Today, Judy shares 7 great suburban spots for date night (hey, did you know it’s Date Your Mate Month?):

When I was pregnant, I fully expected that after the baby arrived my husband and I would still enjoy date nights at fancy restaurants in the city. In reality, three years into parenting, it’s proven a real challenge for us to get out, particularly since we both work full-time, want to spend our non-work hours with our little man, and feel uncomfortable overtaxing my parents (our only babysitters at present).

The result is that regular date nights are just not part of our routine. And I know we’re not alone. My mom group had an entire conversation on the topic of how we can all carve out a little more kid-free time for ourselves and our marriages. Since most of us with kids live in the 'burbs and don't always have time to trek into Boston for a night out, I wanted to share ideas for some great suburban spots for your next date night.

1. AquiTaine (Dedham). In the mood for French cuisine? AquiTaine has a very reasonably-priced “Date Night, Dinner, and a Movie Promo” which includes dinner and movie passes for Showcase Cinema de Luxe Legacy Place, available Sunday through Wednesday, 4pm to close. The warm roasted beet salad is delightful, as is the shopping at Legacy Place.

2. The Cottage (Wellesley). I love the open and airy space, streams of natural light (because let’s be honest -- our date “nights” often happen during the day), calming colors, and ocean decor of The Cottage. If you’re a fan of seafood, you’ll want to try the sesame ahi tuna nachos and granola-encrusted mahi mahi.

3. BOKX 109 American Prime (Newton). Located at Hotel Indigo, BOKX 109 American Prime offers a trendy steakhouse option with exceptionally high quality food and service. Consider a daytime date in the summer lying out by their South Beach style rooftop pool. With fire pits and cozy private cabanas, it’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen in Massachusetts.

4. Blue Ginger (Wellesley). Asian fusion at its best lives in the heart of Wellesley. Dining here always feels like a special occasion. Plus, who can resist the chance to see celebrity chef Ming Tsai, frequently spotted in-house and engaging with patrons?

5. The Met Club (Chestnut Hill; also Natick and Dedham). If you’re looking for a high-end steak house in the Newton-Brookline area, this is the place to go. Warm, sophisticated, and upscale, we appreciate the quiet, calm atmosphere, where we can actually engage in conversation and hear every word. Complimentary valet parking in this area is nice a bonus.

6. Capitol Grille (Burlington). It may not be the trendiest place around, but you can’t go wrong with Capitol Grille. When we don’t want to take a gamble on a new place, we head here knowing they will deliver a top-quality dining experience every time. You might not think to order fries at a place like this, but trust me, you won’t regret trying their parmesan truffle fries (or the lobster mac and cheese).

7. Bar Louie (Foxboro). Comfort food and jeans more your style? Conveniently located in Patriot Place, Bar Louie is a great option when you’re looking for a casual, laid back night out in an upbeat, lively atmosphere. There’s also roof deck seating in the summer which offers a pretty sweet view at sunset.

Have other suburban favorites? We’d love to hear your favorite suburban date night spots in the comments below!

Image credits: per linked websites above

About 8,171 unexpected things have happened in the 8 years since starting this blog and one of the big ones was writing Minimalist Parenting. Another one was being nominated for two Iris Awards in the categories of Game Changer (O.M.G.) and Philanthropic Work (for our #HelpWomenAtRisk campaign). To attend the award ceremony this past weekend, see the company in which we were nominated (see the images below...again, O.M.G.), and celebrate among our industry was such an incredible honor.

Asha and I feel so much love and gratitude, and as a follow up to the Iris Awards and in honor of Mother's Day we wanted to offer a token of our appreciation via giving away 5 copies of Minimalist Parenting. Because part of the minimalist parenting journey involves reorienting your life so that you are in the lens again and we'd love to help a few of you get there!

All you need to do is enter via Rafflecopter below and all that's involved is commenting on this blog post. Easy peasy. Just make sure you fill out the Rafflecopter widget since we're using it for easy admin to collect entries on both Boston Mamas and Parent Hacks.

Thank you so much for supporting us on this journey. We wouldn't be here without you. Truly.

