high school date night

Posted: November 28, 2010 at 3:52 pm

Is it really Sunday already? Does the holiday weekend really end tomorrow? Bah humbug! I have thoroughly enjoyed myself the last few days and do not want it to end. It seems you all love the care-free, holly-jolly feeling as well โ€“ evidenced by the numerous smiley faces in the comments from my last post. Also, for those who asked, I have not shared a recipe for the fudge because its a pretty special recipe to me. I can tell you this โ€“ instant coffee and peppermint extract are involved for the peppermint mocha version. I make the rest with love. ๐Ÿ˜‰

Last night Peter & I shipped Makenzie off to her grandmaโ€™s for the night, so we could have one last night to ourselves before baby B arrives. With packed weekends between now and the New Year, plus not knowing how soon baby B plans to make an appearance, we wanted to take advantage while we could.

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You would think that we would choose to use that night for a spectacular evening in downtown Atlanta or a mini baby-moon to the North Georgia mountains. Wrong! I only wanted a low key evening just the two of us and the chance to sleep in the next morning. Instead of a high class evening, we ended up on a date that had us laughing at its high school nature โ€“ dinner and a movie. It still suited us perfectly, despite the 10+ years since our high school days.

Since we had plans to hit up a theater with an IMAX, our night brought us to an area mall. That meant chain restaurant city. Out of our options, we decided to visit where we actually had our first date almost 5 years ago โ€“ Carrabbas. It satisfied me plenty. We started off with the bread + oil/herb mix for dipping.

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Then, I had an Italian salad with the mezzaluna (chicken & spinach ravioli with a sundried tomato sauce) for my dinner.

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Delicious and I still have half of my meal leftover. Easy dinner tonight? Hmmmmโ€ฆ.

After dinner, we headed to our movie โ€“ Harrie Potter 7 in the IMAX theater.

I am a total tweeny bopper with my love for the Harry Potter books and movies. Twilight too! They are so fun to me. I went in without any high expectations because I have heard many say it wasnโ€™t quite as good as they hoped. I ended up pleasantly surprised. I loved it and cannot wait for the final movie next year.ย  I will say IMAX doesnโ€™t live up to its claim to fame though. Not worth the extra $6.50 per ticket.

After that we headed home and crashed. I donโ€™t do well staying up until after midnight. Knowing we didnโ€™t have Makenzie to wake us up in the morning helped. And we took advantage. I did not wake up until 10 am and stayed in bed until 11! We havenโ€™t done that since before kids. It felt amazing.

Since it was already so late, we both were quite hungry and at the last minute decided to hit up The Flying Biscuit for a breakfast out to continue our lazy care-free time together. I wanted savory so opted for their basic platter which included farm fresh scrambled eggs, chicken sausages, a fresh biscuit with cranberry apple butter, and some of their famous grits.

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Peter ordered the same thing but with an oat pancake on the side for us to share.

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That place serves the best breakfast out of any restaurant I have tried. Only half that plate and a few bites of the oat pancake filled me up.

I still feel a little under the weather and did have another big contraction last night (just one) so I plan to spend the rest of the day taking it easy. I hope you all have the chance to as well. See ya in the morning with a Q+A post for all the questions I received related to my weight. Duh duh duh. ๐Ÿ˜‰

  • What is your favorite chain restaurant?
  • Do you ever go into movies with lower expectations because you donโ€™t want to end up disappointed?

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53 Comments to “high school date night”
  1. Ah such a cute + fun date night!! I remember being in high school and going to my then-boyfriend’s house to watch movies. We were never allowed to close the basement doors haha…

    Favorite chain? It’s a toss-up between Bertuccis (for the bread alone) and Chili’s, where my high school class congregated on a daily basis!

  2. I don’t go to chains often, but my favorite is Cheesecake Factory! What a nice evening you guys had, so glad you got to sleep in ! Such a wonderful feeling, especially when it has not happened in for-ev-er!

  3. Aw, what a sweet date night:) I’ve heard the HP is very good.
    Good for you for getting in such late sleep ๐Ÿ™‚

  4. lindsay says:

    I love going out to breakfast/brunch with my hubs when we can. Looks like you guys really got some rest and time together. Totally deserved it!
    Not a fan of chain restuarants but I do love cracker barrel breakfast when we’re on the road. hehe.

  5. Astrid says:

    I love date nights! It makes me feel like a teenager again. Which is funny, because I didn’t go on dates when I was a teen. My favorite chain restaurant is probably 99 Restaurant. They have them in New England. Such great food! I also really love Macaroni Grill.
    I actually had a psychology prof that wrote a book about having low expectations, that way you are never disappointed. If I have super high expectations for a movie, they are very rarely met. I went in to Harry Potter with low expectations and without rereading the book, and I really enjoyed it!

  6. Susan says:

    I try not to go to chains much but if I do – it’s usually OTB! I figure you can’t go wrong w/ chips and salsa and fajitas!

    I love date nights! And I’m so glad you told said something about the IMAX experience for HP7 because I was going to wait for a time to watch it for IMAX.

  7. I am so happy you got a date night with your hubby. Sleeping in is the best!! My favorite chain restaurant is PF Changs. You two are such a gorgeous couple!

