Cheese plate anyone?

I have been married now for a little over five years. Prior to becoming Man and Wife we enjoyed simply hanging out. You may know this activity by its more traditional name: DATES. Usually it wasn’t all that organized. Maybe a stroll through the park with a break for some sushi. A trip to the museum followed by trivia night. Simply hanging out with the love of my life. Apparently once you pop out a kid, doing these types of things have to be under the guise of “date night”. Please explain to me why they can only happen at night and why they have to be such a special event.

I know that getting a sitter can be difficult and syncing schedules is even harder. Trust me, I’m married to a pilot so I know these to be the facts; but how about we think outside of the norm for a change. Keeping connected to your significant other in between those big night outings can be fun and easy to make happen. You can…

• Have coffee and donuts before work and after the wee one has gone to daycare/school.
• Take a vacation day during the week and spend the day together at the museum/park/spa.
• Take a long lunch together at a restaurant that DOES NOT have a kids menu. Eating and adult conversation is nice.
• Make the hour after the kids go to sleep cocktail hour. Bring on the jazz music and the stemware.
• Have a parental picnic. Turn the family room floor into an oasis of treats after the kids are snoozing. A cheese plate and some wine are easy to do.

Try making a few of these stolen moments the norm in your lives. You’ve got nothing to lose and a closer relationship to gain. I would love to hear how you and your mate get alone time.