Easter week is a busy time for ministry couples, and it can put stress on your marriage. You might need more time together if all you have said to your husband for the last seven days is, “Good morning, and in case I don’t see you, good afternoon, good evening, and good night.”

After Easter Sunday, I suggest that you plan a springtime date in order to relax and reconnect with your spouse. Here are a few ideas of what to do.
1) Visit a flower show together. These horticultural events engage the senses and give hope that the sun will reappear.  You might even get some creative ideas for  your own yard. If you don’t live near a city that has such a show, go to a local garden center or university greenhouse.

2) Enjoy God’s creation with your husband. Take a stroll through a park or a hike up a mountain. On your way to the starting point, stop at a gourmet food store. Buy something special that you can eat on a bench or on a hill.

3) Be a tourist for the day. Do visitors flock to your area to see cherry blossoms in bloom, maple syrup being made or acres of antiques for sale?  Brave the crowds to see what all the fuss is about. Unlike the tourists, you will have your own familiar bed to sleep in that night.

4) Stay in touch with your inner kid. Spring breezes are perfect for flying kites and blowing bubbles with one another. You might also try sidewalk chalk, playground swings, hula hoops, hide and seek or jump ropes. Wacky ice cream flavors, like blue moon or bubble gum, are the perfect combination with kid games.

5) Get up earlier than usual. Ride bikes with your husband to eat breakfast at a popular spot. Bike back home. You get extra credit if you ride a tandem bicycle. It is harder than it looks.

6) Experience your married life like it was before you had children. Pack up the kids and take them to a friend’s house. Enjoy a slice of life without interruptions.  For example, drink your coffee before it gets cold, finish a complete adult conversation without jumping up to wipe up a spill or sit quietly together and listen to grownup music.

7) Complete a small project with your husband. Choose something that will not lead to a disagreement. It might be selecting and planting a tree or painting a rocking chair for the front porch. Or, you could schedule and buy tickets for some future special events like baseball games, summer theatre productions or outdoor concerts.

8) Go to a newsstand or a bookstore where you will each buy a magazine or newspaper that you don’t usually read. Take your reading materials to a sidewalk café or coffee shop. Read an article or two and then discuss what you read with your husband.

Spring is a great time to date your spouse. What are some of the special things you do together when the weather turns warmer?

A country girl married to a city boy for 40 years, Patsy Evans experiences the full spectrum of what is it like to love a pastor and be the mother to two children in ministry. What she does know, she shares with you and prays it will glorify God. This article first appeared on her blog Sunday Women and is used with permission.