This may seem a little rushed and insincere but I've been thinking about this blog for a long time. I wanted to get my feelings and interpretation of what happened written down before I forgot. Anything I say in this blog is not meant to hurt Robert's reputation but only my side of what was happening in our marriage. I still value him and think he will do wonderful things, it's unfortunate we can't accomplish these things together but I know it is for the best that we go our separate ways now.
Our marriage has never been easy. We fought a lot, emotions ran high, things were always said to hurt each other and we even contemplated divorce back in July (only 3 months into marriage) Robert and I talked and we decided to give it until December to see if things would improve. The hard part of Robert's sanity is that it depended on him 100%. It depended on if he took his medication correctly, if he ate correctly and unfortunately if he viewed pornography. If any of these things were off I had the Hyde version of Robert rather than Jekyll. I am not saying our divorce is all Robert's fault. That would be crazy! I had to guard myself from Robert. I was having frequent anxiety attacks about his debt and our budget. This made me start to distance myself from him. I loved him but I loved him differently than a wife should love her husband. I started to see him as a client rather than a lover. I avoided going home when he was Hyde because I didn't want to deal with it. I ran away from my problems rather than facing them. Over time our marriage got harder and my anxiety worsened. I truly felt as if I had no other choice when it came to divorce. I had missed work because of anxiety attacks. School was on the back burner because I didn't have the mental capacity to deal with it.
I kept the idea of divorce to myself for a while. Robert could tell something was off with me. He started to show his love more and say "I love you" more than he had in the past. His ideas for improvement were flowing and he was constantly telling me about how he was going to do better. I read up on divorce. I prayed about it. Then eventually I talked to my bishop about the idea. My bishop sat and listened as I poured my heart to him. I told him of our struggles and my broken heart. He told me that he wouldn't say if it was a good idea or bad but that he would support me either way. He understood the pain of mental illness and it was a relief to discuss our problems with someone.
That night I went home and Robert was leaving for work. I didn't know how or when I would tell him but I knew I needed to. I was sitting in my car trying not to cry when Robert knocked on my window. He said sweet things told me how much he loved me and once again started talking about the improvements he wanted to make. All I could say was "You need to stop because I just talked to our bishop about getting a divorce." It just came out I couldn't stop it. Telling someone I cared about that I couldn't be with them anymore was one of the hardest things I have ever done. We cried and figured out our solution, I would move out the next day and he could stay in the apartment with Kelvin. The rest of the night I was worried about him at work and I didn't sleep.
The next day as I ugly cried I packed up clothes and left the apartment.
A week later we went to the courthouse and filed our divorce papers. Another week later the judge signed our petition to waive the mandatory 90 day cool off period. That day I turned in our final divorce papers and Friday February 28, 2015 my marriage was officially over.
There are a lot of emotions running through me constantly. I feel relief, sorrow, happiness, anxiety, anger, fear and just about every other emotion in the dictionary. Every time I see Robert I just ache and wish things could have been different. We are still in love with each other but our marriage was hurting our progression and happiness rather than helping it. I am so glad I was able to spend the past year of my life with him. I think that this marriage was something we both had to go through and we have learned a lot from it.
I am so grateful for my family and friends. They have helped me so much! I don't know how I would handle this without them. My parents have been incredibly supportive and have let me move back into their house while I am still paying for Robert's apartment. My parents have watched me cry and hugged me. My friends have done everything they can to help. I am so grateful for everyone who has helped me.
Now... what does a 24 year old LDS divorced girl do? I guess I get to find out.
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Thursday, January 15, 2015
My Two Husbands
No I'm not a polygamist. As I mentioned before Robert has bi-polar. Friday night we went on a date and I'll just tell you what it was like to go on a date with my two husbands.
I feel like most of the time I can control him but occasionally I can't. Especially if he is off his medications. Unfortunately for me he was off his medications most of the past week. This mean extra mood swings, higher highs and lower lows. Anything can set him off. It can be as small as a nudge to a weird look to who knows what.
