trade My Parents? The book is about a little boy who wishes he could exchange his parents for his friends’ parents. But in the end, he remembers all the amazing things his parents do for him and realizes he wouldn’t trade them after all. He knows they’re the best. After reading this book, my immediate thought was there should be a book for couples called Would I Trade My Partner? Because while we can’t trade our children (or our parents), we most certainly can trade our spouses if we really...

Keep Reading

As a Newly-Single Mom, I’m Learning How To Parent Alone

In: Marriage, Motherhood
Mother with little girl on piggyback walking down road

I have four beautiful children. Each of them is unique, full of purpose, and wonderfully made by God. Being their mom is my greatest joy and my biggest challenge. As a newly single mom, the normal things of adolescence I used to have help governing are now much more difficult to navigate. I constantly worry my unhealed trauma is going to spill out onto my kids and mess them up. Who’s with me? I have teenage daughters. That fact in and of itself is frightening. It is so easy to let them down. I try to meet them where they...

Keep Reading

My Husband Is By My Side Through Every Storm

In: Grief, Marriage
Man with arm around woman's chair

The year 2025 began as a quiet storm. I was slipping into the fog of depression while navigating the early chaos of perimenopause, and some days simply getting out of bed felt impossible. My thoughts felt dark and heavy, my body unfamiliar, my energy nonexistent, and my moods uncontrollable. And yet, in the haze, there was one constant: my husband. He noticed the subtle shifts I barely acknowledged. The sighs, the quiet retreats into myself, the moments I almost broke. Instead of judgment or frustration, he offered presence. He held space for my struggle without trying to “fix” it, and...

Keep Reading

The Love Story Built on Paper and Perseverance

In: Living, Marriage
woman sits on floor with papers spread around her

I still remember the nights when our living room floor disappeared beneath piles of forms, envelopes, and government instructions. I sat cross-legged on the carpet, trying to make sense of words that felt more complicated than they needed to be, holding papers that determined our future in ways I could hardly process. My husband sat nearby, both of us tired, both of us learning patience one page at a time. This was the part of our love story no one prepares you for. Not the dreamy beginning, not the pretty milestones, but the long, exhausting middle. The part filled with...

Keep Reading

Even When Marriage Is Good, It Can Leave You Exhausted

In: Marriage
Couple on beach, man kisses woman's forehead

I love my husband, John. He’s kind and funny, smart and, most importantly, he’s committed to our life together. He works hard every day to be there for our family. He doesn’t want me to carry more than my share. But I am tired in a way that sleep can’t restore. There’s an inherent weariness that’s accumulated quietly over the years by doing what needed to be done without little, if any, notice. From the outside looking in, our marriage looks rock-steady and functional. That’s because in many ways, it is. We meet our responsibilities and manage our schedules. You...

Keep Reading

I Know Good Fathers Exist—Because I’m Married To One

In: Marriage
Father holding young child, side photo

When I found out I was pregnant in college, I was afraid to share the news with my then-boyfriend (now-husband). I was afraid because when my biological dad found out my mom was pregnant, he left. His parents wanted me aborted. His family wanted him to walk away. In the end, my dad chose himself. He didn’t choose me. He didn’t fight for me. He didn’t protect my life. I was afraid to share the news of my pregnancy because I thought my husband would leave too. He was told by some to have me abort our baby or to...

Keep Reading

I Love the Man Behind the Beard

In: Marriage
Smiling man with beard scruff driving car

My husband, John, had sideburns and a mustache when we were married. And I loved them. He grew the first beard because he could. It was during our first weeks as a married couple, back in 1972, and the Navy had permitted enlisted members to have facial hair. They all pretty much had to grow beards, just on principle. I remember looking over at him as we drove to Homestead, Florida, where we were stationed, and seeing the romantic, tortured face of Richard Harris from the movie Camelot and a suave, tuxedoed Robert Goulet smiling across the car at me...

Keep Reading

Dear Husband, Let’s Chase a Love That Still Chooses

In: Marriage
Husband and wife laughing in living room

They pass each other in the hallway, coffee in one hand, keys in the other. One is coming home while the other is heading out. A kiss at the door, a tired smile, a promise to catch up later. Their love, once stretched across endless evenings and unhurried laughter, now fits into the small spaces between schedules and alarms. They both work hard, not because they love the distance, but because they are building a life together. Yet sometimes it feels like the life they are building is pulling them apart. Conversations happen through text messages and quick calls on...

Keep Reading