My sweetheart and I went on a date last night, one of the few that we've been able to fit in lately. We're both busy, and it's even more difficult since we've had Sterling's father living with us. Grandpa Gardner is nearly 95 years old, and his body is very healthy for a man his age. His mind, unfortunately, isn't nearly as healthy, and six years ago it became clear he could no longer live alone, so he came to live with us.
He's changed our lives. We love this man, of course; we just didn't anticipate having to find babysitters at this point in time. (smile) Grandpa needs to have someone watching him all the time, and Sterling has assumed that responsibility wonderfully.
Because Grandpa loves to do errands, Sterling takes his father almost everywhere with him. That means that when I'm in the car, I get to sit in the back seat! Not exactly where I thought I'd be when I'm riding in the car with my husband, but the patience and love Sterling shows his father is inspiring, and I am grateful that we are in a position where we can take care of him. But we aren't as free as we had thought we'd be, so our dates are less frequent than either one of us would like.
Sterling has to go out of town today, and I'm leaving for regionals later this week, so Sterling actually took his father to our friend's house yesterday afternoon; they sometimes watch Grandpa when we have to go out of town. That meant that last night we could go on a date! I actually felt giddy when Sterling suggested it.
The humor in the situation is what we planned for our date. Initially, we talked about dinner and a movie, but then common sense set in. Sterling had several errands he needed to do before leaving town, and I hadn't been to the hospital to visit my dad yet. So for our "hot" date we had our glasses tightened, stopped at Wal-Mart, and visited Dad. We did manage to fit in a delicious dinner. And in between it all, I got to sit in the front seat with Sterling and hold his hand. That was enough to make it a date for me!