First Date as New Parents

{via}

Last Friday, Daniel and I drove all the way to Searcy, Arkansas to go on our first date without Jack. My parents were thrilled to watch our little man. As we went out the door we gave last minute instructions and then had faith that they had raised three kids well and Jack was in good hands.

We made our way into town to Midnight Oil for coffee and dessert. Our very first date, almost 10 years ago ended at MO. It was an epoch first date that lasted over 8 hours. It was sweet to go and reminisce about that date so long ago. 

On that first date I was nervous and made sure that I looked my best. On this date I was tired and had spit up on my shirt, but I know that Daniel loves me more now than he could have imagined back in 2001 – spit up and all.

We talked a little bit about Jack but mostly we reminisced about the past and dreamed about the future. We also felt really old because a lot of the people at MO looked like they were 12. We felt better when we saw some actual college students.

I don't know if my memory has elevated MO in my mind, but I was a bit disappointed with my Mr. Blond. It wasn't as sweet as I remembered. And we had to request ceramic mugs – why are they using paper cups??? Also the chocolate cake we shared, while good, didn't taste like it had been made fresh that day... more like it had been purchased from somewhere else the day before. Also it was kind of weird that there are no couches any more... they have been replaced by church pews. While church pews can hold more people and are interesting as pieces of furniture, the old white and brown pews from DTCoC don't lend the same comfortableness as an old, ratty couch.

I still love Midnight Oil, but it didn't seem like the same coffee house of my college days. I will hang on to my memories and my special moments there with Daniel.

Project 52 Date Nights - Calm in the Midst of Crazy

This past weekend was insane. We crammed in a 12+hour roadtrip {each way} to Searcy, AR to attend a wedding of a childhood friend AND then back through Nashville for my brother's graduation from grad school. I am a bad sister - we didn't actually make it to graduation, but we were {briefly} there to celebrate at my aunt's afterward.

To get an idea of how crazy this weekend was, here is the breakdown:

Thursday:

• Worked half a day. Finalized packing/cleaning the house in case there is a weekend showing {which there wasn't}. Loaded Sophie in the car and drove 6 hours to Chattanooga, TN.
• Moved all of my stuff {and Sophie} into our Subaru and drove {with Daniel} to Murfreesboro, TN to have dinner with my father-in-law.
• After dinner, we drove to my brother's apartment in Nashville. We didn't even take our stuff in, we just crashed in his bedroom {he was gracious and slept on the couch}.

Friday:

• Up early to drive to Memphis {with my brother now in tow} to see my sister, her husband and my sweet niece {whom we haven't seen since Thanksgiving}. We spent all of one hour there {and they fed us lunch} before hitting the road.
• Drove to Searcy where we briefly visited with my parents.
• Then to a rehearsal at the church.
• Followed by the rehearsal dinner.
• Followed by a bachelorette party.
• I was home around 1AM.

Saturday:

• Up and showered and ready for breakfast at 9AM {my Grandma, Aunt and Uncle come by for a quick visit}.
• Left at 10:30AM to attend a Bridesmaid luncheon {eating all of this food did not help me when I had to wear a super tight dress later that day}.
• Went to the church around 1:30PM to get ready.
• Pictures were at 3PM (I put off putting on my dress until the last moment}.
• Spent the next 7 hours unable to move or breathe :(
• Wedding was at 5PM - it was beautiful. Everything I expected.
• Reception followed - was blessed to visit with MANY people from my teenage years.
• We finally sent the bride and groom off around 10PM.
• We proceeded to go to my parent's house and CRASH {actually I made Daniel give me his suit jacket and then undo my dress as soon as we got in the car so that I could breathe again}.

Are you still with me?

Sunday

• Drove to my aunt's house in Nashville. Where we visited for a couple of hours {celebrating my brother's graduation} before hitting the road AGAIN.
• Then on to Chattanooga, where we unloaded Daniel's stuff and moved my stuff back to my car.
• We stayed up until 10PM visiting with our friends Chris & Courtney {who Daniel is currently living with}.

Monday

• Up at 5:45AM???
• Left at 6:30 - Daniel left for work and I drove home to Charlotte. I made it home in 6 hours. Dropped Sophie at the house and then went to work.

Whew.

So. Our Date. To be truthful, I barely saw Daniel. Between the wedding and all of the visiting. But we did manage to grab a moment of calm {by ourselves} on Friday night. After the rehearsal dinner and before the bachelorette party, we made a pit stop at Midnight Oil. This is my favorite coffee house on the planet - mostly because it brings back such fond memories from college. Daniel and I even went there at the end of our very first date {where we proceeded to talk until closing time}. Unfortunately this date, only allowed us about 20 minutes to sit on the porch, sharing a Mr. Blond. And just talking. When you live in separate places, talking becomes the thing you long for the most. It was my moment of calm in the midst of a very crazy {exhausting, but fun} weekend.