And Not Bring Our Daughter????

The last time my husband and I had a "date" together, was in the summer of 2007. My husband suggested that we drop the kids over at his mother's house and go out to watch a movie. The concept seemed foreign. Not take the kids with us?

Nonetheless, we went out for a couple hours, taking in the movie "23". And while I sat there, mulling over an apology to my husband, as this was one of the worst movies I had ever seen-- yet this was what I suggested, I started to feel guilty. I realized that I had just wasted over $20 on something that I could have spent on the kids instead.

But lately, I've been getting burnout. Burnout from just making the bills, and not being able to do something fun with my husband-- ever. It seems that whenever time does come up, where my mother-in-law offers to watch the kiddo (currently, it is now "kiddo", as my teen is finishing school at her father's), that we have nothing to show for it. It always comes down to laundry, cleaning the house, grocery shopping, getting the oil changed, etc. with the little luxury of being able to accomplish those them without tiny feet underfoot.  In the end, we were more exhausted than we were when she had left!

That's when I decided to check out this site called Get My Perks (http://www.getmyperks.com/)  I've heard about it before, but was kind of reluctant in seeing what it was all about.  (I mean, after all, I am a martyr for my family!)

Get My Perks offers gift certificates for businesses in your area at half price-- or rather half the guilt.  After seeing what kind of deals they had to offer, I decided to get a pair of $30 Mt. Hood Railroad scenic tour tickets that regularly sells for $64.  And what's great about these certificates, is that they don't expire until a year later.  So when the sitter bails, or something of that nature comes up, it's not like you've lost your chance.

So I think we'll redeem these passes in the fall, when the autumn foilage lines the tracks.  It seems like something nice that my husband and I can enjoy together to reconnect.  (Don't mention to him though, that they also had 1/2 priced restaurant deals which meant 1/2 priced drinks!  That compared to a 5 hour train ride and apple picking in the crisp fall air?  Like I said, don't mention that part to him!)  And with this website, it is totally family friendly, so perhaps we can start enjoying our family as a family-- without all the expense involved!