a bit of romance!

[natalie adams]

Any ideas on making time for a bit of romance? - even in the midst of dealing with 2 very demanding boys!

My partner & i are often likes ships in the night, we see each other for fleeting moments in between bath-time, dinner & the chores, then before we know it it's bed time & then the whole day starts all over again. He is very busy with runing his own business & he can often work long hours or go away for weeks at a time, so it can be hard.

we also find that we often do things apart on weekends because when i need a break from the kids & want some girl time he has them, and then when he wants time out to see his mates i have them. we very rarely get time together, let alone any 'one on one' time.

How can we incorporate a bit of romance into our lives again?? simple little things may be all we need! what does everyone else do? or are you all in the same boat as me? 

[natalie adams]

jeepers guys, does no-one maintain their relationships these days??? does no-one have any advice for me?? lol 

[tillys_mummy]

My partner and I are a bit similar, being that he runs his own business and is very busy MOST of the time! lol. But one thing we do that I love, is have dinner together every night. I think these days our lives are so full and busy, that we miss the little things that most of us took for granted as kids. Turn off the telly, sit around the dining table, and BE with your mate. So much conversation happens around the dinner table, and it is a time where you can just be a family.

Now for "alone" time. This ones a bit tougher, as most of us cant get a babysitter every week! You can keep it simple, and just do little things to keep the bond close. Maybe after you put the kids to bed, sit down and have a coffee together on the couch, or a milo, or a scotch! Whatever! It seems like nothing, but can go a long way to making you feel warm and loved in your relationship. It doesnt have to be a big romantic gesture, its the little things that make life happy, and this applies to your partner too. Remind him, that even though most of the time your somebody's Mummy, you still love to be someone wife.

[natalie adams]

very good advice!!

but the worst bit is that whilst i know it is important, we very rarely if ever eat dinner together!
i usually start making dinner as soon as i get home from picking my son up from school. i like to get it done straight away so that i can have time to clean up after dinner, then get the 2 boys bathed and ready for bed so the rest of the night is hassle free! And they are usually really hungry after school -and this stops them from turning feral!
So we usually eat around 5/5.30pm and my partner is never usually home before 6.30pm!
So there goes that idea!

but i do like the cuppa idea for after the kids have gone to bed - and we have actually started doing this, with a hot chocolate! It is a great thing to do.

We have also decided we are going to start 'date night' which means once a month (at the least) we are to plan something which the other partner would like to do (to encourage taking an interest in each others lives). And whoever is doing the planning needs to organise the babysitter too! So that means that if i am planning to take Gav out it has to be to somewhere he would love to go - and he has to do the same for me when it's his turn to plan!!
Because ordinarily our interests are sooooo different that we just do things separately.
But this idea actually has us get interested in each other again, and go out of our way for each other!! very romantic!!! 

[mummy1987]

I would say on days off instead of going out wit friends maybe try and get a babysitter for the day or night and instead of wanting to go out wit friends spend time together wit just you 2