March 29, 2024

A much needed date night

Date night. It is something you don’t put a lot of thought into before you have kids, but after, it becomes almost a necessity. My husband and I don’t have a planned date night and it became apparent that we hadn’t gone anywhere without the kids for awhile after a having a packed month of May.

This past weekend was the first time we didn’t have anything scheduled. We are done with school, dance, craft shows and most obligations and found ourselves at home with no plans. The girls were ready to go and played hard all weekend long. We played outside, inside, in the pool, at their grandparents house and went on several walks.

By Sunday evening, the girls were still little balls of energy. They have recently began wrestling, which is completely new for me. I know a lot of my friends would wrestle with their siblings that are close in age, but since my closest sibling is 10 years older than me, I have no experience.

The girls were having fun, laughing — all while they are pulling and kicking and doing things they would normally throw a fit over. It took a lot of patience and letting go to watch them play without making the fun stop. When the wrestling moved over to my lap it dawned on me that my husband and I could benefit from some time away.

I sent a text to my niece to see if she was available, and as luck would have it, she was able to watch the girls for a few hours while we went to dinner and a movie. Feeling a little older than our actual age, we set out for dinner around 5:30 p.m. to catch the movie that started at 6:30 p.m.

I have to say it was really nice just enjoying my meal without having to watch kiddos and make sure they were eating and not playing or just behaving in general. I took my time eating and talking with my husband rather than rushing to get my food down while helping the girls.

We went to see the new “Entourage” movie, hoping for about two hours of mindless entertainment, which it delivered. It gave us laughs without having to think too hard about the plot. Although it is not going to win any awards, the movie was the right kind of entertainment we needed.

Getting time to just talk with my husband, whether over important things or just day-to-day interests, without any interruptions, comes few and far between and was much needed after a busy spring. When we got home, our youngest was already asleep and our oldest was pretending to be asleep but giggled as soon as we walked in the room.

We can’t forget about date night or push it off to the side, even as our kids get older and more involved in activities. Luckily, we have family close to us that can help out when we need a night away.

Contact Jamee A. Pierson at
641-792-3121 ext. 6534
or jpierson@newtondailynews.com