Plan a Daddy Date Day

Daddy Date Day at the Zoo

In our home one of our favorite things is what we like to call a “Daddy Date Day.”  Before we had Elijah we just called this date day-a day that Brandon and I set aside to spend the whole day together doing things that we both love.  Now that Eli is here we like to include him.  Daddy Days can look different in each family.  The important thing to remember is just to plan a relaxing day that you can all spend time together talking and enjoying life.  Just to give you an idea here is what ours looked like on Saturday……

First we all slept in (till like 7:30 maybe) and then I made breakfast-scrambled eggs and blueberry muffins.  Then we hung out at home for a while reading, relaxing, playing, and headed to Louisville about an hour away from our house.  (We met in Louisville so it is one of our favorite places to go.)  Sometimes on a date day we will pack a picnic but this time Brandon surprised us with lunch at Olive Garden thanks to a gift card he had been saving for I don’t know how long.  Of course it was delicious and Elijah seemed to have fun.  He was greatly entertained by another baby at the next table. 

Browsing the Book Nook

Then we headed to one of our favorite bookstores-The Christian book Nook in Louisville.  (If you’ve never been you have to check it out they offer 30% ALL books and they have a lot of used books which are even cheaper.  A lot of the books we own have come from there.)  We bought a new Kay Arthur Bible Study, a couple of textbooks for school (for me), Faithful Women and their Extraordinary God, and some commentary for Brandon that’s really big.  (I don’t like big commentaries because they don’t fit in my purse and I can’t hold them in one hand and Eli in the other.)  🙂  I try to read Elijah somewhere between 5-10 books a day.  We have great hopes for him to be a reader one day! 

Louisville Zoo

Then we headed to the Louisville Zoo.  I absolutely love going to the zoo-I always have. I’ve been trying to take Brandon ever since we started dating and we finally made it.  (The sad thing is I use to live 15 minutes away from it.)  It was lots of fun even if it was a little cold out.  There were pumpkin decorations everywhere-made me want to go home and make a pumpkin pie (I didn’t.)

Enjoying the Lemurs

After hanging out for a while we headed home and spent the rest of the evening having dinner, reading, playing with Elijah, and talking.  We are so blessed thank you Lord! 

Note: Don’t think that a Daddy Date day has to cost lots of money.  It was a really special treat that we went to lunch and an activity.  Another of our favorite daddy date days or daddy date nights includes eating dinner at home and then walking 2 miles to the library.  After stuffing our library bag full we walk back and spend the evening playing/reading to Elijah, watching a free library movie, reading, going for a walk, or talking.  The important thing is just to spend time together.

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Butternut Squash Soup

I was feeling adventuresome tonight and really in the mood for soup.  Last year I remember being at a friend’s house visiting while she was making Squash Soup and it smelled so good.  Rather than call her I decided to be adventuresome (this is really unlike me to just make up a soup recipe.)  🙂  Actually it was pretty good I think we will be making it again.  It’s a great way to eat more vegetables and seems so fitting on a fall day like today.

Butternut Squash Soup

• 1/2 of a large butternut squash peeled and cut into small chunks (remove seeds too)
• 2 T butter (you could probably use less)
• 1 large apple peeled and cut into chunks
• 1 t salt
• 2 cloves of garlic minced
• 1/8 t. ginger
• 2 c. chicken broth I use homemade but you could just use 1 can
• 1 c. water

Saute squash and apple in butter for 10 minutes.  Then add the rest of the ingredients.  Bring to a boil and simmer about 1 hour.  Then use an immersion blender or allow soup to cool and place in blender.  Serve with cream and croutons.

Falling Leaves: September at the Emerson Home

How sweet when a baby falls asleep on youI thought it would be neat to write a post at the end of each month summarizing some of the things our family has been up. September has been a busy month in our home. Along with his student ministry, Brandon helps with Upward every Saturday morning now for the next 2 months or so at our church. He has man night with Elijah ever Tuesday night while Amanda takes a theology class at Southern in Louisville. (After this semester she just has one more class and hopes to graduate in May.) J Since Elijah has learned to crawl Brandon often spends Tuesday evenings taking him for a long walk to the library 2 miles away.Enjoying a park swing

Over Labor Day weekend we were blessed to spend time with both of our families which was great!  Brandon’s parents, brothers, and sister-in-law all came to visit on Saturday which was lots of fun.  We love having guests in our home and hope that it is a place that they feel welcomed and at home.  On Monday we drove up and visited Amanda’s family for the day.  We watched her brother and sister show at their county horse show and spent time hanging out with the rest of her family.  Both Rebekah and Jacob did a great job showing.  Needless to say we were all really tired after the weekend was over (especially Elijah) but had so much fun.  Truly it is always a blessing when we can spend time with family.  

This picture does not even capture the true delight that Eli finds in his daddy

 Amanda had a rough week of sickness (still not sure exactly what it was-either a nasty cold/flu or strep) but ever thankful for the Lord’s grace.  See former post where she recounted things she was thankful for.  She finally finished studying the book of Colossians and is looking forward to diving into a study on an Old Testament book soon.  If you don’t know she is notorious for studying one chapter for weeks upon weeks which means that a book containing just four chapters will take her months. J  Brandon has been reminded of the greatness of God through his study of Isaiah along with reading through the entire New Testament at least once or twice. 

We continue slowly plugging along with our house as we try to make it more of “our home” while balancing the desire to be good stewards with the desire to make our home an inviting one.  There is still a long list of to-dos, but finally there are actually some pictures up on our walls and the boxes all unpacked (we think).  We are looking forward to having our roof replaced in the next week or so as well having some minor repairs done with a leak in the ceiling.  Oh the joys of being a grown up! 

 

Elijah has learned all sorts of tricks this month.  Not only has he mastered crawling but he can also “cruise” as he pulls himself up on furniture and takes a few steps.  It is cute to watch but boy has it made parenting harder.  Still we find Elijah to be such a joy to our hearts and are so thankful that God sent him to us.