May has been a bit of a blur over here, which I will attempt to catch you up on, bit by bit in the next week or so. Our baby boy turned 5 (!!!), police world was turned upside down on an almost daily basis, and in our own little family, major changes are taking place that have made me step back to adjust our routines and habits. In the midst of it all, my husband had a week home with us, a blessed break before the craziness of a police life summer, and as always, it seemed to end too quickly.
It occurred to me, not for the first time, that I sometimes take him for granted; that bogged down by daily obligations, meals, appointments, teaching, to-do lists, and oh-em-gee, that never-ending pile of laundry… I all too often forget to acknowledge the sheer wonderfulness that he brings to our home, our family, our marriage. I guess that’s an awful thing to admit. I should probably be all, “No waaay, you guys, I love my hubs and I tell him ALL THE TIME how amazing he is and how much I appreciate him.” But the thing is, I don’t – not nearly as often as he deserves. Our children have made our marriage stronger and more loving – and they have also made it more important to be intentional in our attention to each other. It is too easy, especially with my husband’s schedule, to let a day go by without those precious moments and exchanges that we treasure in our relationship.
Overall, I don’t really believe in New Year’s resolutions, only because, any day can be a new day, a new beginning, and that is kind of my life philosophy in a nutshell. haha However, this year, we decided to make a “marriage” resolution, to try new places and things together. I know. Tell me how epic and original we are. Go ahead. I’ll wait. 😛 But in all seriousness, it was/is important to us that, as much as we love and cherish all our babies, we didn’t get so immersed in baby life that we forgot to do the many amazing grownup experiences we enjoy together.

Because everything needs to look cute and have a label, we made “date jars,” one for daytime dates, and one for nighttime dates. The idea is, depending on whether we have day or night time out, we close our eyes, pick a paper and – GO! It gives an air of spontaneity without having to be fully spontaneous, which can be a daunting task as a parent of many littles. #amiright As usual, I stole this idea from Pinterest. The great thing is, you can literally put anything you want in, depending on your budget, interests, time frame, etc. We love it. Go get you some date night jars, lovebirds. 😉
I didn’t actually think about recording our little romantic adventures until I asked for more date ideas on Facebook, and one of my friends suggested I blog about it as we go. I probably won’t blog every one, but I thought it was a fun idea, and will definitely be keeping some for the records. 😉
This one was a must-share, since it was planned, start to finish, by my husband. He set up an overnight in New York City, and it was heavenly. We have always loved the city and used to spend many date nights there, something we have not done as much of lately, which made it a perfect choice for a close-to-the-babies-but-still-away trip.
You guys, stop for a minute and consider the awesomeness of not having to think about anything at all for 2 days. Are you feeling as relaxed as I felt? Wonderful. Here are some photos.

(I told you I was feeling relaxed. This was from the first few minutes inside our hotel room. I didn’t even take off my shoes. #momoflittles #sleepisaluxury)

Our hotel had a private garden across the street. And I do mean private. We needed the door attendant to let us in and then we needed to call him to let us back out. It was mildly thrilling and quite definitely amusing. Also, it was beautiful in there – a little world apart in the middle of the city noise!!

My husband is the reason I fell in love with photography. Not like we’re pros or anything, but I love so much seeing the world in a different way. Capturing faces; moments; real-life, genuine interactions… seeing it all as so much more than a posed group of smiling faces – although those are good, too! 😉 To be honest, I’m more comfortable behind the camera than in front of it… except when Trevor is the photographer. ❤

The Village Vanguard! Ahhh! So fun. For those of you that don’t know, my husband is a huge jazz fan, and actually played saxophone for many years. (Beautifully, I might add. I miss it. Hint hint.)

(Side note… I never know where to LOOK for a selfie. Is this just me?! How do all these people look right where they’re supposed to! Anyways. Moving on. bwahaha)

True story: we had big plans to sleep till noon because we were kid-free and whooo hoooo sleep. Ha. I woke up at 7 am (totally missing the babies like crazy, if I’m being honest haha), and Hubby woke at 8:30. So… we found an uber touristy 80’s themed diner and had breakfast… followed by some city strolling and antics. 😛





I would like to dedicate the next several photos to my sister-in-love, Jenn, because she completely understood the importance of me texting her pics of these fabulously funky hotel lights in the middle of a romantic getaway. #thegirlappreciatesgoodlighting


Our last stop was Eataly, and if you are ever in NYC, you really need to try it! The market is huge and fascinating, and the cooking class/dinner was just wonderful. Hubby and I tried our best, but quickly fell into our old college habit of sitting near the back and passing flirty notes. Oops.



Have any of you tried a date jar, or any version of it? Do you have any date suggestions for me? Bonus points for romantic ideas that are low-budget or free! Bring on the love, people! ❤
xoxo, Anna
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