Wintertime Pick-Me-Ups

Here's a fact: Winter is much happier when you're in love.

Lots of people say they'd get sick of working with their spouse or significant other, but I loved it! Brandon and I met at work, so I guess we didn't know any different, but it was so much fun to hang out with him and get paid for it. Plus, he's a custodian so he has keys to my room and works later than I do, so I'd often come to work in the morning to find little notes or surprises. Work was so much better with him a part of it.

Early on in our relationship, I was pretty clear about how much I love fresh flowers, and he's been so great about delivering. I really am good with cheap, grocery store bouquets but occasionally he gets a little fancy. This bouquet bloomed forEVER. I don't know what it was, but they were resilient little flowers and they were gorgeous!

National Chocolate Cake Day? I'll see your chocolate cake and raise you chocolate cake topped with cheesecake and a cute boy for company.

In case you were concerned that my heart has room for only one love, don't worry. My Adelina obsession is still alive and well.

Many of our dates included food. This is why losing weight became increasingly harder once we started dating. But when you're dating in the winter, there's only so much you can do inside, you know?

One night when I was at Brandon's grandma's house, she brought us brownies with icing. I liked her right from the start. :) She still feeds us anytime we're over there. She's Superwoman.

Another reason it's hard to lose weight when you're dating - your boyfriend works with you but comes in after you do and will bring you anything you want. Like cheese danish. Or donuts. Or candy bars.

Reason #2987 I fell in love with him: he stood outside in the cold rain to apply new windshield wiper blades for me. I love my car, but I hate taking care of cars in general, so someone who will do it for me? Sold.

My roommate Carrie and our good friend Johnnie got on a cake ball obsession for a while. They both made them several times each, and I don't even know why but I was not sad. Brandon's not a huge sweets person, but there a few sweets that he will always get on board with: donuts, Reese's, and cake balls.

Every January, my sister co-hosts an overnight scrapbooking event. I don't scrapbook a whole lot anymore, but I love going and spending time with my mom and sister a few friends. We eat, talk, and scrapbook! This year, Brandon came to hang out for a little while and met my mom, dad, and sister for the first time.

Our staff went red for the American Heart Association, and this was the first photo Brandon and I ever took together. We kept things pretty quiet at work until we got engaged, so most people had no idea we were together at this time.

Devour Downtown is an event that happens twice a year when restaurants downtown come up with a special menu, usually at a discounted price. Many of the restaurants are still expensive, but it makes some of them within reason. We intended to go to one place...I can't remember what it was called now...but it ended up being more of a bar so we went across the street to MacNiven's, a Scottish restaurant, and it was the best decision ever. Mince 'n' Tatties - essentially stew-like roast beef and potatoes - is my new favorite food. So good!

Funny story about the mince 'n' tatties night: Brandon and I had been talking about marriage for a little while and we'd been trading photos of engagement rings so he could get an idea of what I liked. I'd send him pictures I liked, and he'd send me pictures and I'd say what I did or didn't like about them. We'd been doing this for about a week, but I had no idea he was actually going to buy one right then because we'd talked about waiting a little longer. Anyway, he comes to my house that night to go to dinner, and as we're getting in my car, something on his hand catches the light. So I ask him what that is, and his face goes white. He was wearing the ring! He'd bought one that morning and had put it on his finger because he was afraid he'd lose it, but had forgotten to take it off before he saw me. He was so mad at himself, but I just laughed and laughed. I hadn't really seen the ring - just that it was shiny - so I still had no idea what it looked like, but the whole night I just kept remembering that it was in his pocket and it was so hard to resist looking at!

My boss Kathleen got me hooked on chicken biscuits from Chick fil a and I got Brandon hooked on them, too. He'd often bring me one in the morning when he got to work (remember why it's so hard to lose weight when you're dating?!). For Valentine's Day, they made the biscuits into the shape of hearts. So cute!

The Friday before Valentine's Day, Brandon took the day off, but we had plans to go to dinner that night. When I got to work that morning, though, there were fresh tulips - my favorite - and iced sugar cookies - my other favorite - on my desk. He'd gotten up early and brought them to school and left them on my desk before I got there. Perks of dating a custodian. :) That night we went to dinner at the Eagle's Nest, a restaurant downtown which is at the very top of the Hyatt and rotates slowly so you get a view of the whole city. It was the best Valentine's Day I've ever had, albeit the only Valentine's Day I've ever had a boyfriend. :)