Since my birthday is this month, I planned April's date night with myself in mind.
Is that a horrible thing to admit?
I just couldn't be sure that we'd be able to get TWO nights out in the same month, one for a date and one for my birthday, and not overuse the in-laws' babysitting or crowd our evenings so full they weren't fun anymore. My husband wasn't entirely thrilled with my plan; since the date nights were his birthday present in the first place, he essentially just re-gifted his own birthday present from me, to me. At least for the "dinner out" portion of my birthday. I assume there's more to come on my actual birthday. (Right?)
Anyway, the date: a progressive dinner with an "around the world" theme. 100% snatched from the Dating Divas, except that we went to three restaurants instead of other couples' houses. I even printed the somewhat-cute (but maybe just cheesy?) cards (bearing such lines as Come away with me to Italy/China/Switzerland), and used the backs to write directions from one place to the next.
Our three-course international dinner:
--appetizers at Olive Garden ($10 gift card included in date envelope). We chose the smoked mozzarella fonduta, scarfing down bread and cheese while we discussed the children's education. (Yes, scarfing. I was hungry.)
--dinner at Johnny Chan 2. Isaac had cashew chicken, which I often think of making for him but never do because cashews are so darn expensive. I had pan-fried noodles with meat and veggies, which were (unexpectedly to me) fried right there at the table. Yum. We dripped sauces all over the tablecloth while we briefly contemplated the idea of potty-training Owen and then swore off all talk of children (and of potty-training Owen, for that matter), turning instead to church matters.
--dinner at the Melting Pot ($15 gift card included in date envelope, which turned out to be about $3 short). We opted for dark chocolate fondue, and the "dippers" included rice krispy treats, bananas, strawberries, a slice of cheesecake, brownie bites, red velvet cake bites, graham-cracker-covered marshmallows, and Oreo-covered marshmallows. YUM. We talked about the future -- ours, for once, not just the children's.
It was an absolutely beautiful evening. I'd wager it's been well over a year since we had more than an hour or two of concentrated alone time, Silas being the demanding child that he's been (nursing-wise, anyway; other than that, he has the happiest disposition). Moving from restaurant to restaurant took away any lulls in conversation or the awkwardness of lingering at one table for too long. It almost felt like we were rich and had no children -- I don't want to be either of those things, but it was fun to pretend for the night. I'm even glad my mother-in-law chose not to tell me that Silas screamed for a good long while at bedtime. This is only the second bedtime I've missed in over ten months -- he wasn't going to perish, and I wasn't going to interrupt my date! My only regrets are not bringing the camera or a sweater (no need for that much air conditioning yet, people . . . ).
Lovely, lovely, lovely. I have nothing more to say on the subject. :)
Is that a horrible thing to admit?
I just couldn't be sure that we'd be able to get TWO nights out in the same month, one for a date and one for my birthday, and not overuse the in-laws' babysitting or crowd our evenings so full they weren't fun anymore. My husband wasn't entirely thrilled with my plan; since the date nights were his birthday present in the first place, he essentially just re-gifted his own birthday present from me, to me. At least for the "dinner out" portion of my birthday. I assume there's more to come on my actual birthday. (Right?)
Anyway, the date: a progressive dinner with an "around the world" theme. 100% snatched from the Dating Divas, except that we went to three restaurants instead of other couples' houses. I even printed the somewhat-cute (but maybe just cheesy?) cards (bearing such lines as Come away with me to Italy/China/Switzerland), and used the backs to write directions from one place to the next.
Our three-course international dinner:
--appetizers at Olive Garden ($10 gift card included in date envelope). We chose the smoked mozzarella fonduta, scarfing down bread and cheese while we discussed the children's education. (Yes, scarfing. I was hungry.)
--dinner at Johnny Chan 2. Isaac had cashew chicken, which I often think of making for him but never do because cashews are so darn expensive. I had pan-fried noodles with meat and veggies, which were (unexpectedly to me) fried right there at the table. Yum. We dripped sauces all over the tablecloth while we briefly contemplated the idea of potty-training Owen and then swore off all talk of children (and of potty-training Owen, for that matter), turning instead to church matters.
--dinner at the Melting Pot ($15 gift card included in date envelope, which turned out to be about $3 short). We opted for dark chocolate fondue, and the "dippers" included rice krispy treats, bananas, strawberries, a slice of cheesecake, brownie bites, red velvet cake bites, graham-cracker-covered marshmallows, and Oreo-covered marshmallows. YUM. We talked about the future -- ours, for once, not just the children's.
It was an absolutely beautiful evening. I'd wager it's been well over a year since we had more than an hour or two of concentrated alone time, Silas being the demanding child that he's been (nursing-wise, anyway; other than that, he has the happiest disposition). Moving from restaurant to restaurant took away any lulls in conversation or the awkwardness of lingering at one table for too long. It almost felt like we were rich and had no children -- I don't want to be either of those things, but it was fun to pretend for the night. I'm even glad my mother-in-law chose not to tell me that Silas screamed for a good long while at bedtime. This is only the second bedtime I've missed in over ten months -- he wasn't going to perish, and I wasn't going to interrupt my date! My only regrets are not bringing the camera or a sweater (no need for that much air conditioning yet, people . . . ).
Lovely, lovely, lovely. I have nothing more to say on the subject. :)
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