Last night, Stevie and I experienced an explosion of generosity and as I reflect on it this morning, I don't think it's fair to not share.
Sneaky Mother-in-law - Part 1
This story actually begins on Friday night. I was sitting in the living room, nursing T when I got a call. It was Aline, my mother-in-law. As I listened to her sweet sweet offer, I jumped at the chance. Within 20 minutes, she was at my door and I was handing over my fed, burped, clean and happy baby to grandma. She was sending me away to get some time by myself. This would have been a perfect gift in itself. But then she gave me two fifty dollar gift cards to La Senza and told me to buy myself something pretty. AND THEN the icing on the cake: ten dollars in cash because "you'll probably get hungry".
I practically ran out the door (after giving a few simple instructions for T's bedtime). I drove a little faster than I usually do, smiled a little broader than I usually do (in fact, I usually don't smile at all when driving) and arrived at the College Square location with a spring in my step. I enjoyed shopping around and picking out some essentials, including (but not limited to) a heavenly pair of large, stretchy pyjama bottoms. If I'm gonna have more babies, I don't want to make the mistake of buying pjs that don't have some major stretch. Then I purposely picked out a bra that had a tiny little snag so I could shave an extra 10% off the price. I walked out of there having paid a grand total of 97 cents of my own money after the gift cards.
I still had plenty of time so I went to Joe to find some more clothing items that I've been needing. Almost everything I needed was on clearance. Amazing. Then I made a quick stop at Subway and enjoyed a delicious sandwich, saving the other half for later on. When I arrived home, I nursed Theo and put him back to bed. Then I had a hot bath, did my nails and relaxed in my new stretchy jammies before my love came home from work. It was like Christmas morning.
Sneaky Mother-in-law - Part 2
Stevie works on a two-week rotation and works every other weekend. This was his off-weekend so we spent Saturday puttering around the house and hanging out. While sharing some not-so-delicious pizza (I guess it was on sale for a reason) and one-year-old wine (we were given right before I got pregnant), we opened a card from Aline; a late valentine. Inside was a whopping $60! Take THAT breakfast in bed! (I actually loved getting breakfast in bed... I just like to be dramatic). With this surprise cash, we would be able to class up our date a wee bit and hit up downtown. Take THAT Barrhaven! (I actually love Barrhaven... But I had taken time to put on makeup and straighten my hair and I wasn't gonna waste that on Walmart, Timmies and Shoppers).
So off we went, leaving Aline with a bottle of pumped milk in case T woke up while we were gone. We found free parking and got a table at the lovely Vittoria Trattoria, an Italian restaurant in the ByWard market. The place was packed, in wonderful bustling sort of way. It was warm and inviting with delicious smells and a candlelit atmosphere. Stevie got a coffee and I got a cappuccino and we shared a scrumptious molten lava chocolate fudge cake and ice cream. Why didn't I take a picture? I'm sort of afraid of becoming someone who takes pictures of everything cool they eat and do, alerting the world of their classy or exciting lifestyle. I wanted to enjoy the moment for what it was, sharing it only with the one who mattered at that moment, my hot date. Also, I forgot.
We talked and laughed and made awkward eye communication when a couple sat down at the table right beside us. And I mean right beside us. Ours had clearly been a table for four that was suddenly separated when there were two parties of two instead of a party of four. A few inches was all that separated us from them. It took deliberate effort to not eavesdrop on their conversation, especially since the man had a delightful british accent. We held hands and snickered that no one in the room knew we had a baby. Sometimes, since we're young and most people think we're dating, we put our hands in front of our faces or point to the menu with our ring fingers... Just so everyone knows.
We stopped at Sugar Mountain and Stevie practically begged me to pick out a treat. Being the good wife that I am, I picked out a big box of Junior Mints... Makes me want to watch Seinfeld... Then we stopped off at Walmart for a bag of chips and headed home to finish off our date with a movie.
When we got home, Theo had only just woken up. Then, before we said goodbye to grandma-lady, she gave us a movie and some popcorn!
I fed T and we put him to bed, got into our pjs and settled onto the couch to watch our movie. I usually fall asleep during movies, so I decided to quickly wash my face so that I could go right into bed after the movie (also, I was getting a big pimple and I didn't want to give my foundation one more second to infiltrate the pore). While I was doing that, Stevie got our snack ready. As I came down the stairs, Stevie said, "look in the fridge." So I did. It was magically full of our favourite foods! Bacon, cheese, 18% cream, Philadelphia chip dip, milk, almonds, cranberry juice, real maple syrup and asparagus (I love asparagus). "...And the freezer", Stevie added. Ice cream, all kinds of frozen fruits and... is that... salmon (I love salmon)?! "...And the pantry" he added again. Chips, Oreos, and peanut butter. Aline knows how much Stevie likes and how quickly we go through peanut butter. Wow. We were giddy.
This morning, Theo was extremely snotty and had a cough so we decided that him and I would stay home from church. Stevie was leading worship so he went alone. While I was making my coffee (with 18% cream, thank you very much), I noticed a brand new cd of baby lullabies left beside the boom box. I also noticed that the dirty dishes I had left in the sink yesterday were clean and neatly piled up on the counter. At first I thought that Stevie had done it before leaving for church... But the fact that they weren't put away made me suspicious. I deduced it must have been another act of Aline, the sneaky mother-in-law!
Am I lucky? I don't think luck has anything do to with this. Am I fortunate? I think that would be an understatement. Am I blessed? Abundantly. I am convinced that God gives great gifts through great people. Thank you to Aline for paying it forward. Thank you for your thoughtful, generous and sacrificial gifts of time and resources to bless us. Free babysitting would have been enough, but you took it like 20 steps further. We are grateful!
If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! - Matthew 7:11