Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Dating Again


I got asked out for Valentine's Day. Yeah, I was surprised, too. Dinner and dancing on a Friday night. Don't know how well these legs will work out on the dance floor (Mike already makes fun of my white girl overbite...) but how fun to get all gussied up and go out SANS children!

I stumbled onto this quote that was unattached to an author:

"The value of a relationship is equal to the time invested in it."


I'm ashamed to admit that we have not been investing time in our marriage. Don't get me wrong, I still love the guy--heck, I even still LIKE him!--but our relationship as a couple has been put on the back burner, as we deal with kids, jobs, finances, church responsibilities, and life in general. (Which has been especially burdensome as of late.) So, to help put us back on track, we decided to start dating again. Or maybe just start dating, period. We never really went on 'dates,' when we first started courting (do people still use that word?), we just spent all our time together. I think it will be fun to see what we can come up with. Since we're on-call every other weekend, half our dates have to be stay-homers. But we've decided to split them up, so we'll each have to plan 13 'in-house' dates and 13 'going out' dates. We're going to switch babysitting with another couple we know so that they can go out, too. Can you imagine paying a babysitter for 5 kids every week????

So, we're dating again after all these years. If you have any ideas, pass them along! (Just remember we'ez po', so don't go suggesting a dinner date to LaCaille [fancy-schmancy restaurant in SLC] or heli-skiing. Just ain't gonna happen, friends.)



6 comments:

Ardie said...

My favorite dates are the ones that don't cost money. Best most recent dates have been a hike and a picnic, and star gazing out on the back lawn.

Kate said...

Amanda, I had another date idea I thought of on the way home. You could volunteer somewhere like a nursing home, hospital, food bank, etc. together. Also, my friends says that she has a book for dates at home. She wasn't sure what it is called exactly but I am sure there are a lot out there. Had tons of fun today, thanks again!

Tasha said...

That is so great Amanda. The paying of a babysitter has definitely put a hault to our dating relationship as well. Are you really going dancing? That is awesome!!! I don't think I could ever talk Greg into that.

I think the book your friend is talking about is "How to Date Your Spouse". Great book. My neighbor right behind me actually wrote it. She is awesome.

Good luck with all the dates. That sounds like so much fun. The only date we ever go on because it is free, is to the temple. Sorry I don't have many good ideas. But definitely share with us the ones you end up doing.

Jen said...

Sometimes Dave and I like to grab an ice cream and drive around the neighborhoods that we'd never be able to afford to live in...it's not depressing like you might think... It's fun to look at the archetecture, landscaping, etc. And all the time spent in the car forces us to talk to each other, which is so nice!

Quigley Family said...

I found you from Bloom. I love your blog! My husband and I go on weekly dates and at last least once a month is usually a stay home date. We have serious rules for date night that we feel are a must especially when we don't leave the house. 1. No house work or "errands" 2. No cell phones/taking phone calls/texting, etc. 3. If we eat dinner at home it has to be by candle light and 4. If we watch a movie at home we have to be naked (this rule applies mostly to date nights, not just anytime we watch a movie and we have a tv in our room for DVD watching only so we can lock the door and cuddle on the bed). These rules help us a lot, especially me who just wants to real quick change a load of laundry or empty the dishwasher. Enjoy dating your husband, I love it!!

Jonesy said...

Ardie--agreed. Not spending money is my kinda date! You'll have to fill me in on who exactly you're star-gazing with!
Kate--Good ideas! I hadn't thought of volunteering as a date, but what a good way to serve together. Hurry and get pics up of your ties and vests--can't wait to see how they turned out!
Tasha--We'd be more than happy to do some some kid-swapping for date nights with you guys! We could even hire a couple of young women to watch ALL our kids while we double. You up for it?
Jen--That actually sounds like a really nice date, though I can see how it could get depressing if you let it. Right now I'd opt for a nice hot cocoa over the ice cream! :)
Quigley Fam--I love your rules!! It's so easy for me to get distracted as well (thank you, ADHD) so keeping it all about the date while we're at home is brilliant. Also, thanks for clarifying your "naked movies"--Ha! That brought a smile to my face!