One of the things that I could see slipping away after having three more children after getting married was the ability to still go out with Shomari (lovingly referred to as Mr. Houseful) as often as I was when the cellist was our only child.
People volunteer to babysit for one child. Not so much four – let alone twins.
This was something that we had to accept, and realize that being able to go out freely was kind of an entitlement reserved for people without small children, OR with children old enough to look after themselves when their parents were out of the house.
Now that the cellist is of an age to babysit – and we have parents who live close enough to be able to call in case he can’t handle something, we tend to venture out a little bit more these days.
Lately, we’ve taken to Chicago Sky basketball games and dinner. Something both of us enjoy although I will admit that I still don’t know every call in the book. So far, we’ve attended three games, and our girls have won each of them.
There is something igniting about continuing to date your spouse after marriage. It ignites lots of things, and really cuts down on all of the nonsensical arguing that could be filling your time.
We still have disagreements, but they aren’t NEARLY as epic as when we first had another baby and then the twins. I will say that Shomari is a lot better at turning an argument around and making me laugh. I find it a bit annoying that he doesn’t get as bothered as I do about things, but hey, that’s why he’s mine.
I will be doing another post on 5 ways to date your spouse on a budget (or essentially, how to go out when you’re the parents of 4 children) next week. I hope that you come around to check it out.
So, are you longing for time alone with your significant other? Don’t worry, you can get it back. I promise.
I am living and breathing everything in your post. We have six altogether (only 3 remain in the home) ranging from 24 down to 5. As you well know, time alone is at a premium. I’m starting something similar here in Southern Illinois and blogging about it. Can’t wait for you to share your ideas and get some pointers!
I am just CRAVING a good date night, we havent had a kid-free night since our almost 4 year old was born! We don’t have family close by, and all of our friends have really small kids/new babies/extra pregnant, so it just never seems to work out. I’m patiently waiting though!
We have the same issue and we only have two. We live kind of far away from everyone so getting out for us requires a drive to drop them off and a drive to pick them up. We do have a friend that adores our children and she doesn’t have any of her own. She volunteers to keep ours once a month we just don’t take her up on her offer as often as we should. I think we should start because I don’t remember the last time we had a minute out alone.