Remember when you were single and dating? Friday and Saturday nights were sacred back then. It meant your boss cannot make you put in overtime no matter how much she begged, or it meant you had to display extremely good behavior so your mom will allow you to stay out later than usual.
Now that you are married with kids to boot, are those nights still sacred?
Woe to those who say no. Getting married and not having kids do not mean you have to forget about being young and in love.
My husband and I agreed that we will always have our date night. It doesn’t have to be a Friday or a Saturday actually. It doesn’t have to mean going out and spending money on a movie or meal. It could simply be spending some quality time together, even at home curled up together on the sofa watching TV Patrol World.
Face it, everyday married life and parenthood can suck the life out of us. Out of me. Waking up, making sure your husband is awake, spending mornings with your kids, going to work, attending meetings, organizing chaos, thinking about dinner for the family, driving home, sitting down with your kids as they do their homework, eating dinner with your family, spending evening time with the kids, spending some time with your husband, planning your next day and checking all the doors and windows to make sure they’re locked before you go up to bed. These activities make up such a long sentence. Imagine how it makes such a long day.
So much so that if you allow yourself to get lost and buried in all that, you might end up not having quality time for yourself and your mate.
Date nights should stay sacred. I believe it is an essential part of marriage that doing away with it may cause serious repercussions to your future as a couple. But that is me. Because if my husband happens to forget… and has planned to spend all week doing something else that does not include me… then it ruins my week. It ruins my mood. I become irritable, bitchy. Then my kids notice and my officemates notice and they too are affected. It becomes a cycle.
Keeping the romance alive is part of what date nights are about. It gives me and my husband the opportunity to become high school sweethearts instead of a married couple. It also brings back all the tingly feeling you get when you hold hands or share a kiss.
Even when funds are low, date nights are a must for us. It keeps us thinking positive and cheery. I mean, who would feel dreary when you’re holding hands with the one you love?
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How timely, ApplesH! As if you read my mind.
My husband and I were just talking about the same thing, and really if you are not conscious of it, you can just lose yourself in the kids and in household affairs. So we actually “escaped” for a night! Checked into a hotel just to recupe.
Wow, this is very inspiring. It makes me look forward, on a very positive note, to the prospect of being with someone for the rest of my life. God bless your family and you are one of my favorite bloggers now! Have a great weekend!
MegaMom – I am glad you can relate. I think most married couples encounter the same thing. And though it sounds so easy to do, it actually is difficult to make it happen.
Judie – Thanks for dropping by! We are always told that married life is not a piece of cake. Because it isn’t. But only the lazy are discouraged. In fact, there are many wonderful things to look forward to. Cheers!
How very true. It’s the romance that kept our marriage alive through the years. Having a date night is something I look forward to every week. It isn’t a fancy place or resto. We’re just together. Keep the love alive.
noemi – I really admire how you have managed to keep the romance through the years. I pray that my husband and I will be blessed with the same.
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