Yooper Stewart: A Celebration

Is there anything more attractive than the man you love holding a baby?* I don’t think so, and for 30 seconds this summer, Yooper Stewart was the most attractive thing around!

Yooper Stewart’s always ridiculously adorable, of course. That’s part of his charm, and it’s that time of the year again when I like to honor and celebrate his charm.

I’ve obviously neglected this site this year — I’m sorry. Because of that, I have MONTHS worth of stories to share, and, like any good writer, now that I’m at my computer I can’t remember a single one. Instead, I’ll regale you with all the wonderful things about Yooper Stewart, then end with a quick re-enactment of last night’s celebration.

My Favorite Things About Yooper Stewart

1. Old ladies love him. Seriously, women 70+ can’t resist him, probably because he’s super patient and will not only help with anything but also listen attentively to all their stories.
2. Kids love him. Pretty much for the same reason as #1. He’s also a hit with toddlers because he’ll play the same thing over and over and over and over and over and over again.
3. His feet are bigger than mine. Those of you with tiny feet won’t understand this because you can slip into ANYONE’S shoes, but when you have water skis for feet (like me), nothing fits. Yooper Stewart doesn’t have huge feet, but they’re bigger than mine — that means I can quickly slip into his Crocs to run out to the mailbox without worrying about getting my feet dirty!
4. He pays attention (sort of). We’ve had our fair of miscommunications (i.e. “I told you yesterday,” “No, you didn’t!”), but that doesn’t mean he’s not paying attention to other things. Here’s my favorite recent example:
I don’t have a laundry room, so I don’t have a utility sink. When YS brings home really dirty clothes, I have to soak them in the kitchen sink. Not convenient. I mentioned, “I should get a bucket or something so I can soak clothes on the washing machine,” then went out of town for several days. When I came back, there was a bucket on my washing machine. 🙂
5. He keeps moving forward. Yooper Stewart and I have a good life, but there’s always room to grow and change. He’s never said, “I’m good enough. I don’t need to learn anymore.” He keeps challenging himself and pushing himself, and he’s a better man for it.
6. The littlest things make him happy. Literally! The man loves Lego — have you seen the size of a 1×1 plate? But also, I wish you had heard his voice when I told him we upgraded our cell phone plan to unlimited data. I’m pretty sure he used more gigs of data in the first week than he did all of 2019.

I hope it’s pretty obvious that I love this guy, and I love celebrating him. And, because it’s been a while since I’ve shared one, here’s the latest exchange with Yooper Stewart (happy birthday, honey!):

Me: (turning on the TV) What do you want to watch?
YS: Highway Thru Hell!
Me: (groaning as I turn the channel)
YS: Why do you do that? You ask me what I want to watch, then make that sound.
Me: It’s your birthday weekend. I want you to watch whatever shows you want … I just wish you had better taste in TV shows. 😉

*Meet Little Z! Our newest nephew and my favorite baby in the whole world!

Yooper Stewart Gets Older


This man.

He prefers “Maine Cabin Masters” to college football.

He wears socks with his Crocs (of which he owns five pairs).

He makes a living driving dirt from place to place.

He tries to convince me to let him grow out his beard each winter by telling me, “every inch equals an extra degree of warmth.”



He’s great with toddlers because he’s happy to do the same thing over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again with them.

He’s surprisingly sentimental.

He loves Christmas lights as much as I do.

He’s starting to absorb some of my snark (muwahahaha!).

He’s ridiculously finicky about clean windows.

I love this man. I love writing about him (and I need to get better about doing it!). He supports me, encourages me, tolerates me, and loves me. He never used to care much about his birthday, but I’ve cured him of that—the day that he came into the world is a day worth celebrating, so celebrate we will (probably with Legos).

Happy Birthday, Yooper Stewart!