Friday night Robert picked me up from work around 5 and we headed over the mall. Earlier in the day we had decided we wanted to see Taken 3 that night around 6. I also had to meet Carmen at the mall to give her something. On our way to the mall we had to stop by Chase to withdraw some money. On our way to Chase Robert's driving was terrifying. I thought we were going to get T-boned pulling across University Avenue into the bank. I was freaking out and told Robert that wasn't safe. His response was to drive erratically through the bank parking lot. (ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME!?) Of course I freaked out even more about that because we were in a bank parking lot. You should not be an idiot in the bank parking lot. So then he was pouting on our drive over to the mall. Once we got there I said "get out." He didn't want to go on our date anymore. He was upset and wanted to go home. I told him I had to bring something to Carmen so we had to go inside anyway. Once we got inside he said "I'm getting a boba tea." For whatever reason I decided I would let him. We got our smoothies and walked around and waited for Carmen to get there. (She was at the other mall...oops) Life was fine while we got those and waited around for Carmen. I let him take the lead on stores we went to because I could tell it would be a great night...(sarcasm) We were there for an hour before Carmen showed up so I decided we could get something small for dinner. I got a hot dog on a stick, he got cheese on a stick and we shared funnel cake fries. Eating everything was still great. Robert was still nice Robert. He kept asking to buy a drink and I repeatedly told him we already had our boba drinks so we didn't need more drinks but he could go ask for a cup of water. He said doing that was embarrassing so he didn't want to do that. Finally Carmen showed up and we talked for less than five minutes. Within those few minutes I said something to Carmen that set Robert off. We were talking about budgeting and Robert's debt and apparently he did not like that. When I grabbed his hand to walk with him to the movie he decided he didn't want to hold my hand. "I'm not a child I don't need you to walk me!" Once again I was on a date with bad Robert. We walked into the theater he kept complaining about being thirsty. I told him to ask for a water. We started in one line and I suggested moving to another because it wasn't moving. We moved and then our previous line started moving so Robert was not happy with me. We ordered his water and he asked for the biggest size. Guess what they charge you $5 for the big size! WHAT THE HECK?! So we got him a water. He was being really rude and trying to set me off. Unfortunately when he gets like this I just treat him like a patient, not a husband. I try to distance myself emotionally and just treat him like a child or something. He kept pushing and pushing and cussing and just saying rude things. I told him I would not go to the movie until he apologized. He refused so I told him I would go return my ticket and go home, he could see it himself. He freaked out and grabbed my arm and told me I had to go to the movie. He gave an insincere apology. I had to go to the bathroom still so I went to the bathroom with him still yelling at me to go to the movie. While I took my time in the bathroom I got a text saying something similar to "babe please come to the movie. I'm sorry. I don't like to see movies alone" I went into the theater and all of a sudden I was with good Robert again. He tried to cuddle me. But unfortunately I don't compartmentalize good/bad Robert. I hold grudges. When he switches and apologizes he doesn't realize what he has said, he doesn't realize what he had done to hurt me. After the movie he was still good Robert.
This is a night in my life with a bi-polar husband. You can imagine the amount of tears I go through.
I feel like most of the time I can control him but occasionally I can't. Especially if he is off his medications. Unfortunately for me he was off his medications most of the past week. This mean extra mood swings, higher highs and lower lows. Anything can set him off. It can be as small as a nudge to a weird look to who knows what.
Friday night Robert picked me up from work around 5 and we headed over the mall. Earlier in the day we had decided we wanted to see Taken 3 that night around 6. I also had to meet Carmen at the mall to give her something. On our way to the mall we had to stop by Chase to withdraw some money. On our way to Chase Robert's driving was terrifying. I thought we were going to get T-boned pulling across University Avenue into the bank. I was freaking out and told Robert that wasn't safe. His response was to drive erratically through the bank parking lot. (ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME!?) Of course I freaked out even more about that because we were in a bank parking lot. You should not be an idiot in the bank parking lot. So then he was pouting on our drive over to the mall. Once we got there I said "get out." He didn't want to go on our date anymore. He was upset and wanted to go home. I told him I had to bring something to Carmen so we had to go inside anyway. Once we got inside he said "I'm getting a boba tea." For whatever reason I decided I would let him. We got our smoothies and walked around and waited for Carmen to get there. (She was at the other mall...oops) Life was fine while we got those and waited around for Carmen. I let him take the lead on stores we went to because I could tell it would be a great night...