Winner, Winner Chicken Dinner!!

Sooo...remember the iDate challenge that Jon and I participated in?  (I wrote about it here, here and here.)  And remember that I mentioned that there was going to be a grand prize drawing at the end of the challenge?

Well...

WE WON!!!

I CAN HARDLY BELIEVE IT!!

What did we win?  We won a $50 gift card to Frank & Lola's, two movie tickets, and a night's stay at The Inn at Price Tower!  I am still in shock that we won!  Jon and I are looking forward to a super spectacular date in our very near future!!

Thank you, Jon, for the great dates!  I am always happy to go on a date with you, even if not for a great prize!  (:

Thank you, Grace Community Church for such a fun challenge and phenomenal prize! 

iDate #2

Having just recently had surgery, I hadn't given much thought to our monthly date or the date challenge.  Thankfully, Jon had.  I'm not sure if it was the fact that he was at home with me during my recovery or maybe he knew that I would need out of the house.  Or maybe he is just on the ball.  (:  I'm not sure when it was, as all of my days seem to be running together these days, but Jon told me, "Put October 13th on your calendar.  We are going on a date."  Yes!

Jon was really excited about this date, but wouldn't tell me what he had planned.  We like to keep our date plans a secret until we are actually on the date.  (I just hoped that his plans involved lots of sitting.)  However, the day before the date, Jon couldn't hardly keep it to himself any longer!  He had to spill the beans!  He told me that we were going to dinner at Frank & Lola's and then to the Bartlesville Symphony Orchestra concert.  Perfect!!  I was thrilled and completely impressed with his plans!

Like date one, date two started out a little bit rough.  The problem?  It was pouring!  Not just your average, ordinary rain showers, I mean, it was coming down in sheets!  Jon got me dropped off at the door and I managed to get in before I got completely drenched.  By the time Jon got the car parked and got into the restaurant he. was. drenched!  I don't mean that he was just a bit wet.  He was completely soaked.  It looked like he had just stepped out of the shower with his clothes on.  Soaked!  As you can see in the picture in the bottom right corner, we did our best to get some of the excess water out of his shirt.  I don't think it helped...

Dinner was still delicious!  We even splurged and had dessert!  It's hard to pass up bread pudding at Frank & Lola's!

We had a list of questions for this date as well.

Date two questions:

Thinking about the present...

What do you like most about your life right now?  How are you demonstrating a sense of gratitude about this?

(We couldn't help but laugh about this first question as life at our house, post surgery, haven't been terribly fun.  Especially for Jon...)

What do you like most about your job right now?  What would you like to see change?

Are there people (or couples) on your life that you would like to see get to know better?  Who are they?

What are our strengths as a couple?  Is there anything we might be able to contribute to younger couples as mentors?

I am including these questions so that maybe you can use them on one of your dates.  They make for great conversation!

Ok, on to the rest of the date!  Off to the symphony!  Well, thankfully we had time to stop by home for Jon to put on a dry shirt.

Yeah...about that.  We pulled into the Community Center and Jon noticed that it looked a bit dark.  I told him that it was just because the doors were tinted.  I didn't think too much about it.  I went inside while Jon went to park the car.  While waiting for Jon to come inside, I got a text from one of the performers (one of our fabulous band teachers!) telling me that the power was out and they weren't sure if the concert was going to happen.  Seriously?!  What is it about our dates lately???  Jon and I moved on to an area where I could sit and relax.  After about 30 minutes, it was determined that the concert was going to have to be postponed.  Ugh...What a disappointment!

Jon had done such a great job planning our date and then this.

Thank you, Jon, for planning such a perfect date for us!  I loved that we were able to get out together after nearly two weeks in the house.  I know things didn't go according to plan, but it was still nice to get out and spend time together, just the two of us.

I wonder what date three has in store for us...

Third Day Concert

In February 2010 Jon and I went to Winter Jam. There were about ten different groups performing that night, but we were most excited to see Third Day! The concert was great, but Third Day's performance was short. We decided that we would both love to go to see Third Day the next time they came to town. Well, in July I found out that they were going to be in Tulsa in October! I knew that Jon and I had to go! I was thrilled when Jon was on board and bought tickets right away!