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Happy Monday everyone! What an incredible weekend it was at Mom 2.0 Summit -- so inspiring and amazing to connect with my digital tribe. I'm definitely in recovery mode today; after I finished all of my professional responsibilities I immediately got sick! Anyway, I'm looking forward to a good week and wanted to kick it off with this roundup of things to do via the Weekly Blueprint. Enjoy!

May 5: The last  in a series of French films at the Belmont World Film Festival. (Belmont)

May 5: Free access to the farm for families with special needs. (Lincoln)

May 6: ASD friendly afternoon at the museum. (Acton)

May 6: Guided toddler hikes begin. (Hingham, Norwell)

May 6: The opportunity to create some sunflower magic. (Lincoln)

May 7: Everything you need for baby at the Drool Baby Expo. (Boston)

May 7: Get cooking with Chop Chop Magazine. (Wellesley)

May 8 - 11: Beauty and the Beast on the puppet show stage. (Brookline)

May 9: DIY Mother’s Day card and papermaking. (Acton)

May 9 - 25: Boston International Children’s Film Festival. (Boston)

May 9: Cinco de Mayo fiesta and fundraiser. (Brookline)

May 9: Mother’s Day story time. (Cambridge)

Image credit: Brookline Arts Center

Happy Friday everyone! I'm posting from Mom 2.0 Summit this morning, where I'm wearing my hats as a consultant (helping a client with their conference presence), blogger (I'll be speaking on the state of the blogging union), and author (Asha and my work was nominated for two Iris Awards!). Life truly is a gift! Meanwhile, I wanted to share 20 event picks for your weekend; have a happy one!

1. Find out what it’s like to be a real scientist. (Acton)

2. Show everyone what family means to you. (Boston)

3. Celebrate May. (Boston)

4. The fourth is strong at the zoo. (Boston)

5. Support the zoo Zootopia event. (Boston)

6. The Yankee Peddler takes the puppet stage. (Brookline)

7. 31st annual May Fair in Harvard Square. (Cambridge)

8. May the fourth be with you this Star Wars Day. (Easton)

9. Half price admission to deCordova Sculpture Park. (Lincoln)

10. The Alphabet Rockers in the house. (Natick)

11. Parent Talk Used Clothing, Toy & Equipment sale. (Needham)

12. Family day at the Bird Banding Station. (Newburyport)

13. MA Poetry Festival at PEM. (Salem)

14. Ben Rudnick show to benefit Pan Mass Challenge. (Salem)

15. Somerville Open Studios. (Somerville)

16. Masters of Flight, Birds of Prey show opens. (Stoneham)

17. Picnic on Perkins Island. (Topsfield) 

18. Family nature puppet show. (Topsfield)

19. A celebration of preemies and their amazing families. (Waltham)

20. Saturday nature play. (Worcester)

Image credit: Puppet Showplace Theater

A few Fridays ago I discovered a delightful Friday Find: the Bella Sante HydraFacial MD®. I’ll admit, when Bella Sante first reached out to me about trying the service, I had visions of Kim Cattrall in the Sex and the City chemical peel episode. But au contraire; this “liquid dermabrasion-like” facial involves massage, exfoliation, extraction, hydration mostly via a tool that felt similar to my Clarisonic.

The talented and lovely Jill Ferrigan at the Newbury Street location worked on me and my skin looked and felt amazing afterwards. The facial is completely painless (even the extraction, which was done via gentle suction, no dreaded squeezing) and the result is mega hydration. I love facials not only because they are in the moment totally awesome, but also because they remind me, moving forward, to care for my skin. Self-care = good.

The Bella Sante HydraFacial MD® is a bit spendy; the full 50-minute service costs $225 and the express 30-minute version is $175. But I think this service is worth the splurge once or twice a year, especially if you suffer from periodic dry skin problems as I do. And you know, Mother’s Day is coming up and you’re well within your rights to recommend a spa gift card over flowers!

Want more Friday Finds? Check out: chair reupholstery tutorial, Mizuno Wave Prophecy, Jordana lip balm stains, LA Fresh eco-wipes, ridiculously awesome pants, parachute cord crafts, Where Is The Cake?, and Travelpro luggage

Image credits: 1) Bella Sante; 2) Christine Koh

I felt it right after I ran my first half-marathon. The twinge, right at the base of my middle toe. It was not quite the same twinge as those around my arches. Those faded each night after mercilessly rolling a golf ball along tendons lining the soles of my feet. No, this twinge didn't respond to that, nor to ice. This twinge pricked instead of ached.