(sarcasm) We were there for an hour before Carmen showed up so I decided we could get something small for dinner. I got a hot dog on a stick, he got cheese on a stick and we shared funnel cake fries. Eating everything was still great. Robert was still nice Robert. He kept asking to buy a drink and I repeatedly told him we already had our boba drinks so we didn't need more drinks but he could go ask for a cup of water. He said doing that was embarrassing so he didn't want to do that. Finally Carmen showed up and we talked for less than five minutes. Within those few minutes I said something to Carmen that set Robert off. We were talking about budgeting and Robert's debt and apparently he did not like that. When I grabbed his hand to walk with him to the movie he decided he didn't want to hold my hand. "I'm not a child I don't need you to walk me!" Once again I was on a date with bad Robert. We walked into the theater he kept complaining about being thirsty. I told him to ask for a water. We started in one line and I suggested moving to another because it wasn't moving. We moved and then our previous line started moving so Robert was not happy with me. We ordered his water and he asked for the biggest size. Guess what they charge you $5 for the big size! WHAT THE HECK?! So we got him a water. He was being really rude and trying to set me off. Unfortunately when he gets like this I just treat him like a patient, not a husband. I try to distance myself emotionally and just treat him like a child or something. He kept pushing and pushing and cussing and just saying rude things. I told him I would not go to the movie until he apologized. He refused so I told him I would go return my ticket and go home, he could see it himself. He freaked out and grabbed my arm and told me I had to go to the movie. He gave an insincere apology. I had to go to the bathroom still so I went to the bathroom with him still yelling at me to go to the movie. While I took my time in the bathroom I got a text saying something similar to "babe please come to the movie. I'm sorry. I don't like to see movies alone" I went into the theater and all of a sudden I was with good Robert again. He tried to cuddle me. But unfortunately I don't compartmentalize good/bad Robert. I hold grudges. When he switches and apologizes he doesn't realize what he has said, he doesn't realize what he had done to hurt me. After the movie he was still good Robert.
This is a night in my life with a bi-polar husband. You can imagine the amount of tears I go through.
Sunday, December 28, 2014
Juicing
Today Robert and I started juicing. We are following Joe's 5 Day Plan. This morning for breakfast we had a juice called Sunrise it consisted of 4 carrots, 2 oranges and 1 beet. It was surprisingly delicious. That one was EASY compared to what I just had to drink for lunch. They call it Green Lemonade.... It has spinach, kale, cucumber, lemon, apple and celery. I was doing alright until I tasted the celery. That stuff was potent. I am not looking forward to my next green juice. I am looking forward to the Pear Pie Delight and the Un-Beet-Able drinks. Those sound amazing. Maybe I'll adjust the recipes a little bit. I'll still have all the ingredients but.... less celery. Why must my body reject healthy foods? Why can't I not like chocolate or something? Speaking of chocolate oh my gosh am I craving everything. Chocolate, caramel, CHIPS, we have some yuca in the fridge that I have to eat or it will go to waste. Maybe instead of my second green for the day I'll have a meal of yuca. That's okay right? It's still a vegetable? No one can be perfect. I can have one meal occasionally, the point is to not go crazy eating everything in sight. That's completely doable especially since I'm drinking so much juice.
So as I'm typing this Robert just came in with some Agave Nectar which is okay to put in the juice. I just took a couple hits of it. Oh my gosh sweet deliciousness.
So as I'm typing this Robert just came in with some Agave Nectar which is okay to put in the juice. I just took a couple hits of it. Oh my gosh sweet deliciousness.
Sunday, November 30, 2014
Boston has a brother/cousin/who knows
A couple months ago Robert and I went to Ruff Patch Rescue and found an adorable puppy. We knew he would be a great addition to my dad's family but we would have to train him first. (Ain't no way mom was going to put up with him pooping on her floor!) Anyway, dad named him Kelvin. Robert named him Kelvin Juan Carlos Bone. (Boston also has a spanish middle name Boston Luzberto Bone Enke funny story about that...) Dad is allergic to Kelvin but Carmen is in love with him. We hope he will be able to go to my parents soon but while he is with us we are loving on him constantly. He is so cute and fluffy and just full of love.
Tuesday, November 25, 2014
Well that makes all the difference
I remember the day I was officially diagnosed with depression. I went to the doctor, went to pick up my prescription and went home and cried. I cried for a loooooong time. I turned my phone off and ignored my family and friends for hours. Later that night I went to the temple on a date with Brandon. (Remember those days) When I finally turned on my phone I had a hundred missed calls from my family and my friends worried about me.
