Date Night

I live for our weekly date night!  It is one of my favorite nights of the week.  As much as I love being home with my kiddos, I need that break to get away and Dave and I need that time together, just the two of us.  Our dates are usually simple, but I have made it a priority and I budget money specific for babysitters so we can leave weekly.  Sometimes, we go bowling or mini golfing, other times to a dollar movie.  Occasionally we go to dinner.  We try to do things creative.  Most importantly, we are together. 

Several weeks back, a friend of ours put together an "Amazing Race" date. 

This is a terrible picture, but it's all I've got.  This is our team just before we headed out on the first challenge. 

We all met at a central location and divided into teams.  There were four teams.  Basically, we each received clues and we had to solve the clues to find the next one.  Some were written in different languages, others were aerial pictures of a park and we had to figure out which park it was and go there.  There were also challenges.  One where a member of our team had to eat the contents of his bag (called a 'dining' challenge) which had a can of sardines, a Ziploc filled with marshmallows, a while clove of garlic, and pop rocks.  Another challenge where we each tied balloons to our ankles and tried to step on and pop the other teams balloons.  The team with the most balloons remaining un-popped at the end of the game won.   I don't remember how points were calculated, but we all had a great time chasing through town to try to be the winning team.  It was so much fun!  And it was a totally free date (except for paying the sitter). 

Back in May, another friend and I put together a second chance Prom.  Now, I won't say that Dave was jumping up and down about this one.  But I put him in charge of the music and that made him come.  But is was fun.  Even he would admit it.  The variety of our dates is what makes them fun.  We don't do the same things all the time. 

Last Friday when Dave got home from work, I told him that for our date, we were going to go to Kiwi Loco (a self-serve frozen yogurt place) and play board games.  He asked, "Long games? Or like Candyland?"  I think he was a little embarrassed.  We went to Arby's for dinner (I had a coupon for 2 meals for 8.99) and then we ran and picked up a few Christmas gifts.  Then, we went and served up our frozen yogurt and played games.  To Dave's surprise, there were even games there at the ice cream shop for people to play. I told him, "See, they want us to play games here!"  It was a lot of fun and we enjoyed visiting about our kids and their needs and our concerns for them. 
Sometimes dates are a good time to do assessments of your children.  Mostly, I think it is just good to take the time for the two of you.  And I think it sends a good message to our children that mommy and daddy and their relationship is important. 

Running

I high school, I was a runner.  I ran track and I loved it.  Fast forward to now . . . until 6 months ago, I hadn't run a mile in the last 14 years.  Okay, that may be a bit of an overstatement.  I did remember running a bit in college, but I never got good at it and I never got to where I enjoyed it. 

Six months ago, at my Weight Watchers meeting, I was told about their 5-K challenge, where members meet on a certain day to do a 5-K.  Most members walk, which I knew would not be a "challenge" for me, and since it was supposed to be a "challenge," I decided I would run it.  I think what really motivated me was that we were each given a training schedule.  I had never thought about how to work up to running 3 miles at once.  I remember even once telling my husband that I bet I could run a 5-K with no training.  The next morning, I ran down to the church (10 houses away) and I realized that I was SO wrong!  This training schedule was just what I needed to help me break it down in to daily goals. 

Running has become a thing I do just for me.  At first, it was miserable.  It was still winter, and I found it very difficult to schedule in my running around my nursing baby and two other kids.  Plus, my hubby works two jobs, and that meant I had to be creative about getting my runs in.  It's funny to think back to those early days, and how I thought I'd never get any better.  I have found that running is a bit of an attitude, and if it is something you value, you will make the time for it.  I now get up and run before my hubby goes to work on most days.  (That may be a bit more challenging when school starts in a few weeks, but I'll cross that bridge then.) 

So I ran my first 5-K back in April.  My second in May.  Neither had quite the finish I had imagined.  But it feels good to push your body and mind to do something challenging. 

 In July, two of my friends signed up to run this race with me.  This was my most official race yet, and it met my standards.  I felt good about my performance.  I think that is one thing I love about running.  It is something I can do and work at and improve in.  It is something that, unlike much of what I do as a mom, stays done once I do it.  When I run, I have an amazing feeling of accomplishment. 

 I got done first so I was able to snap these picts of my running buddies.  I'm sure they love me for it.

And here we are at the end.  Running is such an interesting sport.  It is one where you are running with others, but (at least for me) competing against yourself.  And all I gotta do when I'm feeling a lack of motivation to get out the door and run is sign up for another race.  I encourage anyone to try it. 

Our Anniversary-7 Years

On Friday, Dave and I celebrated 7 years of marriage together.  I made him promise that we would do something "different" for our anniversary.  Pretty much every other year has been me at girls camp (3 times), me at Mary Kay Seminar (twice), or our first anniversary where we took our 3-week old baby to Nebraska and spent the night in a hotel room with him, Dave's sister and her 9-month old.  Very Romantic!  Anyway, so I vowed that this year would be different.  However, I didn't want to spend a ton of money either.  So, here is the run down of our activities. 

 My mom offered to take our boys for the entire night.  We have not had a night away from our boys (like all night long!) in probably 4 years.  It was time! 

I really wanted to go to the temple.  We have never been able to do this on our anniversary before, and it seemed so fitting. The temple grounds were all torn up, so we had to settle for a picture in our living room.  As a side note, I even chose to wear the very same dress I wore to our wedding luncheon.  

After the temple, we went out to dinner.  We don't do that very often, so for me, it is a real treat.   

 Next, we came back to Pocatello and changed and headed out to go mini golfing.  There is a great little place here that is outside and it was a beautiful night. 

 This is one of several fountains intermixed in the course. 

Let it be known that I WON the game.  I have never done that before, and I actually scored 5 holes in one.  I was pretty surprised myself.  Then we grabbed a Jamba and headed home.  It was blissful to come home to a quiet house and have just one night to not worry about kiddos.  (Thanks mom!) 

It has been a great seven years.  We have learned a lot, and I think we've come out on top.  Sure, a lot has changed.  Life is a lot more chaotic.  But we're happy.  In a nutshell, we've bought 3 homes, put Dave through school, had three children, 2 jobs, and lots of life lessons.  I'm looking forward to the next seven years. 

Seven things I love about Dave: (one for each year)
1. He works SO hard!
Many people don't know that Dave works 2 jobs so that I can be home with our boys.  And even while in school full-time, he worked 30+ hours each week.  I try to imagine what life would be like if he just came home from work and got to be home all night, but I may never know what that it like. 
2. He let's me (and encourages me) to do my own thing.
I know a lot of women who have hubby's that try to direct their lives.  They feel like they need their husbands permission to do things.  Dave and I discuss things, but he lets me do my own thing, and he supports me in my endeavors. 
3. He is a real dad.
I am blessed to have a man who is there for his kids.  There is no "babysitting".  It's called "parenting". 
4. He honors his priesthood. 
I appreciate that I can always call on Dave when I need a blessing.  He is a good spiritual leader. 
5.  He loves me just the way I am.
I know that I am not always fun to be with, and sometimes I pick on Dave when I am having a bad day, but somehow, he always loves me, even on my worst days.  He is quick to forgive and always looks for the good in me. 
6. He is very handy. 
Dave can build, fix, and figure out most anything.  He has done so many projects around our home and we have done many together.  He fixes what goes wrong, and I know he enjoys learning new things.  If he doesn't know how to fix it, he'll find out. 
7. We make a good team.
We really do!  Together, we just work well.  We accomplish a lot when we work together, and we usually have the same vision and can get the job done. 
 I love you, Dave.  Thanks for seven great years together!