Remember when you were younger and that person you really liked asked you out on a date? Do you remember the effort you put into making yourself look good and how excited you were to spend the time connecting and talking all night?
Unfortunately consistent date nights can be one of the first things that go in your relationship, especially if you have been together a long time or have kids.
It is time to bring “Date Night” back into your life and your relationship. I have heard all the reasons why people can’t (I don’t have time, we can’t afford to go out and hire a sitter, we work different schedules), but they are all just excuses. If you don’t make time for your relationship, in the long run your relationship will stop making time for you. In other words, even if you do stay together, you will resemble roommates at best.
The trick with date nights is to make them consistent and to make them simple. Sure it is nice to go out for a fancy dinner or stay the night at a hotel, but let’s be honest, that can break the bank and it isn’t necessary.
A good friend of mine told me that when her kids were little, her and her husband would hire a sitter for one hour, and would walk around the block while eating their root beer floats from A&W. It cost them $15 but it was always something she looked forward to.
You can make it even simpler than that by putting the kids to bed, filling the bath and having a bath together. Or give each other a foot rub while playing a game. If you both like to run for example, maybe your date “night” happens every Saturday morning when you go for a jog together and finish it off at your favorite coffee shop. 
The point is to make it happen and to put the same effort into the date and into getting ready for the date that you did when you first got together. As comfortable as you may be together, your partner will appreciate it if you put effort into making yourself look good and into talking about things besides the kids or work.
It is easy to get lazy in your relationship and start to coast. Challenge yourself to make this the year you work extra hard on reconnecting or strengthening the connection with your partner.