From what I can remember I first had symptoms of depression when I was 12. My family probably just attributed it to being in a new environment. My family moved quite a few times that year, Washington to Oregon, Oregon to Utah, Utah to Oregon, Oregon to Utah and finally back to Oregon. It was a rough year. If you talk to my friends they can tell you that first move to Utah was really when the depression hit. I remember it being the second Utah move that triggered it. I stopped going to school, I didn't want to go to church, I had a sprained ankle so school was even more challenging and we were living with my Aunt in her RV parked on the side of her house. It was not a good time in my life. The days I skipped school were spent babysitting my cousin's 3 kids which I actually really enjoyed.
After moving back to Oregon and my life getting back to "normal" my depression kind of settled and I really just became an Eeyore. Not only was I experiencing depression but boy oh boy was I hormonal. My mood swings were horrible. I was up and down and down and up and it was like a roller coaster.
It wasn't until 2012 that I finally decided to go and get diagnosed and that day will always live in my memory.
Robert's experience being diagnosed with Bi-Polar was very similar. He wanted to just be alone but I'm a mean wife and made him hang out with me. He did use it as an excuse for everything. "I want to get frozen pizza. I'm Bi-Polar! I want ____! I'm Bi-Polar!" I shouldn't laugh about it but it was rather funny that he did that.
Robert always knew there was a high chance he would be diagnosed but the day it became official I'm sure will always be ingrained in his memory.
From what I can remember I first had symptoms of depression when I was 12. My family probably just attributed it to being in a new environment. My family moved quite a few times that year, Washington to Oregon, Oregon to Utah, Utah to Oregon, Oregon to Utah and finally back to Oregon. It was a rough year. If you talk to my friends they can tell you that first move to Utah was really when the depression hit. I remember it being the second Utah move that triggered it. I stopped going to school, I didn't want to go to church, I had a sprained ankle so school was even more challenging and we were living with my Aunt in her RV parked on the side of her house. It was not a good time in my life. The days I skipped school were spent babysitting my cousin's 3 kids which I actually really enjoyed.
After moving back to Oregon and my life getting back to "normal" my depression kind of settled and I really just became an Eeyore. Not only was I experiencing depression but boy oh boy was I hormonal. My mood swings were horrible. I was up and down and down and up and it was like a roller coaster.
It wasn't until 2012 that I finally decided to go and get diagnosed and that day will always live in my memory.
Robert's experience being diagnosed with Bi-Polar was very similar. He wanted to just be alone but I'm a mean wife and made him hang out with me. He did use it as an excuse for everything. "I want to get frozen pizza. I'm Bi-Polar! I want ____! I'm Bi-Polar!" I shouldn't laugh about it but it was rather funny that he did that.
Robert always knew there was a high chance he would be diagnosed but the day it became official I'm sure will always be ingrained in his memory.
Why is it such a BIG deal to be diagnosed?
Is it because it is an illness that has a negative stigma?
Is it because once you have it you'll always have it?
What do you think?
If you are reading this and you have also been diagnosed with a mental illness did you have a similar experience?
Wednesday, November 5, 2014
Depression, ADHD and Bi-Polar Oh My!
Well my life is no picnic. As you know from my previous blog I am in quite the roller coaster marriage. As we battle with addiction daily we are also battling with each of our mental illnesses. If any of you have ever dealt with mental illness from a loved one you know it is difficult. Realizing you need new medications is probably one of the worst times along with transitioning to new ones.
Before I go too far into our relationship you should probably know what exactly we are dealing with .
Robert has a couple mental illnesses he takes medication for ADHD and depression. His mother is bi-polar and he is starting to show symptoms of bi-polar, not strictly depression. This is extremely hard on him because of the relationship he has had with bi-polar through his mother. He has had to deal with her highs and lows his whole life. Her lows aren't just laying in a bed in a comatose state. Her lows are terrifying. (I have have the pleasure of experiencing a couple during our marriage. Usually she just yells at Robert and Shawn but one time she told me she was going to kill Boston and that had basically ruined any chance at a relationship with her)
I take medication for depression and in my opinion it is pretty much managed. I know I do have some low days still but those are usually because of outside sources. BUT to get an honest opinion you'll have to talk to Robert.
