Let’s talk about date night but let me tell you a story first.
I went to a family reunion some weeks back and overheard a conversation about the grandparents, one of which had passed.
A lot was said about the kind of people that they were, what they did for their children and grandchildren, setting them up for success, creating a legacy to last for years to come.
Many of the children in the family had solid memories of them from different angles – When it came to their marriage, they remember that they would do one thing.
Walk down the dirt road to the lake, about half a mile, and get an ice-cream cone.
They did it.
Every Sunday night.
Just the two of them. Like clock-work.
They would leave what they were doing, they would clean up after dinner, and go on their ice-cream run.
Or, better yet, per my initial question here – when did date night go out of style?
If your response to the question above was “duh, at least twenty years ago “, I challenge you to reconsider.
If you asked yourself – “Wait, who said date night went out of style?” – I am somewhat relieved.
And if you cringed as you saw the question, let me tell you that you are in the right place.
I also want to be really clear and say – if you don’t like the word ‘date night’, and I know some of you don’t for a variety of reasons- call it what you will.
Make up your own word for all I care.
The only thing I do care about is this – and it’s that you practice some form of date night in your relationship.
And when I use that term, here is what I am referring to: time alone together.
One-on-one time with the person you walked down the aisle with while someone else introduced you as the newest Mr. & Mrs something or other.
Face to face interactions.
We talk about spending one-on-one with just about everyone else in our lives, including our pets almost, but we forget where it all started.
Yes, it started with this relationship you had with your spouse.
When was the last time you had a date night with your spouse?
I routinely ask this question of all my couples.
I get a whole variety of responses.
Sometimes it’s been months, years even.
Sometimes they can’t even remember – Literally – all they remember is that they went on a date night when their kids were little.
And now those kids are almost in high school, picking out their own outfits and going to the mall with their friends.
It’s the beginning of the school year.
I know you came up with all sorts of excuses over the summer months.
And some are valid points – you only get to see family on family reunions in August.
You can only go camping when the weather is nice.
The boat will be in the garage the rest of the year.
As you are looking ahead at what your kids are doing throughout the rest of the year, making adjustments to your work schedules, or coming up with new rules so that this school year can go well- this is the perfect time to do this.
There is no time like the present to get back into the habit of seeing each other besides just seeing each others’ names on the text messaging or inbox screens.
Make an agreement on the frequency.
Make an agreement on who plans which date.
Taking turns seems to work well for most people.
Or dividing it by month. You take September, and your spouse takes October.
Talk about options for a sitter if you need one.
Contact several of them and see if they can commit to something right off the bat.
Make it a non-negotiable part of your schedule and your life.
Relationship specialist Terry Real whom I have the honor to know used to remind us couples therapists all the time when he said something to the effect of “Three times a year – his birthday, her birthday and the anniversary – that ain’t gonna cut it.”
Figure out something that works.
Every week.
Every other week.
Once a month.
Anything.
But do it.
And then — it’s simple.
Honor it.
So when someone calls and invites you over to a bonfire or a wine party, you will be able to look at your schedule and honestly say:
“Thank you, but we already made plans and are busy that night.”
While a lot of other things you can, you can’t hire someone to do THIS for you.
That may sound a little harsh.
[But you’ve perhaps heard it before.]
Harsh or not, that is exactly what I mean.
Time together with your spouse has the potential to make or break your marriage.
I have seen it and maybe you have seen it too.
If you don’t want to become a stranger in your own home, go on date nights with your spouse.
If you don’t want to end up with a roommate situation, living next to each other but not with each other, make time for your spouse and you.
If you don’t want to end up in that place where you no longer know what to say to one another other than words to coordinate your children’s schedules, have this conversation this week.
Take it from me:
If YOU don’t make your marriage a priority, someone or something else will come in and fill that spot, like it or not.
Guaranteed.
Make sure you figure out a way to walk down the road and get your ice-cream cone, vanilla or chocolate – you choose.
If it hasn’t come through – date night did by no means go out of style.
If anything, of all the times that it needed to be in style, it is NOW.
Loving the idea of date night?
Here are some other blog posts with ways to find great date night ideas and make them great!
