“Do you think they’ll still have tickets?” my husband Ted asked over our dinner of Pollo Tropical chicken and guava BBQ riblets.
As you can tell, we’re big spenders on date night.
“I think so,” I thoughtfully responded. “After all, it is a Wednesday night. How busy can it be?”
Of course, in the back of my mind, I wondered the same thing. We were headed to see the film Divergent. At that point, it’d only been in theaters for six days and the show started in less than 30 minutes. Plus, we planned to see it in IMAX. Not necessarily because we wanted to, but because the time best fit with our schedule.
I can just see you nodding your head now in understanding of why our pre-show dinner choice was fast food. We had to pinch pennies and quarters and dollars somewhere if IMAX was involved. I mean, wow.
It turns out, there wasn’t a rush on tickets that evening. Although, thanks to the indecisive couple two places ahead of us in line, we did have a moment where we weren’t sure we’d make it into the theater on time. At one point, some five minutes after the pair first began chatting with the guy at the ticket window, Ted even whispered to me, “Do you think I could pay them $30 not to see a movie tonight?” Fortunately, this husband and wife stepped out of line to consider their options, with no monetary bribe from us required.
This isn’t the first time one of our date nights has taken place on a Wednesday evening. In fact, whenever we schedule them, they tend to fall on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday. Primarily because this is when we’re either able to get a sitter or to swap date nights with another couple. For us, weekdays are practical.
But do you know what I’ve discovered over the last year or two? Not only are weeknight dates best for our calendar, I’ve come to prefer them. Here are four reasons why.
1. Weeknight Dates Interrupt the Weekday Monotony
For me, sometimes the five weekdays feel like this:
- Monday: Wake up. Homeschool. Lunch. Work from home. Dinner. Bed. (Shower, optional.)
- Tuesday: Repeat Monday’s schedule.
- Wednesday: Repeat Tuesday’s schedule.
- Thursday: Repeat Wednesday’s schedule.
- Friday: Repeat Thursday’s schedule.
I’m guessing your day-to-day routine is similar. Except perhaps “Drop the kids off at school and head to the office” replaces “homeschool.” But when Ted and I throw a date night into the mix, it brings some spontaneity to our monotony. For me, it provides an evening out to look forward to. A night when I don’t have to make dinner, I just have to eat it.
2. Weeknight Dates Provide Connection on Our Busiest Days
Ted and I have found that at the end of a workday, it can be difficult to catch up. One, we have four little girls who are just as eager to talk Ted’s ear off as I am when he walks in the door. Two, our kids’ bedtime routine consumes a chunk of our evenings. Three, at the end of it all, we’re tired. That’s not to say we don’t try to catch up, but by the time we’ve tucked our girls in bed, too often all we want to do is turn on the television and have someone tell us our own bedtime story.
When we schedule a date night on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, though, it gives us much-needed middle of the week catch-up time. It’s an opportunity for us to let someone else put the kids to bed and reserve our energy and focus solely for each other. Which brings me to #3.
3. Weeknight Dates Keep Our Priorities in Order
I’m a firm believer that my husband trumps my kids on my priority list. I couldn’t agree more with Heidi St. John, who writes, “When we place our children as the priority of our time and energy at the expense of our husbands, we’re missing God’s heart for the home.” For us, setting aside time in the middle of the week for each other is a tangible reminder to us and a statement to others that our marriage comes first, above kids and work.
4. Weeknight Dates Equal Less Busy Venues
That night we saw Divergent, the IMAX theater consisted of Ted, me, and about five other people. We’ve found that in general, restaurants, movie theaters, bowling alleys, and even places like the Shakespeare Tavern downtown, tend to be less busy during the week. We just make sure to schedule our time of departure from home after rush hour.
What about you? Like me, are you a connoisseur of weeknight dates? If so, I’d love to hear why you too prefer them over a Saturday evening out.
Ashleigh
Ashleigh, I agree with you so much! Actually since my husband’s work changed him to having a day off in the middle of the week, we actually enjoy our dates at lunch time. It’s great because we don’t have to find a sitter, the movies are cheaper, and we get lunch specials. Just when I thought we couldn’t afford a date, God actually made a way to make it better:)
Shannon, that’s awesome! I love it!
I love this idea. My husband and I have our show nights during the week. It does make a difference in keeping us connected. Our lives are hectic and we need to keep the sparks alive in our marriage.
Crystal, I’m glad to hear it’s making a difference for you and your husband too!
I would love to do this, but we live 20 min from the nearest town (pop 2800, largest in our county) and 45 min from the nearest movie theater. Our options of what to do on a weeknight are severely limited with the amount of time we have.
Jody, I bet there are creative ideas you can come up with for date nights close to home. Now that the weather is getting nicer, perhaps a picnic at the local park. My husband and I even flew kites for a date once. So you can still embrace time during the week to spend together, but you may have to think outside the box.
Wow, my daily schedule sounds just like yours. 🙂
Great points. We haven’t really ever done a during the week date. I think lack of mid-week babysitting is partly the problem for us. But I like the idea very much!
Danielle, good to know I’m not alone in my schedule. 🙂 The most important thing is that you and your husband make time for each other. Whether it’s during the weekdays or weekends. So if weekends work better because of a babysitter at this point in time, then maybe weeknight dates can be a maybe someday-in-the-future thing for you.
Great reminder, Ashleigh! Thanks for this.
Thanks for your kind words, Kendra!
We have dates on Tuesdays, We both Love it!
it works perfect for us because when our children are in School, we have 8 of them In School,
We have more time for each other and because in the morning my Sweetheart is home and he works in the the afternoons, we look forward spending time together,
When there are School break week we usually spend time with children without dating!
Yelena, thanks for sharing about your Tuesday dates!
We do Breakfast dates after taking the big kid to school (kindergarten) and the soon to be middle child to preschool (3 hours a day) we go out for breakfast and then walk in a mall or park or browse a department store. Hubby works retail so his schedule changes and he works most weekends. It’s nice to be able to sit together over a nice breakfast and just talk about the day to come… In a few weeks this will all change and we will bring a baby on those day dates but such is the season of our life
Hi Noel, how fun that you are able to have breakfast dates. I love it! Also, congrats on the upcoming birth of your new baby! 🙂
We have our date nights during the week. My husband’s days off are Thursday and Friday, so it is easier to go out on Wednesday or Thursday evening! It is so nice, we rarely have to worry about wait time for dinner. Plus everything is less crowded.
Amanda, yes, avoiding those wait times is great! Ted and I just went out this past Tuesday night and we were seated right away at a restaurant that has waits on the weekend.
Yes! Love, love weeknight dates!
Thanks for commenting, Michelle!