Lately Robert and I have been at each other's throats almost daily. I'll go days without wanting to kiss him (but I do because I'm nice and I know I really do want to it's just my brain that doesn't) because I just don't want to even think about dealing with our problems or be in the same room. We will fight over something as stupid as not replacing the toilet paper. Every day I wonder when we get home if I'll have to deal with Robert exploding on Boston (our dog) or if he will just lay in bed and not get up or if he will be cleaning like a maniac. Those are Robert's basic moods. I'd like to think I'm pretty consistent but I know my moods are based off of what he does. If he is angry, I get angry. If he is sad, I just go do my own thing. If he is cleaning like a maniac, ....I don't know what I do in this situation.
Trying to figure out our groove is hard. Trying to figure out how we need to communicate in the various situations we get ourselves into is one of the harder things we go through. We will yell at each other then five minutes later just be fine and in love and cuddling.
Also I love this new song and the fact that it mentions bipolar.
http://youtu.be/cqqqV50zaAc
Before I go too far into our relationship you should probably know what exactly we are dealing with .
Robert has a couple mental illnesses he takes medication for ADHD and depression. His mother is bi-polar and he is starting to show symptoms of bi-polar, not strictly depression. This is extremely hard on him because of the relationship he has had with bi-polar through his mother. He has had to deal with her highs and lows his whole life. Her lows aren't just laying in a bed in a comatose state. Her lows are terrifying. (I have have the pleasure of experiencing a couple during our marriage. Usually she just yells at Robert and Shawn but one time she told me she was going to kill Boston and that had basically ruined any chance at a relationship with her)
I take medication for depression and in my opinion it is pretty much managed. I know I do have some low days still but those are usually because of outside sources. BUT to get an honest opinion you'll have to talk to Robert.
Lately Robert and I have been at each other's throats almost daily. I'll go days without wanting to kiss him (but I do because I'm nice and I know I really do want to it's just my brain that doesn't) because I just don't want to even think about dealing with our problems or be in the same room. We will fight over something as stupid as not replacing the toilet paper. Every day I wonder when we get home if I'll have to deal with Robert exploding on Boston (our dog) or if he will just lay in bed and not get up or if he will be cleaning like a maniac. Those are Robert's basic moods. I'd like to think I'm pretty consistent but I know my moods are based off of what he does. If he is angry, I get angry. If he is sad, I just go do my own thing. If he is cleaning like a maniac, ....I don't know what I do in this situation.
Trying to figure out our groove is hard. Trying to figure out how we need to communicate in the various situations we get ourselves into is one of the harder things we go through. We will yell at each other then five minutes later just be fine and in love and cuddling.
Also I love this new song and the fact that it mentions bipolar.
http://youtu.be/cqqqV50zaAc
Monday, August 25, 2014
Robert's Birthday
You know, I don't really mean to brag but I am by far the best wife ever. Not really but I think when it comes to birthdays I really am pretty awesome. This year Robert turned 27. I asked him what he normally does for his birthday and he said he usually goes out to eat and then he goes to a movie. I thought that was very sad since he normally does it himself but I thought he should keep the tradition alive. His birthday was on a Friday which was super convenient and made it possible for my awesome weekend plans. Keep in mind everything was a complete surprise for him. Also keep in mind he has been calorie counting and loving it so he was constantly on MyFitnessPal putting everything he ate in.
Friday night we went to Five Star BBQ. Robert and Shawn (my father in law) are obsessed with their ribs and every time Robert and I have gone they have been sold out. I invited Shawn, Chelsea and Michael and my parents to dinner there. Unfortunately Michael got caught up at work so they weren't able to make it but it was nice having our families there. My parents were babysitting my brother's son Claytin and dropped him off during our meal and decided to stay for some food so we had some surprise visitors. After we ate I took Robert to get some Rita's Italian Ice. As Robert chowed down on that and got a brain freeze I drove to the movie theater. The Giver came out on his birthday and I had purchased tickets the night before. When we went to see Divergent we saw the trailer for The Giver and we were both excited. Well he was excited and told me it was a great book and easy read. I decided to read it and then I was excited and anxiously awaiting the movie. During the movie we talked to each other about things we liked and didn't like. But at the end of the movie is when the real discussion began. We both decided we enjoyed it and thought the elements that weren't in the book made it so it would be an interesting movie and able to compete with Divergent and Hunger Games.
