this wasn't in the plan |but life is still pretty good

I'm skipping the link love tonight because I'm out of town and have not been able to keep up with my reader! I imagine I'll have a long list of good reads for you next weekend.

Recently, The Tall One and I joined forces with two other families to start a baby-sitting co-op. We each take turns watching the other kids, so the other two couples can have a date night. This means we have two nights a month where we can go out without our boys! The first thing TTO said when I told him about or new arrangement was that we couldn't afford to go out two nights a month! But we don't need to have dinner and a movie to have a fun time together. Here are some ideas I've come up with for inexpensive date nights.

• Go for a walk - explore some new hiking trails or explore your neighborhood


• Play tennis or raquetball - check out your local high schools to see if there are courts you can use for free


• Make a nice dinner at home - be sure that it's something the kids wouldn't want to eat!


• Go to a concert - check out your local schools, colleges and universities often have student recitals for free or a small admission fee. High school concerts don't usually cost too much to attend.