Blown Away

Last night was "Date Night".  Our first "Date Night" in about 4 months, to be exact -- unless you count the night we grilled steak after the kids when to bed and ate alone at our own table {We really need to do that more often...it's much cheaper!}.  We don't go out often because of our budget but when we do we always choose to go out to eat -- a luxury we used to take for granted before we had 2 kids and one income. 

I put on my favorite pair of jeans and my favorite cowl neck, hip length black sweater for the first time since losing almost 8 pounds and I felt fantastic.  The sweater fit better than it ever had and the jeans I love so much {a hand me down pair of $150 jeans from a super stylish friend who didn't need them anymore...woot!} were actually loose.  I felt confident for the first time in a long time, and Patrick made a big deal out of how "amazing" I looked, which made me feel even better!

We chose a restaurant to try weeks ago, and I did my business of planning what to order before I went.  I decided on a wood grilled half chicken with grilled asparagus and knew I would probably end up eating the skin, but I felt like it was the best choice overall.  I figured in some points for a glass of wine or two.  I haven't been drinking since being back on WW because I know it halts my weight loss, so I figured for "Date Night" I could go for it.

I messed myself up by not eating something filling to keep my hunger at bay before we left, I snacked on pepperoni while making my kids their homemade pizza roll ups and had a third cup of coffee to keep myself awake.  I had a glass of wine while getting ready after we put the kids to bed {4 Points} so that I could save money on my second glass at the restaurant, since I usually pay less for a whole bottle than they charge for a glass at a bar!  When we got to the restaurant, there was a 35 minute wait, which I also hadn't planned on {it was 8:30 and we never go out, I figured it would be late enough to get a table right away!  Wrong!}, so Patrick grabbed us a drink while we waited by the roaring fire for our table {4 points}.

At this point I was so hungry and hadn't eaten in hours and the wine was going straight to my head -- which is good for my husband, and not good for my decision making process.  When we got our table, we immediately ordered an appetizer since we were starving -- Tuna Nachos, which sounded amazing, but I didn't figure the "crispy wontons" to be that bad {20 points for 10...wrong, wrong, wrong!} 

It was time to order dinner and I got a field greens salad {6 points for dressing and feta}, and ordered  my wood grilled chicken.  Then the waitress informs me they just "86'd" the wood grilled chicken for the night.  Two glasses of wine down and my decision making process is completely gone, so I opted for the Asiago Crusted Chicken with wilted spinach instead.  CRUSTED CHICKEN would usually tell me that it's covered in breading, but I never had time {or brain cells} to think about that.  I should have gotten the salmon, but chicken made more sense -- duh.  {16 points figured for an 8oz chicken breast with breading and cheese}. 

Two glasses of wine ended up being three glasses of wine -- well, because that's what happens with me and wine when I start on an empty stomach.  {4 points}.

I blew it.  Big time. 

But, it was worth it. 

A romantic evening eating fantastic food next to a roaring fire with my gorgeous (and 10 pounds lighter) husband was worth using every last point I had available for the day and week.  I don't even feel bad about it.  Could I have made better choices? Of course.  Did I learn my lesson about having a back up plan?  For sure.  Will I be more conservative about my wine on the next date night?  No way. :)