My wife and I have started dating again. By that I mean each other. Despite my attempts to stress to her that I'm a stallion and as a stallion I must roam and roam free, she still insists that I date only her. We've been having a lot of fun and it's amazing how much things have changed since when we dated before we got married.

12 years ago, which is about when we started dating, I drove a vette. A chevette but a vette none the less. Surprisingly, chicks weren't impressed by it. They weren't impressed by it's 0 to 60mph rating (eventual). They weren't impressed that I would take them to the literal king of hamburgers to eat. They weren't impressed by my modern sensibilities and belief in equality by insisting that we pay for our own meals.

My wife, or I should say my wife to be at the time, understood these things. Of course, she was a hick with a pick-up truck from a town that proudly boasts the second smallest free-standing McDonalds in the world (way to go!). Our dates were always conversation heavy. We have always liked to talk a lot. Violence has never been a major factor except when I uncontrollably exclaim "Wow, look at that chick! She's hot!" (Dating tip: Do not comment on how "hot" other females that walk by to your date. Follow-up tip: Don't ask "I'd do her! Would you?").

When we got married, we were still dirt poor. And I'm talking the yucky kind of dirt, not the store bought dirt (I just can't compete with that so I'd rather we not make comparisons that kind of dirt).  But over time, things have gotten a lot better for us. Both materially and spiritually. They say money can't buy happiness. I would disagree to a point -- money eliminates a source of potential arguments. Though in our case, we never argued about money even when we quibbled over who's turn it was to siphon gas out of the neighbor's gas tank. We're just both very frugal when it comes to money in the sense that we tend not to dissipate our earnings on little things but instead save for big things.  No  big screen TV, no stereo, no boat, no expensive jewelry in 10 years (wedding ring was last major purchase), etc. We just save up and buy big things like our home or...well our home mainly. We like creature comforts.

So getting back to dating, we have 2 small children and it's been really fun raising both of them (Marriage tip: Don't refer to your children as "Pets, but even better!"). But we haven't really gone out much. It's easy to look track of what each other is doing. For instance, apparently there is a machine nowadays that actually will wash the dishes for you! I kid you not. My wife showed it to me the other day along with telling me rumor of a laundry machine(s). But I suspect that's more myth than fact there.

But now each Wednesday we go out and get to date with some style. We can go out to nicer places where we don't have to order at a counter or from our car. We can even go to the movies during the non-Matinee (admittedly we haven't actually done this going to the matinee instead but I'm just saying we could). Going out on dates though lets us rekindle why we got together in the first place. Whatever that was. And talk about it. Well okay, actually we talk about all kinds of new things and still find each other's company incredibly enjoyable.

If you're married, I strongly suggest you find time to go out once a week with your spouse on a date. This is especially true if you have children (small children even more so). It makes a big difference and makes the rest of the week more enjoyable.