I can't wait to see how these evolve over the years.
Early in the week we took turns taking our littler sweethearts on dates that they helped plan.
Sweet CTL pretty much gets a special date with Mommy every-middle-of-the-night. So he, technically, did not participate this year. But our littlest love sure is CUTE!
RRL took Lou. He emphasized that her Daddy was the first one to take her on dates, that her dates should always open the door for her and that the reason he was taking her on dates was to practice how she should be treated. She was just thrilled to dress in her pink dress, have her Daddy all to herself, and go to a fancy dinner at one of her favorite places...Moo-yah (see her best "MOOOOO-Yah expression below), followed by dessert at TCBY. Ha, nothing like a fancy dinner of hotdogs and icecream with your Daddy.
After I ruled out McDs and Whataburger, the boys chose Celebrity for our date. On our way home from school that afternoon, the boys and I were planning our outing and I as trying to talk to them about how to plan a date for a lady. I suggested that having a plan and dressing up a bit were some simple ways to show her that she was appreciated. So, KJ suggested that they wear tuxedos on our date, since they appreciated me SO much. Cbug was more hesitant. When KJ mentioned the tuxes, I said I thought that would be fun and Cbug responded "I like my camo pants". Short. Sweet. To the point. Typical. I told him that was fine, he could wear what he wanted, but just try to think about how he could do something for someone else. You can tell from the pictures how he compromised. Love him!
Also, thanks to a great group from our Bible Class, and an awesome idea by one of them, we enjoyed a date swap weekend. We kept their kids one night and traded for our date night. I'm pretty sure we got the best end of that bargain when we took in three extra kids (one from each family), and then got to leave FOUR behind. SUH-WEET.
Our night to keep all of the kids
Speaking of Sweet...that was the theme of our date. My man knows the way to my heart. I mean, other than the ways he takes care of our family, the OTHER way to my heart is my sweet tooth, especially a certain love for milkshakes. I consumed so many milkshakes while pregnant with KJ that I gained nearly 60 pounds (no exaggeration). But I suppose my real love for a GOOD milkshake dates way back to the years where there was a little drug store down the street from my childhood home. We could walk down with our dollars, sit at the counter, and get a great shake and grilled cheese. The good ole days.
With that sentimental motivation, RRL and I went on a Valentine's quest (via google) for the best places in our area to get a great shake. And boy howdy did we have success. When we found an article about the best 3 places to get icecream treats, realized they were within miles from each other, and each had a unique experience to offer...yet another ABL hair-brained idea was born. One that was nearly as successful as a certain idea to go sledding in rubbermaid tubs. I mean, why take someone else's word for which of the 3 was actually the BEST. Shouldn't we make such a pivotal decision for ourselves? So, RRL kindly played along when I suggested we visit all three of the establishments. For dinner. A perfect Valentine's date if you ask me- lots of time in the car to talk, lots of time to laugh over choosing dessert for dinner, and the fun of exploring new places.
We had two amazing milkshakes and a homemade icecream sandwich. I guess it wasn't entire for dinner, I guess, since we also shared a burger and a hamsalad sandwich. But that definitely wasn't our "main" course.
We loved every minute of these new traditions. Hopefully they will become part of they way we are setting aside time to appreciate the blessings of our marriage.
And the ways we are teaching our children to love each other and to love their future spouses.
I cannot wait until next year.
Not that we technically HAVE to wait 365 days to eat dessert for dinner again. Right, Babe?
ABL
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