FeedithNola: An UberEATS date-night

It’s 8:00pm. After the 500^th reading of Goodnight Moon (seriously, how is she not tired of this book?!), Edith has peacefully drifted off to sleep. It’s the first time my husband and I have been alone together all day. After the kitchen is cleaned from dinner, we sit on the opposite ends of the couch, lose consciousness in an endless screen-time daze, and speak only in fragments to add commentary to something we see: Trump’s latest cabinet appointment, pig in a sweater, Verizon guy works for Sprint now?… We need a date night. If this rut sounds familiar, then you need one too.

In this Post-Kid Era, date nights are few and far between. Going out as a parent can be tight, with the cost of a babysitter, any time of year, but after the holidays, it’s down right cost prohibitive. The average American spent over $900 on Christmas gifts this year, and most babysitters don’t take Visa. But if you are recovering from a hectic shopping season and a family-holiday-hangover, or just need to take a moment to reconnect with your spouse before Carnival kicks up, it’s important to make time together. Luckily, Edith goes to bed before most people under the age of 65 eat dinner. With the help of UberEATS, I’m reclaiming the 8:00pm hour in the name of my marriage and planning a date night in.

Determined to make our date night in feel like a real date, I set some basic ground rules:

• No screens: A temporary ban on phone and television for the evening mandates actual conversation.
• Change location: A geographic change, no matter how slight, will help make the evening feel special. We opted for the dining room over the kitchen.
• Wear real clothes: My husband needed some convincing on this one, but people wear shoes when they go out, dammit. Sweatpants and socks are mere gateway to zoning out on the couch. Just say no.
• No chores: Save the dishes for tomorrow, and have another drink. You’re already home so you don’t have to drive!

After discussing the rules, we picked a restaurant we’ve never been to, ordered more barbecue than any two people could possibly consume in one sitting, and scoffed at the four sets of utensils in the bag. (Seriously? It’s barbecue. Go big or go home.) A more civilized couple may have re-plated items onto actual bowls and plates. Actually, such a couple probably wouldn’t have ordered barbecue for a date night; there were plenty of fancier options. We, however, set out a buffet of boxes, grabbed a roll of paper towels, and ate several pounds of various meats.

And it worked! We laughed and talked the way we did when we were dating—never even once discussing anything kid related. Imagine, an entire evening, in your own home nonetheless, with no mention of potties! Suddenly, we no longer felt like roommates or co-parents. We were a couple again.

Tips for UberEATS-ing your date:

• Schedule your order: Bedtime routines can be fragile. I placed our order during naptime, and our food arrived 10 minutes after Edith went to sleep for the night.
• Track the driver: Track your driver on the app or ask for a text/call upon arrival so you can intercept the food before a doorbell or barking dog ends date night before it begins.
• Get free delivery on orders of $50 or more: We were a bit short, so we ordered an extra side of cheesy grits for Edith to eat for lunch the next day.
• Order an extra appetizer, on me from UberEATS: Just use promo-code NOLAVIE10 and receive $10 off your first order.