First Second Date...

Casey and I finally put into our budget some money and space in our calendar to hire my friend to babysit for us so that we could have two date nights a month.
She is wonderful by the way.
Eliana loves her!

Last night was one of those date nights but we changed it up a bit.
We did a little role play.
No, we weren't anyone different.
We were still Casey and Crystal
BUT we pretended to be on our first date ever.
There was nothing wrong with our actual first date, just mixing things up a bit.

If you want to fall in love again.
You should try that.
We were going to go to the gardens we had gone to before but they closed earlier.
So we just had our picnic outside of a paleontology museum near by.

Just two people getting to know each other on their first date.

On our first date Casey and I talked for HOURS and it was great.
We were by campfire with a group of friends.
The night was beautiful.
We even had a conversation about the stars.

This was our second first date.
The opportunity to do it all over again.

There were reasons I can't decide which first date was my favorite.

Our actual first date...
I am in love with the stars.
I would have liked to study Astronomy but it didn't happen.
I love love love nature.
The beauty in everything that surrounds us.
So perfect.
Especially during this time.
I LOVE October.
Just even the word October.
Should have named Eliana October.
We had the perfect first date with the stars above us and beautiful weather.

The thing I liked the most was that even after the group hangout was over we still spent hours talking afterwards back where I lived then.

For this date he went all out and surprised me with an edible bouquet of  chocolate covered strawberries.
Something he didn't even know I was craving but knew it is my addiction.
And not something I get a lot.
And a white teddy bear with a strawberry in his hands.
You can imagine how Eliana was going crazy to get her hands on it.

This time we have kids so our time alone was limited.
Even though it was limited we took advantage of every second of it.
Before our actual first date he texted me how he felt about me for over 12 years.
After getting in the car he kindly told me how he felt about me and asked if he could hold my hand.
I must admit I felt just like our actual first date.
When he held my hand it reminded me of the day he held my hand for the first time.
We had great conversations and we learned new things from each other.

Our plan was to have a candle lit dinner at the gardens but since it was closed we decided to just enjoy our dinner right outside of the museum.
I prepared a delicious spinach, avocado, and pasta salad.
A side of grapes.
Purple for me, I like the sweet ones and green for Casey.
They are his favorite.
We also decorated a small pumpkin for each other that now sits on our entertainment center.

We had a great time.
When we went into the Museum...
I should probably state that I am terrified of fish and open water.
Even if they are plastic or dead or skeletons.
They had a room of stars but I was afraid there may be something I am not seeing.
To which Casey responded "What? Something like this?" and followed by making a dinosaur sound that scared me.
So he had to hold me.
He then said "Man, we really should have come here on our first date."
That's my man.
My protector.
And also the one to scare me.

The biggest fish...holy cow

When we did get to a shark I did not expect I almost died of a heart attack.
It was still a good choice.
I don't like any thing with fishes or water (unless it's awesome turtles and dolphins)
So other than that part I had a great time.
I also have an interest in Geology and Paleontology.
The only problem was not having enough time.
Our time felt so short.

I learned so much from this date.
I would advice every couple to date each other like it was your first date.
Pretend it is the first time you have seen your spouse.
You want to get to know each other.
Be yourself and have lots of fun.
Laugh a lot.

This morning when before Casey headed to school he asked me to come downstairs.
There in the middle of the rug was a question.
You know you have kids when you use crayons to ask your wife to marry you.
I needed my wedding and engagement rings resized since I haven't worn them in at least 2 years because of my pregnancies.
But what the hey I am going to have more kids and who knows if I will ever go back to pre-pregnancy body. 
So the hubby picked up the ring and was going to propose at the gardens but that didn't work.
He didn't want to wait longer.
He got on one knee next to it saying "Marry Me Today and Everyday"
And of course I said YES!
I love my hubby and the spontaneous things he does to show me he loves me.