Date night!

Yesterday, JB and I went on a date! While we were gone, Isaac hung out at Clay & Brittney's house with their two adorable daughters: Madison and Jocelyn. We are so blessed that despite the fact that we do not have family here, we have so many wonderful people to babysit for us. We really are blessed to have some "family" away from home.

I love bringing Isaac to Brittney's because, quite honestly, I don't think for one second about his well-being while I am gone. Brittney is amazing with children, and I know he is thoroughly enjoying all the attention his two big "sisters" are lavishing on him. I'm going to be very sad when they leave next summer for their new assignment. Clay is a third year which means summertime will send them on their way . . . away from us! :(

Anyways, Brittney took some photos of the day's activities, and I stole a few from her blog to share with you.

Isaac hanging out with big sister Madison and Doctor Clay while Jocelyn is napping. Look at Madison playing with Isaac's feet. :)

What a cute picture of my chubby boy and a beautiful little girl. Every time we see Madison she seems to get even prettier.

I love this picture! I don't think Jocelyn is too happy with the division of labor here.

Isaac looks like he just loves all this attention from the gorgeous ladies. How much better can it get?!

So what did we do on our night out?!

Well, first we went and saw the new James Bond movie. JB loved it. I, thought it was, well, like all the other Bond movies. It kept my attention and I was interested in what was happening, but I was always a bit confused as to what was actually occurring in the plot. In addition, if you didn't see the Bond before this one, you'll be even more confused than I was. It really carried over from the previous movie.

After the movie, we decided to use our gift certificate to Ruth Chris Steakhouse. We had only been to Ruth Chris once before and that was for a pharmaceutical dinner. (This is where a company comes in and treats you to a meal while they tell you about the drug they hope you'll prescribe to patients.) Normally, spouses cannot attend these meetings, but because I am a medical writer, I am allowed to go. I've been to 3 or 4 of them since we moved here, and they are always an amazing spread! Of course, my retirement from the RLS Foundation in January will mean the end to these opportunities. Bummer!

Well Ruth Chris' was amazing -- even more amazing then our pharm. dinner allowed for. We were seated in a comfy circular booth and were treated to amazing service and even more amazing food. The only bad thing is that our gift certificate required us to spend a minimum amount of money in order to redeem the allotted amount. I thought this minimum would be impossible to reach, but it was reached rapidly and quickly. It is quite a pricey place. Definitely a "very special night" outing and not somewhere we will probably go again for many years to come. We do have one more of these gift certificates, but since it doesn't expire, we'll probably use it when we retire or something! Or after the kids have been put through college. :)

One thing we realized while we were at dinner was how few times we have gone out without Isaac. In fact, this was the first movie (other than a movie we attended with the CareGroup) that we have been to see together since he was born, and only the third time we have been to dinner alone since he was born.

I have always been determined to make sure to take time away from the kids and spend time with my spouse, and we have done this a few times since Isaac was born. But life has been so busy with travelling and JB's work . . . and tiring from a new baby and another new baby on the way . . . that we just haven't done this as often as we would like.

I think the other thing is that Isaac is so good. At the age he is at now, he goes to restaurants, shopping, etc. without causing us any issues so we therefore just don't think ahead to securing a babysitter, despite the fact that we have plenty to choose from. (I really hope all these sitters are as willing to be of service when there is an Isaac x 2 present. That's when we will really need them!)

So anyways, it was a great date night and something we'll have to do again soon. Big kudos to Clay & Brittney for giving us the opportunity to spend some time just the two of us. It was way needed and we came home excited to see our boy and very refreshed.