Jon splurged and got us great seats! Only 8 rows up!

Trevor Morgan was up first. We really enjoyed him! We bought his cd at the concert and have thoroughly enjoyed it since then!

Peter Furler was up next. I didn't realize he was the former lead singer for the Newsboys. He was a little...different...but we ended up really enjoying his group.

Next up...THIRD DAY!!!




The concert was AMAZING!!! Those guys know how to put on a great show! It was awesome! I would go again in a heartbeat!

Mystery Date

As soon as Jon found out that my mom was coming out, he started planning a date for the two of us. (We always get to go on a date when Mom comes. :)) This time, he wouldn't give me any details. The whole thing was to be a complete surprise. (When I told Jon that Mom wouldn't be coming, he was disappointed, but then very happy when I told him that she was again.) All I knew was that the date was on Sunday after church and that I had to pack an overnight bag. Nice! I hate surprises, but I got to the point that I really didn't want to know anything and just let it all be a surprise. I was a little bit disappointed about not getting to watch the Super Bowl, but I would NEVER turn down quality time with my husband! (Besides, I didn't really care who won the game.) I was completely baffled by the little clues I was getting. I knew that Jon's original plans had changed. Then I found out that we were going to Tulsa, but that Jon was going to have to stop back by the house later to pick something up. Things just weren't adding up! Oh well...
So, we headed out! I had my choice of places to eat. My options were PF Changs, Carabbas, or The Cheesecake Factory. Sheesh! How to choose!?
I opted for PF Changs! YUM!!!
This was Jon's fortune.
This was mine. Hmmm...
I guess that means that cheesecake is to be enjoyed "today"! So, of course, we went to The Cheesecake Factory for some dessert.
Chocolate Tuxedo Cream Cheesecake. One of our favorites!
And it was DELICIOUS!

As if the first part of the date wasn't good enough, we headed back towards Bartlesville where Jon had rented us a cabin at Osage Hills State Park. I was blown away! Jon doesn't usually plan great dates like this! (No offense to Jon, we just usually do the typical dinner, movie and shopping dates.) The cabin was great!!
Jon quickly got a fire going...
and we laid in bed...
and watched a movie and had cheese and crackers and champagne! I was completely blown away that Jon had planned all of this without me knowing! He thought of everything!
In the morning, Jon made pancakes and bacon for breakfast. I was totally impressed!
Such a beautiful place to sit and eat my breakfast with my amazing husband!
This is our cabin. I loved it! So cozy and romantic!
I had such a great time on my mystery date! Thank you so much, Jon, for planning such a fantastic getaway that we needed so much! You made me feel so special! I love you!

A Fun Fall Date Day! (with Luke, of course)

I always enjoy Jon's day off, especially when Ben and Abby are at school! This week we decided to go out and enjoy the beauty of fall! We headed to the nearby state park to check out what the trees looked like. It's no Michigan, that's for sure, but it was pretty!

We knew that there were some waterfalls if you were willing to take a little hike down to them. We never knew just how far away it was, so we thought we would find out. It wasn't very far at all. The falls were quite small, but pretty just the same!

Along the way, Luke was more content to play in the sand with a stick than anything.

This is probably my favorite shot of the day! Love it!!

I love this one too!

Jon found a caterpillar as we were heading back to the trail. Luke thought it was pretty cool! He was doing everything he could to get it with his stick!

I LOVE this little guy!

Maybe this one is my favorite! ??? So many cute one's!

Can't get enough of him!

We will definitely be taking Ben and Abby back there! And I'm sure that will mean more pictures!

As you saw in my last post, the kids carved their own pumpkins. Jon and I were so bummed that they wouldn't let us help them! We love to do it! We decided that since he would be off the next day, that we would get two more pumpkins and do our own! It was so fun!

Freaky eyes!
I was very proud of my pumpkin!

Jon's finished product.

My finished product.

Jon and I had a GREAT, fun day! Even if Luke had to tag along!