  8. Aruna says:

    Ahh, I loved Flying Biscuit on my recent trip to Atlanta! The biscuits were truly southern, and I loved all the options they had from scrambled tofu to hummus to breakfasty foods. Sounds like a really nice date weekend!

  9. Such a sweet date! I think Ruby Tuesday is my favorite chain because I love the salad bar!

  10. I seriously love Olive Garden and Chipotle!! I’d walk miles to go to Chipotle.

  11. Camille says:

    I think IMAX is worth the extra money, but not 3-D. In fact, I really don’t like 3-D, it gives me a headache and I have to wear my contacts so my eyes get really tired from staring at the screen.
    Check out my most recent post to see the HP related gift I got for my birthday. It is epic ๐Ÿ™‚

  12. Who says you have to go out to a fancy dinner and dance to make it a true “date night?”
    Your date night sounds fun to me! Glad you enjoyed your kidless night. Good luck!

  13. I’m glad you had fun on your date!!! ๐Ÿ™‚

    I was asleep on my couch at 10 last night. Woke up at 1, realized what happened, got embarrassed, and then moved to the bed. Aaaahhhh….

    I’m a fan of Red Lobster. The seafood is just sort of “eh”, but I’m there for the cheddar biscuits. That or Outback- because I love the free bread.

    You can tell I’m a sucker for carbs.

  14. Two of my fave places! I hate chain Italian places but Carabba’s rocks and am so happy The Flying Biscuit came to Charlotte-I dream about their grits ๐Ÿ™‚

  15. I like Moe’s. It gives a great amount of options as a family. I really don’t care to go out often. It just seems like such a pain and is so overpriced for what you get compared to home cooking. I do like the luxury of not cleaning dishes though! I hope you have a great evening Tina. Put your feet up and enjoy some down time.

  16. I’ve never seen any of the Harry Potters! I started to watch the first one this weekend, but my DVD player messed up! I know, I’m so behind!

    • Tina says:

      I didn’t start watching them until after Twilight. I always thought there was no way any of those teeny bopper books and movies could be good. Then, I gave in and read Twilight. Got hooked. So I figured I would give HP a shot. Got hooked. And I always like seeing the movies that go with the books.

  17. I love the idea of a low key high school-style date…No need to primp and wobble around in heels all night!

    My favorite chain restaurant is PF Changs, however Macaroni Grill comes in a close second. ๐Ÿ™‚

  18. Great idea to get another “date night” in!

    I love the Biscuit too… but I think Season’s 52 is my favorite chain. Mini desserts get me every time. ๐Ÿ™‚

  19. Marcia says:

    Actually, 1 of our favorite chains is Carrabbas! Matt is Italian (50%) and his grandma says it’s the best chain Italin place she has ever been to in the US. She is Sicilian.

    I just saw Tangled and went in with low expectations ( I mean, ya seen 1 pricess movie ya seen em’ all-right?!?!)
    It might be my favorite Disney Princess movie to date! I really enjoyed Mandy More as Repunzel- she was great!
    Amara thought it was great too.

  20. chelsey says:

    I’m so glad you had a night off from mommyhood! It must have felt nice to take a break!

    I usually have high expectations for movies, and they more often than not let me down! ๐Ÿ™

  21. Samantha says:

    I just died reading this post. My first job ever was at Carrabba’s as a hostess and my absolute favorite meal was Mezzaluna!! Unfortunately they went out of business in the St. Louis area and the closest one is in Kansas City I believe. ๐Ÿ™ So no more mezzaluna for me. Therefore, seeing yours makes me incredibly jealous!

  22. I love Carrabas!!! I used to work at an Outback, which is all affiliated (same owners). My hubbys favorite chain is Maggianos…I don’t know what mine is. I would have to think on that one…

    As far as movies go, I sometimes lower my expectations…but usually I go to movies I have heard nothing about that my husband pics, so my expectations are not too high, and it can go either way when I leave (love or hate).

    Hope you had a nice holiday!! I am bummed the weekend is over too ๐Ÿ™

  23. I love Carrabas!! We’ve eaten there a few times with my family. Sometimes the low-key date nights are the BEST!

  24. Awww! What a fun date night! ๐Ÿ™‚

    I’ve never eaten at The Flying Biscuit but I’ve heard great things!

  25. Carrabbas is one of my favorite places! Yummy! Hope you had a great holiday!

  26. Jenny says:

    My favorite chain restaurant…that’s a toughie….I guess I’d say IHOP ๐Ÿ™‚ I like me some pancakes! Sounds like a wonderful date night. I just say HP yesterday and I really liked it as well. Can’t believe there’s only one more movie left! Gah!

    • Tina says:

      I know! It’s going to be weird to have it end. At least it actually has an end, though. The Twilight saga ending still pisses me off. I wonder how they’ll do it in the movies?

  27. so glad you enjoyed a date night ๐Ÿ™‚

    sometimes i try to go with lower expectations so that i may be pleasantly surprised, but i occasionally find that it sets me up to not enjoy the movie as much.. does that even make sense?

