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Release time: 2021-12-13 09:00:00 Update time: 2021-12-13 09:00:00
Released on December 13, 2021 at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Standard Time
Written by Joelene Wolfe, WRAL contributor
The stars must be perfectly aligned. For the first time forever, you find that you and your partner have a free night. Without games, appointments or game dates, the nanny is finally free. You are all ready to welcome the night you have been waiting for-date night! Alas!
For us, a free night rarely happens, so much so that we don’t know what to do next. The feeling of "Okay, let's be alone, now?" Will enter soon.
We know one thing... we want to pack 6 months of fun into 4 hours or less. where are we going? what are we going to do? The most important thing is, besides children, what else do we talk about?
Over the years, our lives have been full of activities related to children. Therefore, freeing up some time for us is uncharted territory, but we are determined to master something.
The first task is to develop a reliable plan. We try to avoid the "What do you want to do? No, what do you want to do?" scenario. The babysitter was timing, so we had to sneak out the door, act quickly and start the party.
Then there are the basic rules: we must live in the present and forget anything related to parents or work. Will not talk about bills, bosses, children or pets. there's only us.
Our date night usually includes dinner and some kind of fun activity (that is, any activity other than washing dishes or washing clothes). We all like lively restaurants, filled with people trying to stay away from children. So, we start from there. Personally, I don’t care about food, I just need to have other people besides me cooking and cleaning.
At dinner, we did not repeat the child's schedule, but tried to keep it relaxed. Sometimes we play games like "If you have unlimited funds, where would you travel?" Girls must have dreams!
Other times, when people see our wedding rings, we will believe that this is our first date and enjoy all the confused expressions. Hope we didn't inspire anything tacky.
My other prerequisite is to do something positive. The goal is to establish contact with my husband, not to sit silently in a crowded movie. This will involve things like going to a golf course or a karaoke bar. Our last short trip was throwing an axe. There is nothing better than showing a little aggressiveness towards the one you love.
Finally, we will do things that married couples often forget. We will really meet, listen, hold hands, kiss, hug, laugh. You know, everyone replaces things with sarcasm and impatience.
The moral of our date night story is that this is our story. Yours may look very different, but the key is to reconnect and enjoy every second. Then back to reality!
Joelene Wolfe is a mom, actor, writer, and marketer who recently moved to the Triangle from New York/New Jersey. She strives to live every day to the fullest, and is very happy to help others do the same. Solemnly declare that she never tires of being accompanied by the song Jolene. You can follow Joelene on Instagram @joeyinthetriangle
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