Date Night with My Littlest Love

Last night was a pretty special night. I had a date with a very special 3 year old. We had been talking about it for a few days. It started as a way to get him to go to sleep, but turned into so much more. I was even getting more and more excited as the day drew near. Brandon bragged to his teachers yesterday that he was going on a date with Mommy to IHOP. Honestly, I bragged a little too. Everyone at work knew I had a date night planned with my little guy.

I left work a little early to allow time to go to the store and get the weekly groceries and Super Bowl goodies. I went right to pick Brandon up from school and decided we would go right to our date. It’s rather cold so I knew the groceries would be fine in the trunk. When I walked through the door I heard, “YAY, Mommy. Time for IHOP.” Not really sure if he was more excited about our date or the fact that he was getting pancakes for dinner, but either way, his excitement put a huge smile on my face.

It was nice that the restaurant was relatively empty. It was almost like we had the whole place to ourselves. We sat in our booth, and he took his seat directly across from me. He looked like such a big boy sitting there reading the menu.

Such Concentration

The waiter came over and started to take our order. Brandon proudly exclaimed that he wanted orange juice and pancakes and that he and Mommy were on a date. I, of course, wanted coffee and an apple juice. He went to get our drinks and when he came back, we gave him our food order. He even asked Brandon if he wanted chocolate chips in his pancakes, which without a doubt, he did.

As I started putting cream and sugar into my coffee, Brandon kept asking if I wanted him to do it for me. Awe, what a sweet gesture. We sat and talked. I asked about his day at school and he asked questions about what everything was on the table. It was a great conversation. I find it amazing that how our conversations used to be one-sided and now they have evolved into actual conversations. He has his own thoughts and I love how wonderfully weird he is.

The food came out quick and as the waiter put his plate in front of him, Brandon said thank you. I was such a proud Mom when the waiter said how polite he is. We ate and talked, but not with food in our mouths, as I was reminded a few times. After a short while the waiter brought over the check. I slide my card in the holder and we continued to eat. When the waiter came back, Brandon handed him the holder and said, “I’m paying.” Even though it was my card (and the waiter knew it) he played along as if Brandon was really paying. He was so awesome with Brandon! It really made the experience memorable.

I’m not sure if Brandon will remember our date as he gets older, but I always will. It was an amazing Mommy/Son night and I hope to have many more “dates” with my little guy, even when he isn’t so little anymore.