  28. Gonna have to say Max & Erma’s…and I am DYING to see the Harry Potter movie, but haven’t made it there yet!

  29. Meg says:

    I’m glad you guys got a chance to spend some alone time together– dinner and a movie sounds fun to me! I can’t wait to see the new Harry Potter and the new Narnia movie! The best movies come out during the holidays, in my opinion.

    Hmm… my favorite chain restaurant has to be Red Robin (the chicken pineapple burger is my fav!).

    • Tina says:

      I know! The holidays do have the best movies out. Then, and early summer too. It seems like at both those times there are quite a few I want to see.

  30. Dinner and a movie is awesome! Love that you had been there on a date so long ago – cuties! I want to see that movie SO bad – just didn’t happen this weekend. We barely left the house!!!

    My favorite chain is probably p. f. chang or brio – YUM!

  31. What a wonderful date night! Often our date night is a shopping date, which we both enjoy!

  32. So great that you guys got to have a date night!! I am glad you got some time to yourself! I usually go to movies with pretty low expectations which I love because I almost always end up liking the movies.

  33. I love low-key date nights!! I am a sucker for dinner and a movie any night of the week ๐Ÿ™‚

    I can’t wait to see the movie….I am Twilight fan more than Harry, but I love seeing the movie anyways ๐Ÿ˜‰

    Have a great night!

    xxoo

  34. carrabbas….when we lived in NC and SC we used to go there! lol

    i havent been to a movie since i was pregnant, sick w/ morning sickness, no a/c in my house and it was 110F out! So we went to the movies. That was 5 yrs ago. Since then we have not seen a single movie. 5 years. Yep. I know. And I have lived to tell the tale ๐Ÿ™‚ LOL

  35. Heather says:

    well, call me boring but i still love chili’s…plus we hardly ever eat there anymore since there’s not one close! but when we do i go for the old favorites…chicken tenders, southwestern eggrolls, fajitas ๐Ÿ™‚ not all in the same night though!

  36. I love the Outback. What could be better than a great steak?

  37. Heather says:

    Glad you got to enjoy one last night out before Baby B!!

    I think Champps would be our favorite chain restaurant…..?

  38. That looks like such a fun date night! I used to LOVE the Flying Biscuit when I lived in Atlanta.

  39. Katie says:

    Glad you had a fun date night! ๐Ÿ™‚ I love doing dinner & a movie.

    I also love Harry Potter, I have yet to go see it because everyone I know went without me already!

    I don’t like to go out to sit-down chain restaurants ever, but I like Chipotle, Noodles and Co, etc (that “slow fast food” concept) for chains.

  40. Jess says:

    Aww! I love your date night!! Especially since you extended it into breakfast out. I don’t know why, but I LOVE breakfast out as a special treat. We rarely do it so if we do go for it, it always feels extra special somehow.

    • Tina says:

      You’re so right! There’s something special about going out to breakfast. We rarely do it either, so it certainly made for a special treat.

  41. Angela says:

    Aww I’m so glad you had such a fun and relaxing weekend with the hubby! I haven’t seen Harry Potter yet – mainly because I’m not really into the books and haven’t bothered keeping up with the movies. I do tend to go into chick flicks with lower than average expectations though, and usually come out pleasantly surprised! As long as they put me in a good mood and I get a laugh out of them, I’m satisfied. ๐Ÿ™‚

  42. Nichole says:

    This is SO sweet. What a great idea to relax before things get crazy. Definitely looks like y’all are still acting like crazy kids in love.

    Harry Potter — CANNOT wait to see it:)

  43. Sarah says:

    Aw, so glad to hear you were able to enjoy a very relaxed date with your husband. Your time together sounds wonderful:-).

  44. I have been hooked on HP for years! Read the 1st one out loud to the monkey while he was in the womb (not the first time I had read it though), and now he has listened to the first four books on CD/tape. He won’t be “reading” the last three nor seeing the last two (or three if you count book 7 as 2) movies for quite awhile. Much to old for a 6 year old.

    My sisters, I and a couple of girl friends have been making a point of going to see each of the Twilight movies for girls night/afternoon. We recognize their teeny bopperness, but love them anyway. And I think dinner & a movie is a perfect way to spend the evening.

    What is your favorite chain restaurant?
    -If we go simple I love Chik Fil A, but there aren’t any around here. I adore Ruby Tuesday’s for a more “fancy” feel. ๐Ÿ™‚

    Do you ever go into movies with lower expectations because you donโ€™t want to end up disappointed?
    -I try not to. I also try to go to movies that I think will be interesting fun after having had some wasted time/money on movies people told me I must see.

  45. Your date night looks and sounds lovely ๐Ÿ™‚

  46. Holly says:

    I am SO glad you guys had a great date night! You deserve it, Tina. You both look so happy. ๐Ÿ™‚

    If I’m EVER in ATL, I have to try that breakfast place! I’m a huge breakfast person. Hmmm….favorite chain – Olive Garden? haha okay, I really do like the OG, but I LOVE McAlister’s Deli probably the best.

    I lower expectations a lot when I hear reallllly good things about a certain movie. I’m always afraid I’ll be let down!

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