Love and Marriage: A Year of Dates- February

As we say hello to March and good bye to February, all I can say is ...good riddance. It was the coldest month we've had historically since the 1800's. And while it was bone chilling cold inside and out (our furnace was out for a few days), we tried to turn up the romance for our date night this month. This month's date night did happen on Valentine's Day and while it was not exactly what I had planned, it was still sweet just the same.

The Plan: A Spa Night for Two
We were supposed to have a nice, relaxing night at home and I was going to put my Esthetician skills to use and break out the chocolate fondue. But, instead we had a romantic candlelight dinner for 4. The kids joined us and were so excited about it that it made me happy to see their glowing eyes. Plus, my hubby had fried up some seafood, I had my glass of wine and was in total relaxation mode.

I didn't take any picks because I was so relaxed I chose to be in my robe all day. I did make a couple of Man Baskets (one for hubby and another one my mom purchased from me).

Since our original date night didn't go exactly as planned, we had an impromptu date the following Friday. It worked out because the kids were out on a too cold to go to school day. We went to dinner and a step show that my church was having for their college weekend. It took me back to when I was that age and it was cool to just do something out of the norm.

Like I said before, having a monthly date night is about having fun and getting out of the day to day rut of family, work, kids, repeat. It keeps the lines of communication open and helps remind you of what attracted you to each other and why you got married in the first place. Don't miss out on the opportunity to enjoy each other's company.

What did you and your mate do for Valentine's Day? Until next time.

Forever loving my B.A.D.D. Kids (and my Husband),
Rhonda

The 21 Day Money Challenge Update

So at the beginning of last month I wrote a post about saving money and I introduced a 21 Day Money Challenge. I had predicted that I would either succeed with flying colors or consider it an epic failure. Well, sometimes it's better for me to just be quite and see how things go because I failed so bad that I need another word for failure.

It's not all my fault though, our furnace went out and after having to buy a couple of heaters, I pretty much forgot that I was supposed to be on a spending diet.

As a reminder, this is what the rules were:

Basically the main rule is- no spending unnecessary money.

1. No shopping (except for groceries) or using your credit card: Like I said, our furnace went out and we had to buy 2 heaters. I guess it could count as a necessity, but the other items I purchased were not.

2. No going to the mall or window shopping: I haven't been to the mall in months, but I do virtual window shop almost everyday. This was particularly dangerous for me one day after a very hectic work day and I saw there was a sale on some Sonya Kashuk brushes I had been eyeballing for a couple months. I high tailed it to Target to find that they were all sold out, but that didn't stop me from spending $20.

3. No restaurant meals: I broke this rule as I figured I would on something to eat in between work and rehearsal. Look, thick girls gotta eat. #sorrynotsorry

4. No buying gifts or gift cards: I had full intentions on abiding by this rule, even through Valentine's Day because my hubby and I were planning our date night in the comfort of our own home. Stay tuned for my next date night post to see the basket I made. 

I will try to do this money challenge again and hope that I'll do better next time. I'll keep you posted.

Forever loving my B.A.D.D. kids,
Rhonda