Who doesn’t love Target?

It can be challenging to keep things interesting, fresh and new in a relationship the longer you stay together. I constantly read and hear about how you should continue to “date your spouse”. I think it’s important that Danny (my husband) and I continue to find ways to spend one on one time together and try new things. And let’s face it, that get’s even harder to make happen once kids are in the picture. Then I feel the added pressure of parenting a child with multiple disabilities. You hear in TV shows, movies, on social media and beyond the myths that divorce rates are higher for those raising children with complex diagnoses. While I do agree that raising a special needs child has it’s own stressors and possibly added challenges, there have been studies done by the Kennedy Krieger Institute and other credible sources to prove otherwise. Parenting is tough, period.

Then comes 2020… of course Covid times has made it even more challenging to find new things to do with my spouse given limited options and our strange world as it is right now. When my birthday rolled around in January 2021, we decided to celebrate with just the two of us for a little “staycation” here in Columbus. It was the perfect opportunity to try new things and spend some time one on one. The birthday celebration consisted of the following:

Get pedicures at my FAV spot, 614 Nail Bar in Worthington, OH
Grab Chipotle for lunch
Go to Target for the Target Date Night Challenge
Check into an Airbnb in downtown Columbus and RELAX/binge Netflix
Get dinner at a new restaurant, Figlio
Drinks at a bar after
Crash and the hotel and get some much needed REST kid free

It was the most perfect day! I’ve been trying to get the hubs to get a pedicure with me for years and he FINALLY said he would. And I think he actually enjoyed it… whether he admits it or not. Of course we had Chipotle for lunch because… it’s me. Did you expect anything else? Then it was time to head to Target and start the Target Date Night Challenge. You’re probably wondering, what on earth is that? If I’m being honest, I heard about it no TikTok. Not long after I heard about it, my brother and his girlfriend tried it and had so much fun. Naturally, I had to give it a try! The concept is easy. You have a list, go into the store together and split up. Then you purchase the things on the list for the other person. I searched for a couple of lists on Pinterest and TikTok to follow and ended up picking and choosing some from what I found to create our own list to use. For those who want to give this a try with their significant other, the list we followed is below:

I have to say, I think the hubs and I did a pretty good job when shopping for one another. Although, we did have to set some kind of general “budget”. Yet, that didn’t stop Danny from mentioning SEVERAL times that he wanted an Xbox. Thankfully, the Target location we went to didn’t have them in stock anyways. Not that it would have happened if it was in stock, we aren’t made of money. LOL Here is what we ended up with!

Fav Snack: Beef jerky
Fav Drink: Rhinegeist Truth
Something Fav Color: Black + red athletic shorts
Reminds you of them: Resistance bands, anything work out related lol
Need: Hair styling gel
Want: Browns mug + Captain America Lego kit
Random Dollar Spot: Space shuttle model

Fav Snack: Chips + salsa and chocolate
Fav Drink: Sprite and white wine
Something Fav Color: Teal water bottle
Reminds you of them: Friends game
Need: Apple watch charging stand
Want: Boxwood wreath
Random Dollar Spot: Macramé kit

This was so much fun but I’m not gonna lie, there were a couple moments where it was TOUGH to decide what to get. I know the hubs felt the same as he was texting me throughout it. We only ran into each other once while shopping and just turned the other way and walked away from each other. LOL Regardless, I would highly recommend giving it a try for something different to do with your significant other! We ended the night with an amazing dinner and drinks!