Car dates. Yes, you heard that right! They’ve become a cherished tradition for my partner and me, and you can enjoy them too with just a few straightforward steps. Here’s how to make it happen:
When you sense that bedtime is about to turn into a chaotic affair, send a quick message to your babysitters to find out who’s available that evening. Thankfully, our go-to babysitter, Sarah, is free? Perfect! We’ll meet her at 5:30. She arrives just in time for the kids to start their usual meltdowns. (While not a must, it’s a common side effect of these car dates.)
As we dash to the car, we carefully detach any clingy toddlers. Can you smell that? I can, friends. It’s the aroma of sweet freedom. Freedom within those car doors, where no little hands can reach us. Freedom from the monotonous bedtime routine and the dreaded witching hour. Oh, the blessed silence!
Now, where to go? You’re not hungry since you munched on the kids’ dinner. It wasn’t the best, but in the frenzy, you managed to devour a few nuggets, some fruit, and a scoop of mac and cheese. Do you have errands to run? Not really. Should you grab some fruit from the stand? Nope, you checked that off your list earlier at Costco. How about trying that trendy new restaurant downtown? Nah, who wants to deal with looking presentable or finding parking?
So, what’s left? Just sit back in the car and enjoy your car date.
We’ve been doing this often lately, and I’ve come to really appreciate it. Sometimes we grab coffee and just sit in the car, while other times we’ve parked in the grocery store lot to tackle all our Christmas shopping while chatting and scrolling through our phones in the dim light.
On car dates, you can converse freely without distractions. It’s just you, your partner, and those paper cups of coffee. And it’s absolutely wonderful. With our busy lives filled with kids, work, and everything in between, it often feels like we’re on different schedules. Car dates allow us to reconnect, share laughs, discuss upcoming plans, chat about the kids, ponder when parenting will get easier, and even dream about future trips to California’s wine country. We talk, we laugh, and we simply exist together. These moments remind me of who we were before our lives got swamped with parenting duties; it helps to bring our relationship back into focus, even if just for a couple of hours.
So, the next time you spot us in a grocery store parking lot, feel free to wave. No, we’re not getting out of the car. We’re enjoying our car date, a delightful little escape from the chaos.
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