Married & Dating: A Lasagna Dinner

Yay! So today is the first month for the Married & Dating link up! This is a link up that celebrates the courtship that exists in marriage. As women, we're busy with kids and work and sometimes it's hard to make time to keep the dating relationship alive with our husbands.

For us, it's hard to get a traditional date night. We don't have a sitter unless family comes to visit so many of our dates are done as a family or right here at home. My husband and I really try to make the most out of our time after our kids go to sleep. That's why I am a stickler for that seven thirty bedtime…

Today was no different. I mentioned before that I love creating my husband's favorite meals for him. So this weekend I wanted to do lasagna with a twist. We started off dinner with a salad. (If you look really close you can see Sav on her tricycle.)

For the lasagna I tried something new. I might share the "recipe" in a different post if anyone wants it. This was a Chicken and Shrimp Pesto pasta with Mushrooms and Zucchini. It was banging. My husband loved it. For dessert we had brownie fudge chocolate chip cookies courtesy of Pillsbury. They were so good and we devoted them before I could take a pic. 
After our tummies were nice and full we snuggled up on the couch to catch up on our DVR. I had previously recorded Silver Linings Playbook. Ever since I saw it get so much acclaim during the awards season last year I wanted to see it. Just in case it wasn't good we had Argo as a back up.  I feel like someone's DVR says a lot about them, LOL! Check out our mix of kid friendly and adult only shows up there. Banshee is such a good show... And here is my look from today on our way home from church. My husband likes the all natural look. It was super windy so I wore a hat to church with my LBD. Once we were home I changed into a more relaxed outfit.
During the week things are so busy that we don't get to have a lot of quality time together so I really cherish our time together on the weekends. This is what I call a home date or couch date. Can't wait to link up with everyone again next month! We'll be doing this on the third Monday of every month.
What do you think about the lasagna I made? Would you like the "recipe"?

Giveaway: After Bedtime Fun...

I feel like Varnell Hill from Martin… "Did ya miss me?!"

I know it's been a week since I've updated the blog. My kids and husband have been fighting pretty bad colds. The kids actually got better after a couple days. My husband is still on the sick and shut-in list. Pray for a brother.

Anyway. I always promised myself that I would make my thirties all about getting in great shape and strengthening my relationships. If you come by here often, you've read all about my husband and I. How we met, fell in love, got married young - all that.

I feel that it is so important to foster the relationship with my husband. One way to do that is by trying new things to keep our lives interesting. Our trip to Vegas was amazing. We really got a chance to reconnect and have fun with each other.

While I can't giveaway a couple's getaway I can giveaway the next best thing. A couple's kit from Nite Time Toys.

People don't like to discuss their sex lives. I can respect that. However, if you have kids then it is pretty obvious that you like to get it poppin' every now and then. Why not try to spice things up a bit by trying something new? This couple's kit is valued at $200. Enter for your chance to win below, Good Luck!

Oh. And if you prefer to just buy a little something for you and your man feel free to use this exclusive discount code while you're shopping, ChicMom. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*This is a sponsored post. All opinions expressed are my own.*

7 Days of Love: Our First Kiss

I am going to do my best to remember this story. It happened back in 2002 so that's a very long time ago. If I'm not mistaken I think our first kiss was on our first date. 

I think I talked about this before but I met my husband during minority weekend at our college. Before school started that Fall I returned to campus for Freshman orientation. My bestie and I went together and I remember being so excited about learning more about the college experience.

One night after all of the mandatory fun was over my bestie and I had a double date with my husband and his best friend. (If guys don't say best friend, sorry, I had no idea what else to call him. They are besties. Pretty sure I'm gonna get killed for this too, LOL) We went to see Undercover Brother. Later we had dinner at Outback Steakhouse.

The date went great. I remember how funny and cool I thought my husband and his friend were. They had very laid back personalities. They weren't trying too hard. They were just fun to be around. Our friends didn't hit it off at all but my husband and I had immediate chemistry. 

We had our first kiss after that date. I remember thinking, "Well that's not how the boys kiss in high school." Hahaha! It was great. I actually remember my husband telling me, "There was no way I wasn't going to try to kiss you tonight." Swoon.

Here we are on our first date. Before this kiss…

To see more first kiss stories visit So She Writes by Miss Dre, The Green Eyed Lady Blog and Baby Teems.

Seven Days of Love: My Husband Reminds Me Of...

It's my last night in Vegas and I made time to write a blog post. That's real love. 

Alright. If I had to pick one look-a-like for my husband it would be Derek Luke. He's the actor that played Antwone Fisher. He's been in lots of other great movies too, like Miracle at St. Anna. 

At first I didn't see the similarities that they share but now I do. Ever since college people have been telling me that they favor one another. People that haven't even seen him real life will mention that he looks like Derek Luke. I think I am starting to agree with them.

He is going to kill me for this but here they are side by side…

Sooo what do you think? Do you think they look alike?

Seven Days of Love: Marriage Has Taught Me...

For Valentine's Day I'm collaborating with some amazing motherhood lifestyle bloggers to reflect on love, marriage and how to keep things spicy while living this mommy life. To see the other posts in this 7 Days of Love Series visit The Green-Eyed Lady Blog, So She Writes by Miss Dre and Baby Teems.

When I think about my own marriage, I think about a girl who was so young. I'm not even sure what my expectations were of marriage back then. I just knew I wanted to be happy and I knew I was making a great decision marrying my husband. That was back then.

Now that we've been married for eight years I would have to say I have learned a lot about myself and about marriage. My marriage has taught me that it's okay to be exactly who you are. It's taught me it's okay to speak my mind and be a strong presence. I can be in charge and aggressive without being afraid of someone else's opinion. My marriage has taught me how to be a grown up. A grown woman.

My marriage makes me fearless and free. I have talked about this before on this blog. Here and here. My marriage has taught me to hang in there when things are tough and enjoy every second when things are amazing. Marriage has taught me to be more compassionate and a lot less self centered.

What has your marriage taught you?