But I didn't really want to think about it.

Then at Zumba on Monday night I pulled up from a weighted lunge, and as I rolled the entire weight of my body across the ball of my foot, pain shot up from my toes and pierced my skull before leaving the back of my head to blot out the sun.

Later that night, I actually screamed when I squatted to pick up laundry from my daughter's floor. I knew: Something was wrong. Unignorably wrong.

Yesterday I broke down and dragged myself to my doctor. She knew I'd been running since July. She knows about my generalized anxiety disorder and how I partially treat it with drugs and partially with exercise. She knows about the eating disorder.

She ordered an X-ray. It was inconclusive.

She smiled sadly at me. "You know, because I know you've read up on this, that often stress fractures aren't visible on X-rays." She held my foot, gently pressing at the base of my middle toe.

YUP.YUP. RIGHT THERE.

"I'm sorry. You need a boot." She sent her assistant to go get a plastic thing that pumps up with air and makes it impossible to bend anything inside it.

She put the boot on my foot and pumped it and there it was, that thing that I've feared since I first started working out five days a week in high school: immobilization. "I suppose you could bling it out," she said.

Now, it's not total immobilization. I know this. I'm very fortunate. I'm not paralyzed. I'm not even on crutches.

But I can't run. I can't dance. I can't jump.

And when I was at the doctor's office, the scale registered five pounds up from where I thought I was since I initially lost ten pounds last year from running.

This, the dreaded combination: Higher scale number coupled with a boot. The axis of ex-anorexia evil: You're heavier than you want to be and you can't exercise and you can't starve yourself because you don't do that anymore.

I admit I cried last night. Hard. I wanted to punch a person, really. Not any of my family, of course. But I was angry enough to want to connect with something that would crunch when I hit it. Awful, isn't it? Awful doesn't it make it not true. When you've known what's like to hate yourself, you hate anything that dares to drag you back there, hate it enough to hurt.

It's hard to resist the voices that still linger around the edges of my psyche only to make their appearance in badly lit dressing rooms and unfairly tagged Facebook pictures and days when I realize I can't do anything about a little weight gain without tempting regression. And I should be bigger than this. It's five fucking pounds, not the end of the world. If only my brain knew the difference. I'm still trying to teach it the difference. Most days there's nothing to teach. It's these days, these boot days, that challenge me.

I didn't fall into the abyss. I hit nothing. I ate dinner. I went to bed. I got up. I worked. I went to the gym and did the one thing my doctor said I could do with a boot: ride the stationary bike. I set that bike on intervals and pushed the hills until I could barely breathe and the sweat poured down my face. I didn't care what anyone thought of the frazzled person wearing a boot and huffing like a freight train. They don't know that this is the safer alternative to crazy town.

When I got off the bike, my legs were like jell-o, but my brain felt flooded with starlight. People looked at me oddly as I clunked my way back over to the stretching area and tried to wrestle the boot into the right position to stretch my hips and hamstrings. Can't be getting another injury, you know.

Then I came home and ate lunch, thumping my boot against the desk as I chewed. Not hard enough to hurt anything. Just hard enough to make some noise.

I'm going to wear this damned thing for two weeks, then I'm going to do whatever the doctor says to do, because I need my foot back. I need to be able to run and to dance. I need to know there are safe outlets for me, that I never again need to restrict and restrict to feel good about myself.

It's scary. But I'm trying. Here, with my boot. 

*THUNK*

Happy May everyone! Among many random holidays (seriously, there are a lot this month!), it’s National Salad Month. And I'm totally on board with NSM for many reasons (hello seasonal produce! yay, roughage!). I thought I would use this holiday to round up 18 awesome salads from the archives. And now I'm hungry and want to make them all right now (I enjoyed #18 yesterday). Enjoy!

