Date Night Swap

With my husband being in medical school, me finishing up my bachelor's degree in nursing (all online), raising two kids, and doing all of those other things life requires...I definitely do NOT get enough time alone with my husband. As each year of medical school passes, and a new class of families move in, I have been asked the question on multiple occassions "How do you do it?"

Medical school is no "walk in the park"...for the student, or for his/her family. There are a few things that have helped me survive through these few years of medical school, but one of them tops them all. DATE NIGHT.

Sure, we all make excuses: I'm too busy, my spouse is too busy, we don't have time to find a babysitter, we don't have money to pay a babysitter (trust me, this one is HUGE in med school!), We don't have anything to do on a date, our kids need us....and the list goes on.

The first few months of medical school, I didn't dare ask my husband for a date, because I knew he needed to study. But, after months of not spending any alone time with him, I NEEDED to get out of the house, and go on a date. A few other girls in our townhome complex (also student wives) were feeling the same thing. So, we decided to do a date night swap.

There are 4 couples, each with kids. We each take one Saturday a month (you could do whatever weekend night that works for you), and for 2 hours (we do 6:30-8:30), we watch all of the kids. So, we always take the third Saturday of each month. This is great because it allows us 3 free weekend nights to spend time together. Often times we hit Redbox, go grocery shopping, eat dinner at home, eat at the food court at the Mall, stay home and do homework, or occassionally go out to dinner...but the bottom line is that we are together, without kids. Date night has become so important. It is something we look forward to...and when you KNOW that it is coming, you plan the rest of your week accordingly. For example, both my husband and I make sure that all of our studying/homework is caught up prior to date night, or else we know that we will spend our date night studying. We try to use one of our free weekends to go to dinner, play Wii, or do something other than homework, but I can't tell you how much this has brought us closer together. If you can't find 4 couples, use two, and swap every other week. If you want to have a little longer of a date night...like for dinner AND a movie...just make sure to make arrangements with those who are watching kids, and offer to watch their kids longer the next time!

Find other couples, plan to have a date night EVERY week, be a little flexible, and enjoy your time together with your spouse. How easy is that?!