Saturday morning I woke him up and told him it was time for him to shower and get ready. Robert is really difficult to wake up. Not as bad as my sister's husband but still pretty bad. He is super grumpy and does not like his sleep being disturbed. However since I had prepared him it wasn't too bad. Robert got ready and we headed to my parents to drop off Boston (this made Robert realize we weren't coming home... and I guess the fact that I made him pack a suitcase kinda gave it away...hmmm) The whole time he was asking, "where are we going? What are we doing! I just want to know!" After we left my parents I gave Robert his "Choose your own Adventure" Book.
The first choice was, "dive into fun" or "explore our backyard." He chose the first so we went to the Aquarium. It was our first time going to the new building. We knew we wanted to take our time and really enjoy it. We went and saw a 4D movie about Coral Reefs which was pretty beautiful and enjoyed the touch pools and petting sharks and stink rays. It was awesome. The shark tunnel is pretty cool too! (Nothing compared to the shark tank at the Point Defiance Zoo in Seattle but pretty close)
After the aquarium he had the option of "get lucky" or "peel it off one layer at a time" He choose to peel it off one layer at a time. This mean lunch was going to be at the Copper Onion in SLC. I asked one of my friends what the two best lunch spots were and she suggested those two so I figured why not try one out. Our lunch was AMAZING. I got a French Dip sandwich and Robert got a BLT. I don't know what made them so wonderful but they were. Totally worth the trip!
After lunch he had the choices of "choose your own" or "travel far far far far far far far far far far far far far away." He chose the second and we ended up at the Planetarium. It's awesome that we have a free planetarium here in SLC. It's not amazing but it is pretty entertaining. They had changed it since last time I went and had machines where you could make wind tunnels. We probably had way too much fun doing that.
Next option, "do something cheesy" or "enjoy something sweet." Robert chose cheesy and we ended up at the cheesecake factory where we shared a slice of cheesecake totaling 1700 calories. Good thing we split it and we did a lot of walking. The seating at this restaurant is way creepy/uncomfortable. You are basically sharing a table with everyone by you. We ended up sitting next to a couple traveling from Australia. It was really fun we talked to them for a good thirty minutes and probably annoyed our waiter because we were too busy talking for either of us to order. After we ate our cheesecake we strolled around the mall and played in the Windows store.
It was 4:30 so I gave him another option, "fall in love again" or "keep the party going." He decided to fall in love again so we went to our hotel. I booked us the October room at the Armstrong Mansion Bed and Breakfast in SLC. It was incredibly cheesy but wonderful at the same time. We had a large tub with jets, a king size bed and wifi. It was great. We decided to relax a bit before dinner and we watched a movie and cuddled.
The final decision was Rodizio Grill or Christopher's Steak House. I know I had clever sayings but now I don't remember what they were. We ended up going to Rodizio and enjoying endless amounts of delicious Brazilian style meat and salad bar. We love the Rodizio in SLC it is a million times better than the one we have here in American Fork. Robert got his free slice of birthday flan and they sang to him in Portuguese.
We were supposed to have a last decision but we were too full and tired from our busy day to do anything else.
We went back to our hotel and took a bubble bath and relaxed. We both fell asleep incredibly fast that night. In the morning we were greeted with a buffet style breakfast. There was fruit salad, quiche, apple strudel, homemade granola, raspberry trifle and cinnamon rolls. It was amazing. Totally worth it.
After breakfast we got ready for the day and continued north to Lagoon. Robert loves roller coasters and I am okay with them but not totally thrilled. We got there shortly after it opened and walked onto a lot of rides. Unfortunately, we did not fit on some together (which we are working on and will fix before next year) but we still had fun. We left the park around 4:30 after spending time in the water park section. We were so tired after doing water slides.
We drove home and picked up Boston from my parents. We arrived just in time for dinner at their house. We enjoyed a lovely Cuban meal and then continued on our way home. Robert slept like a baby that night but of course after being the sun all day I ended up sick. Thankfully, I was able to take Monday off to recover.
Overall we had a wonderful birthday weekend and Robert said he is already planning for my birthday next year to make sure it is better than his. I set the bar high for the future but that's okay birthdays only happen once a year. :-)
Friday night we went to Five Star BBQ. Robert and Shawn (my father in law) are obsessed with their ribs and every time Robert and I have gone they have been sold out. I invited Shawn, Chelsea and Michael and my parents to dinner there. Unfortunately Michael got caught up at work so they weren't able to make it but it was nice having our families there. My parents were babysitting my brother's son Claytin and dropped him off during our meal and decided to stay for some food so we had some surprise visitors. After we ate I took Robert to get some Rita's Italian Ice. As Robert chowed down on that and got a brain freeze I drove to the movie theater. The Giver came out on his birthday and I had purchased tickets the night before. When we went to see Divergent we saw the trailer for The Giver and we were both excited. Well he was excited and told me it was a great book and easy read. I decided to read it and then I was excited and anxiously awaiting the movie. During the movie we talked to each other about things we liked and didn't like. But at the end of the movie is when the real discussion began. We both decided we enjoyed it and thought the elements that weren't in the book made it so it would be an interesting movie and able to compete with Divergent and Hunger Games.
