It’s something that happens so rarely, I feel the need to document it almost every time that it does.
PJ’s mom came and scooped up the kiddos the other morning so we could make the 30 minute drive to Chattanooga to pick up some hardwood floors for Holiday House (!) that had arrived the week before. While we were there, we decided to make the most of it just being the two of us and go downtown to eat with my sister and her girlfriend and it was just the sort of carefree, whatever happens happens afternoon that we haven’t had in honestly…years it feels like.
Maybe I’m being dramatic? I don’t know, but I do know it was fun and felt like, for an afternoon, we didn’t have a million deadlines or things to do other than what we were doing right then and there.
The real reason we had to go downtown in the first place was to get fitted for our tuxes for my brother’s wedding next month. We’re both in the wedding (I’m the best man!) and after several “Would you please just go get your tuxes we are running out of time” texts from my brother, we finally are able to check this off of the to do list. PJ always looks so handsome in a suit (and who am I kidding, in shorts and a friggin t-shirt), so I cant wait to see him on the big day. Also! The kids are in the wedding, which means we get to pick out cute clothes for them to wear, too, which has become our favorite thing to do here lately.
Why is shopping for kids clothes way more fun than shopping for yourself?
We ended up having to walk quite a ways from the car to the restaurant to meet Sydney and her girlfriend due to the fact that I didn’t calculate how far of a walking distance we were from it, but it was kind of fun to take a stroll through downtown Chattanooga and have a change of scenery. Chattanooga is by no means a huge city, but it is the 4th largest in Tennessee and it’s growing every year, and seeing all the changes that have happened within the last year on our way to eat (new buildings, restaurants, parks) was kind of neat.
It helped that it was a gorgeous day. Hot, like, extremely hot, and humid of course, and I don’t know why I decided to wear pants, but it was a beautiful day nonetheless.
We ate at one of my sister’s favorite spots called Mr. Burrito. She kept saying how good it was and she was right: it did not disappoint. Look how big the burritos were!!! And the spicy cheese dip was everything. Highly recommend checking it out if you’re looking for a yummy place to eat with fresh ingredients (they make the food right in front of you).
After we finished, we headed back home and went to the farm to get as much work done as we could for a few hours. PJ has been working on the garden that Dixie started last month and it’s starting to look so good! And yes, the man doesn’t stop working as long as he’s awake, especially when it feels like there’s always so much to do. Maybe one day we’ll decide to just stop and take it easy, but I don’t think that will be anytime soon :).
It was a good day, but I would be lying if I said I didn’t miss the kids by the time we got to the farm. It’s always such a weird feeling when they’re not with us for whatever reason. It’s nice to have some alone time outside the regular hours of them sleeping at night or during nap time in the day, but I did find myself missing the sound of their laughter at random parts throughout the day. Still, I know how important and essential making time for just the two of us is.
When we left the restaurant, my sister texted me to tell me how much fun she had. She said, “Thank y’all so much for eating with me. I miss it just being us. Obviously wouldn’t trade the kids for anything, but I do miss us.” Isn’t that so sweet? Sydney is obsessed with the kids, especially little sis, and will FaceTime me almost every day (usually right in the middle of her shift at work!) just to see them, but it hasn’t been just us in a few years now, and we haven’t gone out to eat with her, just her, in whoknowshowlong, so I get what she’s saying.
Life has changed so much just in the last two years, and I always say it’s hard to remember what we did with our time before our kiddos, but it’s nice to get little glimpses of what it was now and then and be grateful for what our life used to look like and for what it looks like now. I think it’s possible to do both and enjoy the beauty (or try to, at least) of each season of life that we’re in.
PS: you can see the day in video form in our newest vlog here!