Stay Home, Stay Happy by Rachel Campos-Duffy

Author:Rachel Campos-Duffy
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group

Schedule Yourselves In

Scheduling regular date nights says “our relationship matters,” and by making it a regular affair, you can minimize scheduling conflicts with your partner and with your child-care provider. If you’re lucky enough to have grandparents who help out, they probably appreciate knowing that Saturday night is reserved for the grandkids. If you don’t have relatives who can help out and you can’t afford a weekly sitter, find another couple with whom you can trade off or barter in some other way.

Getting dolled up for a night out with my husband or with another couple is one way to date. I also love to schedule dates during the day. Our hometown of Ashland has a great coffee shop; occasionally we book a babysitter on a Saturday morning and spend a couple of hours there, reading the paper and socializing. For some reason, hanging out in that environment without the interruption of kids takes me back to my college days. I always feel a little more carefree afterward. Other times, we go out for breakfast alone, something that is uniquely romantic for us because our first real date was breakfast at a diner in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Now, our favorite breakfast joint getaway is the Delta Diner, a 1950s-style diner-car restaurant twenty minutes outside of town. It’s in the middle of nowhere, and I always get a kick out of seeing how many cars are parked out front when there is nothing but woods and farms as far as the eye can see.

If you have relatives or friends willing to keep your kids for the evening or, better yet, the night, there can be nothing better than a night alone in your own house. Last year, we had an unexpected week alone in our house, and it was divine. It was the week I was due to have our fifth baby. My two youngest kids were in Arizona with their grandparents and the two oldest were in school during the day. Sean had taken the week off in anticipation of our due date. For five whole days we were alone together. After the kids went to school, we’d have coffee and read the paper, hang out, and go on walks. Toward the end of the week, we drove out to the Delta Diner for a late breakfast in hopes that the bumpy back roads might finally do the trick and get my labor moving along. Knowing that another round of sleepless nights awaited us once the baby was born made us savor and appreciate these long, unscheduled days together—it was truly a rare treat. Despite my swollen belly, it was extremely romantic to be reminded of how much we still love to just be together. It’s what we loved to do before we got married, and here we were, waiting on baby number five, and still excited about just being able to hang out together. Taking a vacation day during the week while your kids are busy at school is an excellent way for couples to get alone time.

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