Breakfast dates

When Rick was still a bachelor, it's safe to say he was a bit of a "workaholic" when it came to teaching and investing in the education of his students. He was often the first one at school and/or the last to leave in the evenings. Since we've been married and added children to our family, his days have gotten shorter at school. I know it's been a struggle for him to still feel like an organized, prepared, and effective teacher, yet still spend time with us as a family and be home early. We sat down late in the summer and came to an agreement about a reasonable time for him to head home in the evenings (4:30pm), which has helped me out a ton- this is usually the time the kids start getting restless and I'm trying to get dinner going. I love knowing when he'll be home for sure and look forward to it! :)

On my end, Rick as always expressed how much he would love it if I were up in the mornings when he leaves for work. He's really looking forward to the time when I'm teaching too and we're both getting up and ready in the mornings at the same time! Part of our agreement included a weekly morning "date"- a day when I get up with the alarm also, we can have breakfast together, and he doesn't leave until closer to 7am (rather than the usual 6-6:15am).

I have a hair appointment and Bunco! tonight and we won't see much of each other today, so Rick suggested we have our little breakfast date this morning. I made banana bread last night and we agreed Starbucks would go perfectly with it, so our morning date was set. It was our third one since the school year started and I can already tell they are going so great for us! It's a time we actually get a chance to sit down face-to-face and talk- topics ranging from the random to the important.

When Rick gets home in the evenings, it's usually a little hectic between the kids being very excited to see him and me making dinner (and trying not to be grumpy because I'm tired and hungry...). The rest of the evening is focused on the kids... dinnertime, playing, baths, bedtime routine, and them getting to sleep. By the time they are in bed, I'm EXHAUSTED! The couch has become ridiculously uncomfortable these last few weeks of pregnancy, so I usually head to bed earlier than Rick, while he tries to get a little school work done. This leaves us very little time during the week to really focus on each other and have quality conversations. Hoorah for morning dates!

Don't tell Rick, but I'm starting to enjoy getting up at 5:30am and having time before the kids get up to relax, eat, and prepare for the day... But, most of all, I really love the breakfast dates we get once a week and the quality time I get with my amazing husband! Who knows, maybe we'll add a few more here and there...