The disconnect caught up to us slowly, sort of like a frog that slowly boils in water. We knew it was coming because research and friends told us so, but it still took us by surprise. Three weeks ago, Sara and I were struggling to stay connected in the midst of baby. We hadn't gotten a break from our daughter in almost four months, and we were finding ourselves irritable towards one another.
Finally, we buckled down and decided to put some money into our program and get a baby sitter. We started off last week with a 2 hour date, riding a tandem bike and eating dinner at an outdoor burger joint along the beach. Yesterday, we went to see the play "Into the Woods" in a West Seattle venue, followed by Starbucks and a 20 minute neighborhood walk in a beautiful park.
All without our daughter.
I love my daughter, but Sara and I had both been missing each other. Our goal is to continue to budget babysitting money and kid swapping with others in order to generate more date nights in the near, mid, and distant future. No matter how many kids, it is so important. That irritability is a sign of a disconnect, which is a sign of the connection we all long for in our partners.
(photo taken from zeplinrose at flickr creative commons)