BabyMoon

Before time gets away from me and I eternally forget to blog about it, I wanted to write about Jonathan and I's getaway last weekend.  His parents were so gracious to watch the kids for us for two nights so that we could go to Atlanta for a last hoo-rah before Stella arrives.  Jonathan had planned to attend the Hinman Dental Conference that is every year in Atlanta, and we decided to make a trip together without the kids for a break and special time away.

I dropped the kids off on Thursday afternoon, and when Jonathan got home from work we loaded up the car and made the three hour drive to Atlanta.  Can you believe that I have NEVER been there before?  I can't believe that I haven't!  I mean, I have probably been there in the airport, but I've never BEEN been there.  We stayed at the Ritz-Carlton (never done that before either), just down the street from the large convention center where Jonathan would be.  We got in late the first night, so we basically just crashed once we got in and settled.

The next morning, I slept until 9:00 am.  I cannot tell you the last time I did that!  It felt amazing!  Then, I ordered breakfast room service---which is officially my new favorite thing---and felt like a princess.  After taking my time enjoying a quiet breakfast and cup of coffee, I got dressed and started out on my adventure alone in Atlanta.  Let me just say, I am seriously thankful for our navigation system thingy.  If not for that, Casey would STILL be lost in downtown Atlanta!  I must include what Jonathan was doing during this time: we was at the Hinman conference taking a CE course all day.  Proud of him!  Working hard for our family business and learning ways to grow and make it better!  He was in dental heaven!

Ok, back to my adventure.

My first stop was IKEA.  I have been a fan of IKEA for years now, but I have never been to one.   When I heard we were going to Atlanta, I quickly worked that into my plans.  I spent about 2.5 hours roaming around the showroom and marketplace, getting a few surprises for the kiddos and even scoring on a few essentials that we had been needing around the house: new wash cloths and 12 new drinking glasses that I got for $.59 each.  I walked out of there having only spent $20!  It was awesome!

After that, I found the Lenox Square Mall in Buckhead, ATL, where I spent a few hours browsing through the mall.  Without a stroller.  Without a diaper bag.  Without two sidekicks.  It was bittersweet, but I did enjoy the alone time and being able to browse through stores.  I visited Crate & Barrel (another big fave), and got both kids some great deals on a few Spring/Summer clothes.  I also grabbed a few maternity tees for me from GAP maternity that were on clearance!  It was my kinda shopping day!

After I got lost and took over an hour to get back to the hotel, I was able to meet up with Jonathan just in time for our dinner reservation.  I seriously valeted the car, ran upstairs to change my clothes and spray some perfume, came down, and off we went to make our reservation by the hair of our chinny chin chins.  We went to a restaurant called Two Urban Licks.  (And yes, that is the actual name).  It was very urban, very trendy, and very delicious.  The best thing on the menu and that we ate that night was our appetitzer called Salmon Chips.  If you ever go there, try that!  It's smoked salmon, chipotle cream cheese, and some other things on top of homemade chips.  UGH!  I could eat it every day.  Definitely a fun, funky place to go!

When we finished eating, Stella said she wanted dessert so we headed back to the hotel and decided to walk around and find a dessert place since the evening was so nice and it wasn't dark yet.  We ended up at a diner where I got a piece of Strawberry Cheesecake!  Jonathan got something decadent and chocolate with like three different layers of rich, chocolately goodness.  We are so opposites!  I just can't do really rich chocolate desserts, but he just loves them!  Then, we went back to our room and watched The King's Speech (the movie that one lots of Academy Awards).  It was amazing! SUCH a great movie which really made me want to read Prince Albert's biography (in all of my spare time).

Saturday morning, we got up bright and early, showered and packed, and then headed to the convention center.  There is a HUGE set-up for vendors and business and supply reps and companies that Jonathan wanted to walk through, and a few things he needed to look up and price for the business.  It was seriously more fun than I thought!  I really enjoyed watching him in his arena, running into different doctors and reps that he works with or has worked with.  He liked showing me all the different things and pieces of equipment.  It was a lot of fun, especially because all of the people thought I was a hygienist or something, until they noticed my bulging belly and then realized I was probably his wife.  We walked out of of there with tons of free samples and new toothbrushes for everyone in our family, including Stella.

We made our way back to the hotel, got the van, and headed HOME to see our two kiddos!  We missed them so much, but we were so glad to have a few days away together to relax and spend some time just us.  One of my favorite moments of the entire weekend was on our drive down to Atlanta.  It has really been a long time since I've been on a long car ride without the kids, and one of our favorite things to do in the car is just sit quietly, listening to good music.  While driving down, we put on an Andrew Peterson CD that we both enjoy, and I just loved being to sit in the dark, music turned loud, just meditating on the words of his songs.  Ugh.  Good times.

I'm weird, I know.

Anyway, I am so thankful for a husband who plans weekends like that so that we can have some moments alone together for good conversation, fun, and relaxation.  Who knows when that will happen again, but it just makes the times we do have together that much more special.