Birthday sandbagger

So for Hubby's birthday a few weeks ago, instead of going out and buying him an ATV blade or a rapid-fire nail gun, which he mentioned, I gave him a night away with his lovely wife in a town far away from his children and the "honey do" list.

I think he likes the idea or at least he's pretending to. I know I would love a gift like that. And that's the secret to my plan, I ALSO get to enjoy his birthday gift by having 30 hours of kid-free time. I get to pretend it's the old days, where it was just him and me, carefree with no agenda.

All week, I've been dreaming about what it'll be like to go somewhere without our kids. For instance, in the car ride, I can sit forward without leaning towards the back seat, maybe read my book in peace or listen to some corny country oldies songs without anyone complaining. Maybe Hubby and I can actually have an entire conversation without being interrupted! Whoa ... what a concept! The back of the car will look empty with only two measly bags in it, unlike the usual five jam-packed suitcases, three toy bags, a sleeping bag and two sports duffles. Oh yeah, and don't forget the cooler of snacks and extra pillows ... and that's only for one night trip.

Then we can eat at whatever restaurant we want! You know the kind we never go to with all five of us because it'd cost a small fortune? The hostess will smile when we tell her "party of two" and seat us right away, instead of the usual, looking at us in total confusion and irritation when we tell her "party of five." Tables don't come in five and that means we have to wait for the table of six to open up which is easily 15-20 minutes. Hubby and I will be able to order an appetizer AND dessert and still spend less than $50! We can actually share the appetizer equally and not have six ravenous eyes staring at us when we go to grab the last mozzarella stick. We won't have to cut someone's steak, bug the waiter three times for more ranch dressing and extra napkins, sop up someone's spilled water and break up two fights over who gets to play my phone. We won't know what to do with ourselves!

When I booked the hotel, I had a smile on my face when I asked for the King room and repeated my answer to the hotel guy on the phone, "Yes, just two of us, yes that is correct." For the first time in I don't know how long, our hotel did not HAVE to have a pool this time. We won't have to make sure we plan our day around when the kids will get to swim and then we won't have to spend our evening watching the kids swim till way past their bedtime. Our hotel room won't be strung with wet swimsuits, uniforms, snacks and stuffed animals, and we can watch a movie on the hotel TV instead of the Disney channel. Ahhh, makes me happy just thinking about it!

What we will do during the day is up in the air, but the possibilities are endless. We won't be harassed to go to the mall or if we choose to go there, we won't be forced to hang out in the toy store for an hour or wait outside the hip clothing store waiting for the big girls to browse. We might even be able to buy something for ourselves and not the kids for once! Maybe we'll get ourselves an expensive latte and just go for a drive. Oh gosh, we could even go to the home goods store and linger for hours without kids whining or getting lost in the kitchen displays.

Since this is Hubby's birthday weekend, I'll let him decide our adventures, but I'm going to enjoy every minute of it! I hope he likes this wonderful gift I've given him (us) and is okay with me sandbagging his birthday this year. I'm really looking forward to it!