Day 162: Fly Girl and Fly Boy Fly Together

On Day 162, I flew with boyfriend!

This doesn't sound so crazy, but it is when you realize that Mark and I have been to New York, Ohio, North Carolina, Florida (twice), New Orleans, Alabama, Guatemala, Belize, Mexico and more...without ever setting foot on a plane together, you'd realize that it's almost a feat of travel! While we could have gotten to Portland, OR in the car, we were trying to maximize that ever-coveted PTO...and flights were like, $175 round trip, which, with the price of gas, is cheaper than driving!

Both looking scary but hey, we're on a plane!

Day 159: "You Look So Natural, No One Can Tell..."

Mark has recently started growing a goatee, mostly, I think, just to know what he looks like with facial hair. Sadly, his facial hair is on the blond side, meaning no one can really tell he's growing it.

I had the brilliant idea to color it just a little darker, so that it can be noticed, and you know what? The sucker obliged...and I dyed Mark's goatee "Just for Men" Light Brown.

He's a "Light Brown"

I am a master mixer...

Far too excited to be putting chemicals on my boyfriend's face

Full Coverage

He's darker, I'm freaking THRILLED

And that's really how it went. I was pretty scared he was going to have a horrendous allergic reaction and subsequently break up with me. However, none of that was to be had, and after following the instructions and waiting five minutes, he was noticeably darker.

It actually got a LOT darker throughout the rest of the night, and he's firmly matched to his head hair shade.

WAY.TOO.MUCH.FUN.

Day 152: My Funny Valentine

Mark and I decided that for this Valentine's Day we'd go simple. No fancy restaurants, no exorbitantly priced boxes of chocolates. Instead, we'd make dinner together, eat by candlelight, rent a Redbox movie ("Date Night" with Steve Carrell and Tina Fey), and call it a night. No pretense, just small demonstrations of love and togetherness.

I appreciated this idea a LOT, but I still had to get Mark something for Valentine's Day! Even just the tiniest thing. I went through a whole bunch of ideas that I really liked, that definitely didn't fit into our plan. Couples massage! Complete series of a TV show we watch! Celebrity chef cookbooks!

Too much money...an ostentatious show for a simple event. I already knew I was going to make dessert, so I headed over to Kroger, where I thought I'd find inspiration too. The first thing I saw walking in was a grown woman carrying a balloon, and I knew that was going to be right for me. Corny? Hell yes. Sweet? You betcha. Inexpensive? Done. New thing? Yes, in fact. I had never bought someone a balloon before!

Happy Belated V-Day all! With love from Mark and his balloon.