Date Night

We still have a kid who has difficulty falling asleep for anyone but mom or dad (but at least it's both of us now, instead of just me, because a friend of mine recently confessed that her almost three year old AND her baby both will not fall asleep without her. Dad will not do.) 

Where was I?

Right. Difficulty falling asleep for the kid. Which means getting a babysitter and having a late night out are almost impossibilities. We tried it with one of our former favourite babysitters, and she eventually called us mid-movie because of the crying. It sucked the miss the movie and I can't think it's just coincidence that she -- no joke! -- moved to Croatia soon afterwards (I kid, I kid, she was planning to move home.) So we haven't tried it since. 

Not to say we haven't had a babysitter -- We just get them for the afternoon and arrive home back in time for bedtime. This kind of babysitter makes me feel more guilty -- the Saturday days are the time I get to spend the most time with my child, and he's in daycare most days, and then on the days he gets with mom and dad, we get a sitter? Really? But what else is there to do? We still need to nurture our marriage, and that has to come first on occasion. 

It's Dine Out week (two weeks?) in Vancouver, which means hundreds (literally) of restaurants join in and present a three course meal for a set price of $18, $28 or $38. It's often a great deal and a great way to try something new or enjoy an old favourite. Yesterday we left at two and caught a matinee and then an early dinner at 5:30, arriving home just less than two hours later for bedtime. We went out with a friend of ours, a longtime friend who happens to be both currently single and childfree. She's great -- doesn't mind too much our severely curtailed social life and is happy to come over and be clambered upon by our child. But when I was single and childfree, or partnered and childfree, hanging out with kids wasn't always high on my priority list, so it was nice to get out with her and have some childless time. 

But you know? Having said all that? We spent a great deal of time over dinner talking about The Kid. We get a babysitter, we go out, we invite a friend along to encourage conversation that drifts away from our lives ... and we still talk about the kid. I guess there are some things you just can't get away from.