Loving Your Man Well-Date Nights
Date nights are one of the things that Craig and I tried to do. Did it happen every week? Not so much, but we tried to do it regularly. Now that I am sitting in the Empty Nest, I see how they helped our relationship. I also see how they helped get me through some loooong years of being a mommy and are still life-giving even now. Here are some of my thoughts and maybe these will be an encouragement to you.
Date nights give you a chance to get away from it all.
Calgon take me away. If you are my age, you understand that phrase. No matter if you are a mom with young children or your house is full of teens or you are enjoying the empty nesty, you need some time alone with your hubby. Date nights help you and your man reconnect. They give you a chance to be a couple, a twosome, romantic-young at heart.You get to think about what you are going to wear just like you did in high school. You might even get to wear something that doesn't have spit-up on it. It also helps you feel like a wife and not just a M.O.M. We spend so much time feeling and thinking mom thoughts and a date night helps me to think wife/Leslie thoughts. It also helps me think about my husband and his needs and our relationship.
It doesn't have to cost a fortune.
Be creative. Date nights don't always have to be going out to eat and to a movie. Take a walk around the block. Cook up an extra special meal and check out a movie from the library. Find a free event to attend. See a matinee. Put the kids in bed early and have quiet time in your own home or backyard, together. Date nights give you the opportunity to talk about the dreams and the big plans and the stuff of life-besides the kids. In fact, I would challenge you to not talk about your kids the whole time you are on a date. Ack! That is hard, for sure. But let's practice. You are more interesting than that, too! And so is he.
No waiting for someday, maybe.
Don't wait around on him angry that he just won't plan it. Craig and I talked a long time ago that maybe I could plan the date nights some. And really, isn't it the point, to get out together? So, I would make plans and not listen to the lies that he needed to be planning this. And don't put it off, you have to continue to date when those kids are little. It is your way of investing in your couple-ness so that when you get to the end of child raising, you are still excited about each other and have a relationship.
Trade Date nights.
When our boys were little we traded date nights with another family. Every other week I got a night out with Craig. I brought our kids already fed, bathed and jammied up. Our kids learned how to lie down and go to sleep on a pallet at her house. When I had her four, eight kids total, it wasn't that big of a deal. Once you go from one kid to two, eight is a piece of cake. I would have to say our kids had a blast together and are all still good friends.
Keep Dating even when the kids are gone.
Craig and I are now enjoying our empty nest, and I think much of it is because we worked on our relationship all those years when the kids were home. Now with them all gone, we still have to plan out our Date Nights. Plus, we are still modeling for our grown kids. We are such interesting people! So even in the empty nest stage, let's date!So your SURSEE for today is to plan and execute a Date Night. Please share what you guys like to do on your Date Nights or your fun ways to be together. Or let's share why you need a Date Night. I would love to hear.