it’s a happy happy
Today is the birthday of my very favorite person ever. I’m fortunate to get to spend my days with him.
Mike and I have been together forever these days. He was still in college when we met, fresh from a semester abroad. He was shy and unsure of himself but wicked funny and smart. I broke several of my own self-imposed dating rules when I went out with him, but I always loved a smart, funny man. It only took a couple of dates before I was hooked.
As great as he was then, he’s better now. Age is Mike’s friend. Today, he’s confident and secure and stronger than he would admit. We tease that I’m what holds our family together, but he’s what holds me together. He is patient and long-suffering (anyone living with me pretty much has that title). He is an amazing father.
And he’s still smart. And wicked funny. And I still really like that in a man.
Happy Birthday, Mike.
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very blue
Number 27 on my 101 Things in 1001 Days list was to take Mike to see the Blue Man Group in Orlando. He’s said since we moved here that he wanted to see them, but tickets are just outrageous. Last week, my sister-in-law sent me an email with discounted tickets for the BMG, and I bought tickets without telling Mike. I managed to keep the secret from him for three days (somewhat of a miracle for me). 
We had a lovely dinner with Chuck and Stacy at my favorite Orlando restaurant. As we were leaving, I asked Chuck how to get where we were going & he told Mike. One of the things I love most about Mike is that he listened to the directions not knowing where we were going. There’s something quite lovely about the trust that builds up over time. He was very surprised.
More than that, he had a really good time. It was obvious. For those of you who don’t know my Mike in real life, he rarely shows that he’s having a good time or is excited about anything. He’s the picture of a lack of emotion. So it was really groovy to see him having such fun.
If you get a chance to go, go. The drumming was wonderful, this deep pulsing that you could feel in your seats. There were strobe lights and general lighting changes and lots of multi-media interactions. All of which triggered my vertigo, and I ended up spending the last 30 minutes of the show in the lobby with a very sweet attendant. (I haven’t been that sick since I went to see an IMAX movie.)
But even with all of that, it was really groovy to surprise Mike. Maybe I’ll try again in another decade or so.
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vaca, vaca, dear vaca
Tomorrow, Mike and I leave on our first four-night vacation without the kids since before Griff was born. That’s right. It’s now been 11 years since we spent that much time alone.
Stacy kindly offered to keep the kids so Mike and I could take a trip for our 15th wedding anniversary. Our anniversary is next month, but by then, we’re well on our way to school and such. So this is the perfect time to go.
We’re going to go to art galleries and museums and outdoor concerts. We’re going to eat Chicago style pizza and sushi and seafood, and I’m not going to order from the children’s menu once (yeah, I order from the children’s menu & swap with Griff so he can eat a full size meal and I can still get the kid rate on the bill).
I’m going to set the temperature in the hotel room really cold at night and snuggle under the covers. I’m going to clip those hotel room curtains together so that it’s the darkest of dark, and I’m going to sleep way past 6:30 a.m.
Sounds lovely, doesn’t it?
I read an article recently that most marriages only last 10-15 years. We figure we should make the most of these next five. 
Tagged with: anniversary • Mike • vaca
Happy Father’s Day!
We’re spending a completely lazy day with Mike today… doing a little golf on tv, a little grilling on the back porch. I’ll make his favorite Oreo ice cream dessert, and we’ll all be exceptionally nice to him. Because he is, without a doubt, a really stellar father. We are all blessed to have him.
So today, I am grateful to Mike but also to my dad… and to Mike’s dad… and to Josh… and to my brother and Mike’s brother… to all of the really good dads out there who are vested in their families. Thank you.
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Here or there…
Mike and I are planning our anniversary trip this summer … we’ll have been married 15 years in August. Stacy has graciously offered to keep the kids so we can go away together, but now we can’t decide where to go. 
We’re lazy people. Really, we are. We want to go somewhere and eat yummy food, wander around, maybe go to the beach or shop or sight-see. Not much else.
We talked about going to New Orleans because we’ve always loved going there together, and because the food is so amazing. But it seems wrong to plan an entire trip around the praline bacon at Elizabeth’s.
We talked about going to the Keys, but that’s a 6-9 hour drive, and I’m not so keen on that. We talked about going to our favorite beach, but we go there with the kids. We talked about a cruise.
We talked about Gatlinburg and Savannah. We’ve done a lot of talking. Not really any actual planning. And since we’re saving up for this, we need to do some actual planning. So I’m asking for suggestions…
Where should we go?
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