John and I had a date night last night, and we decided it was high time we had sushi. We both love sushi, but it can get expensive. It is more of a summer date for us, as when it is 20 degrees out eating cold food isn’t as appealing as it is when it is 90 out.

John’s parent’s babysit for us. We are so lucky to have them in Des Moines. We have friends that rarely get a date night, but we can have them pretty much whenever we ask. We have them come over early so they can actually play with the kids before they put them to bed. Our kids go to bed around 6:45, so they usually get here around 4. We are happy to give them extra time with Audrey and Elliot. The four of them are thrilled to spend time together.

The thing about the baby sitter arriving at 4 is we need to find an activity to do before we eat. We like to eat early, but 4:30 is a bit extreme. We used to go out for drinks before dinner, but then we just got tired and John always ordered an appetizer and then wasn’t hungry for dinner. We started going for walks instead of getting drinks. We’ve gone for walks around Gray’s Lake, along the River Walk, and through different parks in the area. When the weather isn’t ideal for walking we have been known to walk the mall.

Last night it was hot, and as we headed to the mall John mentioned he needed new deodorant, so we went to Target. You can easily kill time at Target. We kept thinking of things we needed (like sunscreen stick) and things we wanted (metal straws). We worked up such an appetite at Target we were ready for sushi.

We headed to the sushi place and had a delightful dinner. We ate a lot of salmon. We had it in roll form, nigiri, and sashimi. We were like Bubba from Forrest Gump about salmon (look how hip I am with my 24-year-old references).

After our fish fest we got in the car to head home. That’s when we realized it was only 6:30. We couldn’t go home. His parents were likely still getting the kids into bed. We drove around trying to decide what to do. We thought about getting a drink, but it turns out we have no idea where one does that. We ended up deciding it had cooled off enough to go for a walk in the park. After that delightful walk we decided the kids were probably in bed and we went home.

We used to go out until 10 or so on the weekends. Now I’m happy we’re home by 8. I would rather have a good nights sleep than another drink at a loud bar.