Where did 4 years go?

At London Gatwick Airport on our way to
our honeymoon in Turkey - July 2006

I'm determined to blog more. So I've decided that every Friday I'm going to post a little story about something - exciting or boring - that has happened in the Kinne family in the past week (or if our week has been REALLY boring then I'll stretch to the past month :)). My mother-in-law, Karen, or Momma K, has been encouraging me to write more...she's thinking more along the lines of publishing books, etc...I'm thinking let's just keep the blog alive!

*Warning - there are NO pictures of Charlotte in this blog post. If that really upsets you, just check out our Flickr photos...her life in pictures is well-documented there.

Where did 4 years go?

It seems like just yesterday that Brendan and I were getting married in Evergreen, Colorado, but so much has changed in our lives in 4 years! There are the obvious things like now having a baby and living in a foreign country, but there are some not-so-obvious things as well. While we were watching our wedding video the other night, we couldn't help but laugh at ourselves...not the wedding itself or the vows we made...but we laughed at what we thought love was then.

Last summer shortly after our anniversary, I wrote this blog post which pretty much sums up how our idea of love has changed over the past few years. Every year I think I will be more amazed at how God is changing us.

For the first time since moving to Spain, Brendan and I went out on a real date - just the two of us! A friend from our church in Madrid came over on Sunday night while Charlotte was asleep - she goes to bed early, ya'll, and Spaniards eat dinner late so that works out well for babysitters! As I often do, I gave Brendan the dubious responsibility of finding a restaurant. He came up with a bunch of ideas, but he kept running them past me so I shared my honest option. Something like, "Hmmm, looks good...I mean I don't know what any of the food is, but I'm sure it will be great, sweetie!"

So, we finally decided on simplicity - a restaurant that offers very few items, all of which are edible, and we had heard it praised by numerous people. Not a fancy date restaurant but a new place to try and we were sure we'd leave full. This place...

Casa Mingo

Pollo asado was the main dish - a wonderful roasted chicken. Our tortilla espanola and cider were also very good, but the shrink-wrapped salad was a little puzzling. :)

The real fun began after dinner when Brendan took me on an uphill climb to get to a park that had nice views of Madrid. Umm, yeah, it was hot and my feet weren't happy since I had decided to wear "date" shoes not "hiking" shoes. But Brendan really did redeem himself by spotting a heladeria, an ice cream shop, and we got some really great ice cream!

We hope to have a date night every month since we now know people we trust to leave with Charlotte. It was really nice to get out of the house alone with my husband. I did feel "naked" without a stroller - I don't even have a purse here, and I'm not going to carry her diaper bag when she's not with us! Going out also reminded me how fast she has grown. When she was first born, I thought I'd never get out of the house again much less go on a date with Brendan! Ok, I knew those things would happen eventually but it seemed like it would be forever....I kinda miss that tiny little baby who would let me hold her in my arms. :) I guess that could be a whole different blog post - Where did 9 months go?

Happy Anniversary to my incredible husband, Brendan!