A date night is the perfect thing to get you out of the house and in a place to enjoy some quality time alone together. The problem is, your perfect date night may not always go according to plan. The babysitter bails on you last minute, you go for a night out away from kids and end up in a theater or restaurant full of screaming kids, or something else puts a hitch into your plans. What do you do? Well, there are ways you can plan ahead and try to have a great night every time.

So, what is the secret to a perfect date night?

Well, the main secret is there is no secret. Your date night should be about whatever you and your partner enjoy. It should be about spending quality time together and enjoying one another.

So, with this in mind, here are some tips:

• Plan something you both enjoy. Don’t worry about what you think you should be doing. Instead, do what feels right to you, even if it’s not what other people might do. This night is for you and you alone.  Add to a dinner date by going for a walk afterwards, holding hands and talking.  Sit under the stars on a blanket and just talk.  Talking is something we take for granted in the chaos of everyday life.
• Don’t sweat the small stuff. Sure, it’s easier said than done but you can’t let little things get in the way of having a good time. If things don’t go exactly how you wanted, just let it go. Don’t let those little things ruin a good night. Learn to laugh at yourselves and situations that come your way.  Also, don’t be tied to a plan.  If things aren’t going the way you planned, bail and try something new.  Don’t let the idea of “perfect” ruin your time together.
• Spend time together. Put away your phones, the TV, and any other distractions. Whatever you choose to do, the important thing is choosing to do it together. Be present.  Make eye contact.  Listen and love.

These few tips aren’t rocket science but they are the very things that I we hold near and dear to our hearts when we spend time together.  I like to think we have a healthy and happy marriage because we work hard at putting each other first and spending time together.  It really is the best gift we can give one another.

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Welcome to Kreative in Life! No, you are not in the wrong place.  I am excited to share some changes with you. Big changes. Huge.  My heart is racing just typing this.

Last night I shed a tear when my web designer deleted Kreative in Kinder.  I actually cried. Nick looked at me like I was a nut job.  I just said, leave me alone…I’m hormonal.  Ha! Sometimes that’s all I need to say (true or not) for the members of my family to back off. Ha! Kreative in Kinder. One of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I have spent the last FIVE years and what feels like a gazillion hours pouring my heart, craziness, and love for education and life on that little piece of virtual space. It really is special to connect with people all over the world.  It’s simply extraordinary when you know they are praying for you. Luckily, my amazing website creator migrated all of the old posts to my new site but the name is gone. It’s a door closed but not without a great door opening.

Sometimes in life you come to a crossroads. You can either stay the course or JUMP.  Today I jumped. It was one of the most difficult decisions I’ve ever made. Today I turned in my resignation for my teaching position next year.

Reading my blog, you know my heart. My husband and I want so badly to have a baby.  For the last two years, we have tried (minor) fertility treatments locally but we are at a point where I need to see a specialist out of town.  That really was my goal during this school year but it just didn’t happen. I just didn’t have time. I find myself saying; well…I will do it later.  I am so consumed with my three children and my 22 students that at the end of the day, I have nothing left. That is not a bad thing but as I near 36, I feel my window closing. Something’s got to give.

Nick and I have prayed for months as to which way to go in our journey. We both are in agreement that God has another season planned for us. That may or may not end with a bundle of joy, but we have decided to trust God and take a HUGE leap of faith.

Once school is out, I plan to spend more time consulting and presenting at conferences and in school districts. I hope to create new, meaningful resources that will hopefully alleviate some stress for teachers and increase classroom engagement through exciting lessons. I also plan to WRITE and write freely.  There is so much on my heart. I want to share more about our adoption journey, marriage, parenting, and uncensored opinions on education.

Most importantly, I plan to have flexibility to talk to doctors, visit them as often as necessary or meet with expectant mothers who may chose us to adopt their sweet baby.

I LOVE my school, my team, my friends but I know God has BIG things planned for my family and as scared as I am, God doesn’t have to ask twice. I will jump!

Moving forward, I hope you will stick with me.  I hope that the resources I share with you will inspire you. I hope my faith will encourage you and I hope my story will help you feel like you are not alone. We are all in this life together. Each our own hot mess. Ha!

I can’t wait to volunteer at schools. Maybe I will come to yours! I’m excited to work with hundreds of teachers this year.  I hope to be a breath of fresh air or at least someone you can laugh with. I. Get. Your. Life.

I’m not sure how long this season will last, but don’t worry; you have a front row seat to the Hot Mess Express. Ha!

It’s going down, for real. I hope you have picked out a front seat! I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to get Kreative in LIFE!

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If ever I’ve earned a Spring Break, it’s this one. My kids had SB last week because we are in different districts. They took turns coming to school with me. I think they understand my need for more naps this year. Ha! 

I’m currently in a car headed to Houston where the hubs and I will board a cruise ship for seven (hopefully) glorious days. We are cruising to Cozumel, Belize and Honduras. I’m hoping to get a good tan to help camouflage the inevitable weight gain. Though, Nick does this we will go to the gym everyday. Yeah, okay (wink, wink). 

If you read my blog often, you know how much I love my husband. He is my favorite person in the history of ever. Even if his common sense goes out the window when I’m around and I have to answer stupid questions (ha), I still puffy heart love him BIG. 

Nick and I will be married fifteen years this year. When we got married, we made a promise that we would take a vacation alone together every year. Most of them have been to nearby cities in Texas for three days or so but its always been a priority. So is a weekly date night. We go to dinner alone once a week. Sometimes dinner isn’t possible and it’s just running errands but it’s just us. Marriage is so important to us and it doesn’t work if we aren’t both invested and make time together a priority. 

I think people think I’m nuts when I say outside of God, I put my husband first. He is my first priority. You may think that’s crazy since I’m a mom of three but I believe that our marriage is the foundation of our family. It’s the glue that holds our family together. We we are great, everything wlse just falls into place. 

We also want our kids to see that marriage is beautiful.  We want them to look at us and think “that is what I want one day.” Of course we gross them out by  kissing in front of them on purpose because we think it’s funny. Then I tell them when their parents stop kissing, they should be worried.

This is the longest we’ve ever been away from our kids at the same time. This is definitely the most expensive vacation we’ve ever taken together too. Those things could be obstacles but this trip is necessary. Adulting is hard. Marriage is hard. I think going somewhere where there is no cell service, no social media and most importantly no distractions makes all the difference. We could spend a ridiculous amount of money for wifi on the ship but really, I want to be completely and totally present this week.

Infertility is another marriage speed bump that I’m happy to escape from for a hot minute. It takes a toll. Medications, waiting, disappointment. Month. After. Month. I think we have both handled it well because our faith is our foundation but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. I’ve seen many women who get so consumed that they quit living. All they  post on FB is stories of grief. I don’t want us to ever be that way. We have hope in God’s plan for us and whatever that may be, it has to be okay.

God is our foundation. We are our family’s foundation. All of that must be nurtured. So vacation here we come. I’m hoping for tons of laughter, naps, eating, pina coladas, sun soaking and sweet moments. 

You really can’t put a price tag on that. 

Happy Spring Break. Love and virtual hugs. 

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