Observations of a Nerdy Lawyer Mom

My husband and I celebrated our third wedding anniversary last night. We don't go out to eat that often because of the expense (my husband gets buyer's remorse over a pack of gum), so when we do go out, I relish the time away from home. We talk about things that we don't usually get to talk about sitting in front of the TV every night. We talk about our plans for the future, business ventures we'd like to try, etc. What made this night different was that this is our first date as parents.

One of my favorite things about our little man coming into this world is watching my husband become a father. Not in the literal sense, but watching him interact with this little guy that now graces our presence (and by "grace" I mean screaming, pooping, sleeping, eating, screaming some more, etc.). My big, burly husband who wrenches on and drives dump trucks as a hobby (that's right, a hobby) comes home and turns into this cuddly, emotional guy, and I love it.

Our relationship with each other has become stronger as well. We've always been a good team, but our little guy has made that already strong bond even stronger. Of course, it's not always puppy dogs and ice cream, but there is a noticeable change in our relationship, and it's a positive one.

So the two of us now find ourselves sitting at one of our favorite restaurants, discussing our usual topics of future plans, goals, and the other stuff that we discuss when we are away from the television, when my husband says, "you know, with him here, going out to dinner just seems different - here we are, out by ourselves, and we're not saying, 'thank God, a night by ourselves.' Instead, we're sitting here, wondering what he's doing while we are away. It's kinda cool." It is cool.

Many of our goals and plans for the future have stayed the same, but they are now taking on a new sense of urgency - instead of just talking about it, we need a game plan, we need a schedule. Neither one of us wants to look up 10 years from now at our anniversary dinner and realize that we still have the same hopes and dreams for the future and we haven't done anything about it. This one little guy has turned us from dreamers into doers in a matter of 8 weeks.

I can't wait to see how our game plan takes shape.