Twilight Twinkles & Tubby Toads

Last night Victoria and I decided we'd take advantage of Annie and Barret being home at the same time and let them watch the girls for a spell while we went out for a nice dinner in Lafayette. We never really had a chance to celebrate our 26th anniversary together a few months ago, so this was going to be our belated one. Victoria chose a restaurant where we could sit outside (I always prefer the outdoors with sky over my head if I have a choice, even if the temperature is uncomfortable), so our dining experience was alfresco. A few moments into our enchanted evening together, replete with beautiful and relaxing Latin serenades, Victoria says to me, "That piped-in music is so lovely that it sounds like it's live." I said to her, with full view over her right shoulder, "Look behind you, Sweetheart." There he was, the live guitarist/musician literally only ten feet away playing the sounds she thought were recorded. And that was just the beginning. The rest of our meal, conversation, atmosphere and company were perfectly ordained for a very memorable night under the stars. After paying the bill, Victoria asked me to close my eyes and hold out my hands, and then placed a very unexpected gift into them that capped off a night that I thought couldn't get any better.

I don't deserve this, but I have the best wife in the whole wide world. "I love you, Sweetheart. Thank you for making my life complete."

Tom

PS: Of course any evening out with just your spouse and kids at home cannot possibly go uninterrupted without at least one minor "emergency" call from the house. The one last night from Annie informed us that while the girls were taking their routine tubby, Willow started to cry rather inexplicably. Annie couldn't figure out what was wrong with her for the longest time until she finally picked her up out of the water and noticed that one of the tiny, plastic toy frogs was stuck between the cheeks of her little rump. Poor precious thing; there's nothing worse than having a tubby toy-toad tucked in the touche.