Saturday morning I woke him up and told him it was time for him to shower and get ready. Robert is really difficult to wake up. Not as bad as my sister's husband but still pretty bad. He is super grumpy and does not like his sleep being disturbed. However since I had prepared him it wasn't too bad. Robert got ready and we headed to my parents to drop off Boston (this made Robert realize we weren't coming home... and I guess the fact that I made him pack a suitcase kinda gave it away...hmmm) The whole time he was asking, "where are we going? What are we doing! I just want to know!" After we left my parents I gave Robert his "Choose your own Adventure" Book.
The first choice was, "dive into fun" or "explore our backyard." He chose the first so we went to the Aquarium. It was our first time going to the new building. We knew we wanted to take our time and really enjoy it. We went and saw a 4D movie about Coral Reefs which was pretty beautiful and enjoyed the touch pools and petting sharks and stink rays. It was awesome. The shark tunnel is pretty cool too! (Nothing compared to the shark tank at the Point Defiance Zoo in Seattle but pretty close)
After lunch he had the choices of "choose your own" or "travel far far far far far far far far far far far far far away." He chose the second and we ended up at the Planetarium. It's awesome that we have a free planetarium here in SLC. It's not amazing but it is pretty entertaining. They had changed it since last time I went and had machines where you could make wind tunnels. We probably had way too much fun doing that.
Next option, "do something cheesy" or "enjoy something sweet." Robert chose cheesy and we ended up at the cheesecake factory where we shared a slice of cheesecake totaling 1700 calories. Good thing we split it and we did a lot of walking. The seating at this restaurant is way creepy/uncomfortable. You are basically sharing a table with everyone by you. We ended up sitting next to a couple traveling from Australia. It was really fun we talked to them for a good thirty minutes and probably annoyed our waiter because we were too busy talking for either of us to order. After we ate our cheesecake we strolled around the mall and played in the Windows store.
It was 4:30 so I gave him another option, "fall in love again" or "keep the party going." He decided to fall in love again so we went to our hotel. I booked us the October room at the Armstrong Mansion Bed and Breakfast in SLC. It was incredibly cheesy but wonderful at the same time. We had a large tub with jets, a king size bed and wifi. It was great. We decided to relax a bit before dinner and we watched a movie and cuddled.
The final decision was Rodizio Grill or Christopher's Steak House. I know I had clever sayings but now I don't remember what they were. We ended up going to Rodizio and enjoying endless amounts of delicious Brazilian style meat and salad bar. We love the Rodizio in SLC it is a million times better than the one we have here in American Fork. Robert got his free slice of birthday flan and they sang to him in Portuguese.
We were supposed to have a last decision but we were too full and tired from our busy day to do anything else.
We went back to our hotel and took a bubble bath and relaxed. We both fell asleep incredibly fast that night. In the morning we were greeted with a buffet style breakfast. There was fruit salad, quiche, apple strudel, homemade granola, raspberry trifle and cinnamon rolls. It was amazing. Totally worth it.
After breakfast we got ready for the day and continued north to Lagoon. Robert loves roller coasters and I am okay with them but not totally thrilled. We got there shortly after it opened and walked onto a lot of rides. Unfortunately, we did not fit on some together (which we are working on and will fix before next year) but we still had fun. We left the park around 4:30 after spending time in the water park section. We were so tired after doing water slides.
We drove home and picked up Boston from my parents. We arrived just in time for dinner at their house. We enjoyed a lovely Cuban meal and then continued on our way home. Robert slept like a baby that night but of course after being the sun all day I ended up sick. Thankfully, I was able to take Monday off to recover.
Overall we had a wonderful birthday weekend and Robert said he is already planning for my birthday next year to make sure it is better than his. I set the bar high for the future but that's okay birthdays only happen once a year. :-)
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