In the Spring of 2008, just a month or so before our first baby would have been due, my husband and I decided to go see his family in England. Knowing that our time of student discounts was coming to an end, I also requested that we visit Paris before coming back home. It was a wonderful trip visiting his Aunt and Uncle and new places we hadn’t seen before. We were out of money by the end of our visit, so we took a picture in front of the Eiffel Tower, visited The Louvre without a guide or headphones, and experienced ‘fine’ dining on the Champs-Élysées at McDonalds. I wouldn’t trade a bit of it for anything.
One year ago, I noticed that our oldest was getting to be much older, and our baby was about to be one. My childbearing years were coming to a close, as I had spent from 2007 to 2016 in some sort of childbearing experience (details of miscarriage and breastfeeding available upon request). We went camping just about every year in some form or fashion, and it is by far my favorite thing to do as a family. But I did not want to go any longer without intentionally dating my husband.
I joke with my husband that he is the absolute least romantic person on the face of the planet, but since he doesn’t appreciate it either, I have found myself not putting much into romance at all. But how in the world were we to make it through decades of marriage on this unromantic path? He was game for trying my idea, so on Valentine’s Day last year (2016), we decided to go on some sort of date each month by the 14th. I think we only missed the 14th deadline once.
So was it worth it? Yes! One hundred times, yes. Some nights we ordered wings and watched a movie. Some nights we had a babysitter watch the kids while we went out for a movie or concert. Every time, we made sure we did not do any chores or go grocery shopping. Now I can look back on the year and not wonder where the time has gone or wish we would have had more time together. I know for sure that we went on at least 12 dates.
Perhaps this year, now that we have this established in our lives as a priority, I can work on my relationships with my children with intention as well. Before I know it, they’ll be working on marriages of their own.
PS Check out Dr. Josh Straub and his wife’s blog and podcast. They are also on Facebook. They have great ideas for marriage building!
Photo description: I wanted to take a picture of my ring with my husband’s similar to a wedding photo. However, my dog would not allow such a thing, so the picture is of his nose instead. It made us laugh so hard that I couldn’t change it. Happy Valentine’s Day!
Melissa's Thoughts: Teacher at Heart 