“Dating my boys” has become a favorite family tradition.
Every day I look at my boys, they seem to be bigger. As the world reopens time seems to be slipping through my fingers as I try desperately not to miss a minute of their fleeting childhood. No matter how I have tried, I cannot freeze time, but I can cherish all the moments we have. One way that I have found to cherish the time is to set time aside with each kid. I am working toward consciously setting aside time for a monthly date.
I have been moved by how important this time is to my kids. When I mention we are going to go on a date, they are immediately excited about the one-on-one time with either me or their father. They talk about what they would like to do and anticipate their special date. We build it up beforehand, and then we head out separately to experience something one-on-one. Sometimes we let them choose the date, and sometimes we choose.
The hardest things about going on dates is finding the time and choosing something that we don’t want to all do together. When time is hard to come by, we have planned dates that just include a post-dinner treat outside the house. When one child had a day off school that the other didn’t, we spent the day visiting independent book stores and getting donuts together. I try to find activities that interest the one child specifically and make sure that it is not something that they will miss doing with their brother and best buddy.
Here are some of our favorite dates with our kids:
- Painting at a pottery shop
- Donut or ice cream treat
- Driving range or a round of golf
- Hiking
- Exploring independent book stores
- A visit to the Lego store or Minifig shop
- Build-a-Bear Workshop
- A visit to the zoo
- Exploring a new park
Dates with our kids have become an important part of our family culture and help to create a bond with each kid specifically and make them feel special. Think about your kids and what they love. Can you incorporate that into some one-on-one time this month? While we love family time, we also love date time, and we don’t just reserve dates for mom and dad because everybody benefits from special time with those they love the most.
