A Date for the Hubs

The Happy Hubby and I went on a really amazing date on Friday night.

Now, I love spending time with my man, but not every date is super memorable, you know?

But this particular one was, and I wanted to share with you the reason why…

While brainstorming St. Patrick’s Day ideas with a friend of mine, she shared that she and her Happy Hubby like to visit an Irish pub near their house for an authentic Irish experience.

Before she had even finished talking about it, I was bursting with excitement because I knew that my Happy Hubby was going to be super jazzed about us going there.  He is CRAZY for Ireland and Irish dishes and merriment.

Usually on our date nights my sweet husband takes me wherever I want to go – which is usually one of two places: Panera Bread or Publix to pick up a couple of subs.

I’m kind of boring when it comes to the kind of food and places I like to eat!  I just get stuck on something I enjoy and then don’t really crave much else.

While on the one hand the Hubby loves that I’m a cheap date, he is not a big fan of Panera’s menu.  The problem being that there just isn’t enough food to fill him up.  A sandwich and small bag of chips just doesn’t satisfy his garbage disposal tummy, so we always finish eating and he says, “I think I’ll fix a steak when I get home.”

I realized that taking the Happy Hubby to this Irish pub would totally make him want to break out in a Riverdance!

But it would be a bit of sacrifice on my part.  I think that the reason I like going to Panera and Publix is not just because I like sandwiches, but also because they are quick, easy and super close to his parent’s house – our wonderful, precious, generous, and super hero Date Night babysitters.  Going to the pub would mean a 35-40 minute drive and that drive would be in 5 o’clock traffic, no less!

I tend to get a little over-paranoid about the Happy Buddy’s sleep schedule and worry about him staying up late.  A late night = a Cranky Buddy the next day and I often just don’t want to suffer through all that whining! 🙂

I realized, however, that sometimes you just have to throw caution to the wind in order to keep your marriage sizzling!

Seriously, as I let go of certain expectations, the Happy Hubby and I had the greatest evening talking, enjoying a new restaurant with a ton of ambiance, eating a meal that had us both wishing for stretch pants instead of steak, and just relishing in the magic of mixing it up.

I pray that this is a challenge to you, Happy Home Friends!  I was so convicted to lay down some of my selfish tendencies on our date nights in order to do things his way – to consider what he would really enjoy.

And boy, did it pay off!!!

Where would your Happy Hubby really like to go on your next date?  Or maybe, like our situation, there’s a certain food/restaurant atmosphere he is really passionate about and you could do a little research to find a new place to try together.

I know he will love it!

Happy Date Night-ing! 🙂