a great date

a couple weeks ago my hubby and i got to have a date night.
we went to the only kurdish restaurant in the united states (is that possible??), Babani's in St.Paul. it was really good food, kind of a mixture of greek and indian, leaning on the mediterranean side. we always share our food (the perfect marriage since i have always been dubbed "the nibbler") so we got to try a few things. we started with a really spunky soup - lemon and yogurt, it seemed to hit all the taste buds. the bread came with a side of feta, cucumbers and tomatoes (was really good but would probably be better in the heat of the summer when everything is very ripe and juicy). the kabobs were spicy and full of flavor. i had the kurdish tea and loved it - the strong cardamon flavor was delightful and brought back memories from travels to africa.
i love eating out. i love cooking, but i really appreciating eating food someone else has prepared. sometimes i think i am tired by the time we are eating dinner and i don't necessarily enjoy it like i thought i would.
eating out was always a special treat growing up, and i think i still consider it something special.
part two of our date night was another first, the Minnesota RollerGirls. i remember hearing about the minnesota roller derby a year or so ago and thinking it sounded fun, and a little crazy. i had no idea! the arena was packed (really??!! i couldn't believe that many people knew about it) and fans were on fire! with only four teams, the atmosphere is pretty united and everyone is rooting for all the players. i think that was my favorite part. don't get me wrong, these women are competitive athletes and didn't hesitate to throw an elbow to the chin, but after each bout (match) they would hug each other. i guess that is girls for you! we did get to see a couple fights, but unlike hockey, it was fun! they are wrestling with roller skates on, how serious could it get, really?
there were two bouts and then a half hour concert where all the fans and a lot of the players all hang out on the floor and dance. the band wasn't that great, but how fun is that? little girls wearing roller skates were asking for autographs. moms wearing rollergirl tees were out there dancing alongside teens who were probably on unchaperoned outings with friends. it had a real family feel.
except for the somewhat risque team and player names.

we always think of things we'd like to do, but when we have a free night we rack our brain trying to think of that list. we had a blast and were proud of ourselves for trying something new.