It was my birthday this weekend and I was excited to hang out at home with the kids and with Shantel. However, Shantel did tell me that Jenna would come down on Friday night so that we could do a date night. However, when we got in the car and started driving off Shantel had me pull over to surprise me!
She told me that Jenna was watching our kids for the weekend and we had a hotel for Friday and Saturday night! I was so surprised. She took us over to the hotel (the Hyatt near our house) and she had already checked us in and had decorated with some balloons and had treats for me all set out. It was so kind of her to make this happen and I was so excited. I have been working really hard the last couple of months and to get a break and spend time with Shantel is just what I needed.
Somehow we did not take a ton of pictures, but the hotel was perfect. It had a seating area with this super comfortable couch. With COVID-19 we wanted to do some fun things, but not too much at crowded places.
We decided to go pick up food from Super Chix and El Mexiquense and take it up the canyon and read books. It was so nice. We found a spot off a trail and cuddled up under a blanket to read books. We went back to the hotel and watched some shows, ate some treats, and just relaxed.
Shantel had stake baptisms on Saturday morning and so she still had to go to those. It was a bummer for her, but for me it was so nice to just relax. I ate snacks and watched football and it felt so good. I had multiple games up at a time and there were some great games.
When Shantel got back we went over to the outlets and walked around a bit. We had some gift cards and checked out the Van Huessan store and found some awesome deals and got a lot of clothes. I think that they have probably taken a hit because of COVID-19 and also so many people working from home that the prices were just amazing.
One of my co-workers called me and she was supposed to take a student and her husband to dinner, but her daughter had to go into surgery and she asked if I could help. Shantel and I were glad to help and figured we would get a fancy dinner out of it. So we ended up doing dinner with the couple at Bona Vita (our first time eating at a restaurant since March). That night we went back to the hotel. We had scheduled to be able to go to the hot tub area and so we went down there, but there was a group already in the hot tub. We sat down and started reading. After a few minutes, there was a group by a fire table that left, so instead of doing the hot tub, we went and sat next to the fire. It was just a bit chilly and so having the warm fire was perfect. It was so nice and calming.
We were able to go back and binge-watch a few more episodes that night and chat.
It was so refreshing and relaxing. It was nice to have time to just chat with Shantel. It was wonderful to just cuddle up and watch some shows. It was perfect to get up in the mountains and walk around the mall. I am so grateful for Shantel. She makes so many sacrifices to make my life more happy. My favorite thing in the whole world is spending time with her. We can be doing anything, and if it is with her, it is so wonderful. I loved this weekend getaway. Thank you Shantel. I love you!
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A few notes from Shantel: I'm not great at surprises. I worry about whether David will like them and try too hard to get his input beforehand. Also, I have a tendency to start lying through my teeth to cover my tracks and start spinning ridiculous cover stories. However, I forced myself not to do either of those things this year. David has been working incredibly hard over the past two months, especially. He is putting in so much time and effort in his job, his calling, and our family - and I wanted to do something that would be a respite from the stress he's under right now. Even when I realized that I would have to be gone for 7+ hours for Stake Baptisms I decided to still go for it and I think that the gift of Football was exactly what he needed. More than anything I just hope that he know how much he is appreciated and that he was able to fill his cup a little before he jumps back into his high-stress schedule and routine. I'm grateful that I was able to swing this surprise for him.
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