The Sparkler on the Birthday Cake

October 7th, 2013

Brad hijacked my blog on Friday, and then we escaped to Chicago for a little under 24 hours. We caught the 6:30 train, and were in the heart of the city and famished by 8:00. We were navigating the mile and a half walk to our 4 star hotel that we Pricelined for a score of 75 bucks, without dinner plans or really any plans for our little short getaway.

We passed an upscale Mexican place on our walk and the smell of fajitas lured us back on the warm October night in the city. We put our names on the list, walked to our hotel, checked in, and then returned with high hopes of warm chips and brisket enchiladas.

But there was more…

There was a sparkler on my tres leches cake drenched in mango sauce. A sparkler, You Guys.

Fireworks on the 4th of October – Birthday Officially Made.

But even better than the sparkler or the warm salsa, or the melt in your mouth enchiladas, or even my second piece of birthday cake for the day, was time with my husband.

{Here she goes again ranting about spending time dating your husband.}

It’s true. It’s so good to getaway, y’all. It’s not like anything earth shattering or marriage making happened. We didn’t resolve any major issues, or recreate a romantic movie scene, it was just simply time alone together.

Time to watch the world go by on the train, time to hold hands walking through the busy streets, time to walk along the lake, time to not try and please four little humans at the same time, time to take in a much different scenery, time to talk about what makes us tick…

Time to reassure ourselves that we are still the best of friends, committed to each other through thick and thin. And THAT’S what helps keeps the fire burning long after the sparkler is extinguished.

So get something on your calendar.  Take 24 hours away. {Even 12 if that’s what works.} Offer to take someone else’s kids first in a weekend trade deal, save up your fancy coffee money to fly grandparents in for a weekend, build a relationship with a college student you can trust – just make it happen. Not just for your own sanity, but for the sake of your family.

{Special thanks to Brad’s parents for making this overnight possible. What a fabulous birthday gift!}

{Also, thank you for your sweet comments and encouragement on my birthday.  What a gift those were!}