Not only had we been quarantined in the house for a good while, but Ejuan’s job had given him the holiday off. Twenty years at this same place, and never had they observed MLK Day as a paid day off.
Several months back, I saw a meme going around with a romantically dressed up truck bed. It asked something like, “Would you go on a date like this?” I most certainly would! I planned to set this up for us a couple of times, but something would always cause me to reschedule. When I saw how warm the weather would be on that day, I knew it would be perfect to create the date.
Now that that’s out of the way let me tell you how this date went down. I initially wanted to surprise Ejuan, but I also wanted to ensure that he’d do something he was interested in too. The day before, I told him I was planning a date for us, and we needed his old school (it’s a ’72). I shared what my plans were, and while he was okay with everything, he just asked if we could get by the gun range before they closed. We talked back and forth about what we’d pack but didn’t get everything solidified. Therefore, Monday morning, we began to finalize ideas and started gathering items for our date.
I grabbed some of our large blankets and borrowed the boys’ sleeping bags. I layered the covers on the truck’s bed and had Ejuan grab some pillows from the backyard. We packed our cornhole boards and bags, jumbo dice for Farkle, chairs, extra throw blankets, my son’s Bluetooth speaker, our laptops (just in case we wanted to watch a show), and a picnic basket with snacks, sanitizer, wipes, and napkins. We were ready to spend a full day outside. We stopped by Starbucks to grab a cup of my favorite, and then made our way to the lake.
Ejuan backed in so that we’d have a view of the lake while we hung out. We chilled for about the first hour. We laid back, talked about our plans, enjoyed the breeze and nature, and visualized having more days like this in the future.
After we had relaxed, we decided it was time for some activities. The sun was out, and it had warmed up pretty nicely, so I came out of my jacket, and I was ready to play. We pulled out the cornhole game. We played a couple of games, and of course, I beat him. Yep, I’m athletic and competitive. If you didn’t know, now you know. I wanted to do something unique, so I suggested we order some food to be delivered. The closest place to the lake was Pizza Hut. Something told me this wouldn’t be their first delivery there, so Ejuan called to place an order. Sure enough, when the pizza and wings were delivered, they told us they come there often.
We took a break from playing and went back to the truck bed to have lunch. Even though I don’t eat pizza and shouldn’t be touching the cheese, it looked so good, so I had to get one bite! Ejuan and I ate until we were full, then we went back to our games. Once we’d had enough of cornhole, we put all of that away and grabbed the dice to play Farkle. Once again, I destroyed him. He’s a good sport, though. LOL! We packed everything away, grabbed my tripod, and headed out towards the water. We walked a little and took in more of the view, then stopped to snap some photos.
Right before we walked back to the truck, I spotted the ducks and got excited. I asked Ejuan to grab some of our crackers, and he jokingly said, “You’re not supposed to feed the animals.” They were leaving the bank, so I made a dash for the truck and snatched about five crackers from the picnic basket. I ran back just in time to get their attention with a few sprinkles I tossed out. The entire clan started coming for me, so I threw some pieces further out. They’re cute and all, but I definitely didn’t want to be surrounded by them. They were beautiful, and it made for a cool moment, and you already know…PICTURES!
We left the lake, went home to freshen up, and then made our way to the shooting range. It was one of my BEST shooting days! Ejuan was super duper proud. We spent about $35 on the date with the coffee and the pizza. We enjoyed our full day, and it was one of the most inexpensive and memorable dates we have ever had.
Until next time, I’ll leave you with this. Please don’t miss out on an opportunity to have time with your significant other because it’s not your ideal date location, or you don’t have the finances or can’t spend the amount you’d prefer. Learn to appreciate each moment you have together, and make the best out of every situation. You never know when that may be your last date, so make it the greatest. Ejuan and I love surprising each other, but if you and your spouse need to discuss the plans to make sure you’re on one accord, that’s okay too. Just be sure to include things that both of you will like, so each of you walks away satisfied. Now, get out there and date your spouse!
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