Think back to the days of when you were first dating your partner. The getting ready, the stressing of what to wear, where to go, what to say? You were just getting to know each other and everything was exciting. Then as you get comfortable and committed it all changes. Seeing each other goes from always being your best to reality, nights out to evenings in and getting dolled up to wearing your favourite pyjamas with the rip in the arm and the wine stain. And that is totally natural and normal.
Don’t let routine get in your way! Keep date night a regular occurrence when you get settled into a relationship and make it work for you and your partner.
1. It saves you from falling into a routine
Especially when you live together as a couple, it is so easy to go into auto pilot when you finish a hard day at work. The shoes come off, the TV goes on and dinner goes in the oven. And that is when boredom can creep into a relationship. Having a date to look forward to helps to break up your daily routine that can sometimes become mundane.
2. You make an effort
Sometimes becoming comfortable means your partner has seen you at your best… and your worst. As soon as you open up to each other and allow your partner to see you, morning breath and all, making an effort in how you look in front of each other doesn’t seem as important as it did in your first few months of dating. But having a reason to get all dressed up and looking your best will not only make you feel good, but it will make your partner feel lucky to have someone so beautiful. I am not saying you aren’t beautiful naturally, but every little mascara stroke helps, right?
3. It keeps you both feeling special
When in a long term relationship, it is easy to get so used to the other person being around that you take them for granted. Feeling unwanted and unloved can cause problems in a relationship. So having a date night helps you both remember how much you mean to each other and that you are grateful you are together.
4. It gives you things to talk about
Sharing new experiences and spending quality time together means you have a whole new thing to discuss as a couple. Not only does it mean you have to plan and prepare what you are going to do on the next date night, but it makes memories together for you to remember forever and reminisce over the years.
5. It allows alone time
If your relationship has blossomed into the pitter patter of tiny feet, becoming parents can easily slip into forgetting you and your partner are in a relationship together. Suddenly your children become you sole focus and you can forget your partner has needs too. Having a date night scheduled for just the two of you allows you to have some well needed rest and to check in with each other without any interruption. So find yourself a babysitter, because it will be worth it for a merited night away together.
6. You bond about things you enjoy
When life gets busy, the little things you enjoy seem to take a back seat, as they are not essential. Having plans to do something together that is just purely for fun can make you remember why you got together in the first place, and how much fun you can have together.
Who said date night has to be only the two of you? Going out with other couples or a group of friends can keep it interesting in your relationship. Being in a serious relationship doesn’t mean you can only spend time with each other and it’s important to keep your relationships with other people solid, so why not do that together? You can’t lose as it means you can spend time with your partner and your friends at the same time.
How to make date night a habit
It’s all well and good saying to your partner let’s keep up a date night but it’s another thing actually sticking to it. So here’s some tips to get a date night into a routine with your partner.
Put it on paper
Write a list of all the things you’d like to do with your partner over the next coming year, whether it be bands you’d like to see or local places you never got round to visiting. When you write down on paper all the things you’d like to do together, it will give you a satisfaction to cross the things off that you do complete and you will be able to look back on all the experiences you’ve had together over the past year of your relationship.
Compromise
You and your partner are two different people. And that’s totally ok. It’s healthy to have different interests to each other. But life gets busy and it is sometimes hard to commit time to your relationship, your family, your work, your hobbies and now date night. So why don’t you try and introduce your partner to something you like? It might be something that you know your partner isn’t interested in but you both have to be willing to try new things, and who knows? Maybe you’ll find a new hobby you can both get your teeth into together.
Set a date
To make sure your dates become regular you need to decide how often you’d like to make it happen. So if you say once a month, make sure you do not let a month pass without setting aside a day for your date night. And promise to each other you will make it happen no matter what.
When you and your partner are busy in life, its so easy to strike off things from your to do list. But spending time together is important and you mustn’t put it on the back burner. Make sure if date night is scheduled, it happens. Relationships take work and time commitment so be sure to do just that.