1. Make use of all those random little odds and ends in your fridge with this butler’s salad.

2. Pair this easy steak Cobb salad with a simple vinaigrette.

3. Go for whole grain goodness with this bountiful barley salad.

4. I’ve made this Santa Rosa Valley Salad many, many times. It never disappoints!

5. Sara’s Chicken Salad isn’t exactly light but I don’t care. The lemon pepper. The bacon. SO GOOD.

6. Fire up your grill for this grilled salad with herb vinaigrette.

7. This roasted beet and lentil salad packs a tasty and nutritional punch.

8. For those who enjoy fish, you’ll love this salmon with fennel salad.

9. A delicious way to treat your beets via this yummy beet salad.

10. I became obsessed with pistachios and nectarines thanks to this farm stand salad.

11. Get your omegas with this teriyaki salmon salad.

12. When your basil plants explode, be sure to try this fast and yummy chicken pesto salad. 

13. This quinoa and black bean salad is a party favorite in my family.

14. This spinach salad? So simple. So good.

15. And if you want to add a bit more body to your spinach, try this spinach pasta salad.

16. A pretty, colorful, and tasty radicchio salad.

17. Cauliflower? Good for babies, also great in cauliflower salad form.

18. This warm winter salad is actually awesome any time of year. Like yesterday.

Man, this weather -- such a tease. I hope that the transition into a new month brings warm temperatures and clear skies! And speaking of transitions, today is the last day of April so I wanted to share the best of the month; a collection of handy posts plus some really wonderful personal stories (and by the way, I'd love for you to submit yours!). Enjoy catching up on back reading over coffee or lunch or at the pickup line!

Cool Finds

• Jordana lip balm stains
• Mizuno wave prophecy
• 20 great board books for babies and toddlers

Family Issues:

• Lessons learned: the practice of kindness
• Lessons learned: sibling acceptance

Local:

• Local gems: Watertown
• Boston, city of love and strength
• April vacation mega-roundup (many of these venues offer great family programming year round)
• A very delightful spa party

Solutions:

• Tech decluttering solution: ecoATM
• Chair reupholstery tutorial
• 10 easy Easter egg ideas (bookmark this for next year!)

Travel:

• 11 essentials for traveling with kids

Hey Internet, Keep Being Awesome:

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Image credit: layering watercolor tutorial via Pinterest

Today, Rene shares 11 essentials that help keep her kids happy and entertained while traveling:

Traveling with kids can be challenging, but if you're prepared with plenty of activities (and snacks!) you can keep your little travel companions happy, which will keep you happy. Here are my favorite sanity-saving essentials (aside from the usual diapering items) that will make the trek easier for everyone.

1. Comfortable headphones will help kids tune out to in-flight entertainment (with kid-friendly volume control) or block excess noise while they're trying to sleep.

2. Magnetic play sets are great for travel. Few dropped and lost pieces = good.

3. Melissa & Doug's Water Wow! books offer a simple and mess-free way for younger kids to 'paint' while on-the-go.

4. My kids love their lovies and these smaller scale Pillow Pets double as a pillow or snuggly companion, and are easy to stow away.

5. A travel lap desk keeps small toys and crayons contained and provides a surface for coloring and eating.

6. Toss pureed snack squeeze pouches into your carry-on for snack emergencies. Even bigger kids (and parents) won't fuss about slurping down a tasty snack on the run.

7. Load up your phone or tablet with cool apps to calm tempers during long flights or layovers. Here's a roundup of great apps for kids; the Cool Mom Tech team also regularly updates this Pinterest board of cool apps for kids.

8. After you get through security, fill your reusable (preferably indestructible) sippy or sport water bottles at the water fountain. You'll save a fortune in bottled water costs, and hydrated travelers are happy travelers!

9. Classic Colorforms are a great, compact activity that won't damage surfaces, like plane or car windows.

10. Origami projects will keep big kids (and adults!) occupied and whittle away at travel time. (And boredom.)

11. Good books are great for passing travel time, especially for independent readers who can lose themselves in a juicy chapter book! Check out these roundups of 50+ kid approved books, picture books with strong female leads, books for boys, books for strong and smart girls, and 80 books for your booklist (because hey, maybe with the above recommendations, you'll have time to kick back and enjoy a novel!).

Anything else a must-have when you travel with kids? Feel free to share them in the comments! And if you're looking for more travel tips and inspiration, prowl the travel archives!

Image credits: per product links above