I love going out with my husband. It's just the best time ever! We sit and talk, enjoy a nice dinner, check out a bookstore or maybe run some errands, maybe rent a video (we love Jay and Jordan at the rental store - 2 great guys!). It is something we were not able to do early on in our marriage and we do not take one single date night for granted now that we have children old enough to "watch over" the younger ones and the house while we are out.
I remember those long days with babies and toddlers - making it through dinner and bath time was a big deal! I think I was too exhausted to even last through a date night back then. Homeschooling was a juggling act in between diaper changes, naps and feedings - and the toddler years are a constant tornado of activity! Those were wonderful years, and I told myself to enjoy them because they would soon be gone (which turned out to be true). I would not trade those days for anything and I loved being a mom of 5 young children. But date nights? Nope, it wasn't happening!
Now we can enjoy our date nights and spend time together that we didn't have available to us early on. We consider it "our time" since we spend most nights of the week doing things with/for our kids. One example: my husband and our 17 year old son have been spending a lot of time working on a car lately. Our son owns a 1979 Chevy Camaro Berlinetta...great car, but needed some work this week. After our son was locked out of his car late at night after work due to his old locks being frozen shut, and then having his starter fail him again and again, we decided it was time to fix a few things. We also spend time with our girls - going to CYT, the library, or just going with them when they shop. We have a family evening on Tuesdays that is pretty much set in stone. And now the Olympics are about to begin - now, we've always been an Olympic watching family but our two oldest are Pre-Juv figure skaters, so we are going to enjoy these Winter Games to the fullest! Our oldest daughter can land her double salchow very consistently, but watching these skaters land triple axles (that's a 3 1/2 rotation jump, BTW)! Wow, that's gonna be good family time!
I say all that to get to this point: my husband and I don't feel guilty about having our time together each week. We have something to look forward to week in and week out. And our kids are learning that they will need to invest time in their spouse on a continual basis - not just during the "romance" stage prior to marriage. I really hope each one of my kids "dates" their spouse all through their marriages. It's the best thing going, folks! Investing in your marriage partner week after week is the only way to go! Now, if you aren't able to have a date night wherein you actually leave the house, that's okay. Watch a movie together. Read a book together. Carve out time to talk, just the two of you. And let your spouse know he is your priority, right after the Lord. I promise, you won't regret it. And if you are exhausted from those long days with little ones, don't fret. You'll still be very busy and very exhausted when your children are teens, but it's a different kind of exhaustion and if you do your job well now, you'll be able to leave them in charge while you "date your mate".
Right now my oldest is getting ready for work, one of my girl's has a job babysitting this evening, and the other 3 girls are watching "Lion King" as a CYT homework assignment. And me? I'm getting ready for a date with my husband of (almost) 19 years!
Have a great weekend!
Day 18 done :)
Jan L. Burt
www.homeschoolingmothersbiblestudy.com
I remember those long days with babies and toddlers - making it through dinner and bath time was a big deal! I think I was too exhausted to even last through a date night back then. Homeschooling was a juggling act in between diaper changes, naps and feedings - and the toddler years are a constant tornado of activity! Those were wonderful years, and I told myself to enjoy them because they would soon be gone (which turned out to be true). I would not trade those days for anything and I loved being a mom of 5 young children. But date nights? Nope, it wasn't happening!
Now we can enjoy our date nights and spend time together that we didn't have available to us early on. We consider it "our time" since we spend most nights of the week doing things with/for our kids. One example: my husband and our 17 year old son have been spending a lot of time working on a car lately. Our son owns a 1979 Chevy Camaro Berlinetta...great car, but needed some work this week. After our son was locked out of his car late at night after work due to his old locks being frozen shut, and then having his starter fail him again and again, we decided it was time to fix a few things. We also spend time with our girls - going to CYT, the library, or just going with them when they shop. We have a family evening on Tuesdays that is pretty much set in stone. And now the Olympics are about to begin - now, we've always been an Olympic watching family but our two oldest are Pre-Juv figure skaters, so we are going to enjoy these Winter Games to the fullest! Our oldest daughter can land her double salchow very consistently, but watching these skaters land triple axles (that's a 3 1/2 rotation jump, BTW)! Wow, that's gonna be good family time!
I say all that to get to this point: my husband and I don't feel guilty about having our time together each week. We have something to look forward to week in and week out. And our kids are learning that they will need to invest time in their spouse on a continual basis - not just during the "romance" stage prior to marriage. I really hope each one of my kids "dates" their spouse all through their marriages. It's the best thing going, folks! Investing in your marriage partner week after week is the only way to go! Now, if you aren't able to have a date night wherein you actually leave the house, that's okay. Watch a movie together. Read a book together. Carve out time to talk, just the two of you. And let your spouse know he is your priority, right after the Lord. I promise, you won't regret it. And if you are exhausted from those long days with little ones, don't fret. You'll still be very busy and very exhausted when your children are teens, but it's a different kind of exhaustion and if you do your job well now, you'll be able to leave them in charge while you "date your mate".
Right now my oldest is getting ready for work, one of my girl's has a job babysitting this evening, and the other 3 girls are watching "Lion King" as a CYT homework assignment. And me? I'm getting ready for a date with my husband of (almost) 19 years!
Have a great weekend!
Day 18 done :)
Jan L. Burt
www.homeschoolingmothersbiblestudy.com
That's so awesome, Jan, that you do guys do that weekly. I have to admit, I'm looking forward to the day where we can leave the boys home alone just to enjoy dinner out and not have to watch the clock having to hurry home to get a sitter home on time, or have the added expense of hiring a sitter at all! :)
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