I’m the loudest housewife I know.
I’m also a loudest person I know: I live in a tiny house in the middle of nowhere, and I work in the kitchen.
My loudness is part of who I am.
My wife, Kelly, has been my rock.
Kelly has always been my main support system, my protector.
I don’t know if I’ve ever had more of a support system than she does.
She’s always been there when I needed her.
I had to find out for myself that there are so many different kinds of support.
If you want to hear the truth, you have to go out and find yourself.
When I was growing up, we were so lucky to have a great mom.
I have two brothers who are in the military.
When they were in the Army, I used to tell them, ‘Kelly, you’ll never understand what it’s like to be on a mission, or to be in a war zone, or in an enemy camp, or on a battlefield.
It’s hard for you to understand how difficult it is.’
My mother was such a hard-working, tough, hard-nosed woman.
She taught me that hard work is the greatest gift.
It didn’t matter what your career was, Kelly always wanted to be the best in the world.
She was always the first to say, ‘Look, you can do anything, you just gotta work at it.’
When I started the restaurant business, I took my first customer with me, a young woman who was pregnant.
She worked at the restaurant and was a very supportive wife.
Kelly taught me to take care of people and to take responsibility for my life.
She helped me grow into the person I am today.
If there’s one thing that Kelly and I shared, it was our love for our children.
Kelly and her husband, Mike, raised our two sons.
The boys are now 17 and 10, and the mother is still the same woman who taught me all those lessons.
When you have a mother like Kelly, you never know what’s going to happen.
You’ll find out.
But if you’re ready to make a change, you gotta work hard.
You have to take the risks.
You need to find someone to step up and take on the challenge.
Kelly is a great role model for me.
I’ve met her and I’ve been in her shoes.
She did everything right.
She raised my boys in a way that was so wonderful and so caring.
And she taught me about the importance of family and about working for yourself and not relying on others.
When she died, Kelly’s children took over her care.
She gave them the best education possible.
When Kelly and Mike died, they left behind a legacy of service to their country, which they will forever treasure.
That legacy is a testament to their commitment to each other and to their families.
As Kelly’s sons say, we’re going to have our own Kelly, our own Mike, and our own sons.
And if we ever have to have another one, I know we’re ready.
I can’t wait to meet them.
Follow me on Twitter @bobcbarthold