Date Your Husband

"Relish life with the spouse you love Each and every day of your precarious life. Each day is God's gift. It's all you get in exchange For the hard work of staying alive. Make the most of each one! Eccl 9:9, THE MESSAGE).

view from Elephant's Head

Marriage. If we've been blessed, we've been with our spouses many years. And many years together, tend to make us take each other for granted. But why endure when we can enjoy? And to enjoy each other, and thus our "precarious" lives, I advocate periodic dates with our spouse.

Hmmm. But he likes NASCAR and you like to quilt? She likes Mary Kay parties while you'd rather change the oil in the truck?

It takes hard work to stay alive--and harder work to keep a marriage vibrant. Here are Carol's Keys to Romance. (I have eight years experience!)

I did curl my hair

1. Compromise: Neil and I had a picnic. I love long walks and would have loved to hike to the top of Mount Marcy. Neil's arthritis makes those treks difficult. So we walked up Elephant's Head--a half-mile trail with a stunning view on the top. We both gave a little, we both gained a lot.
2. Dress up: I curled my hair and put on make-up suitable for a hike. I wore jeans (Neil's favorite pants choice for me). I'd never make it as a L'Oreal model, but I enhanced, at least psychologically, what God gave me.



not exotic--put novel for us

3. Do the unexpected: Everyone goes out to dinner or to the movies. Find something you don't usually do. In our case, we picnicked. Next week we'll go out on a photo shoot. We need to play, even more so as we age and our "precarious" life nears its end.

What are some of your favorite spouse-dates?