Saturday Night vs. Blogging

It’s Saturday night, there are other places I could be; a restaurant, cocktail bar, even the pub around the corner. If I had a babysitter or possibly a social life. Instead, I am fixing broken links on my blog. Apparently, Google doesn’t like broken links and for some unfathomable reason, I care too much what Google likes.

Saturday nights are less the social pinnacle of the week than perhaps, they once were. Is it OK to devote a perfectly good weekend evening to appeasing the deity of Google?

The alternative is talking to my partner over a bottle of wine and takeaway. Then settling down together, to watch a meaningful Scandinavian crime drama and spotting props from Ikea.

On this particular Saturday, I’ve read an article in the paper concerning the importance of finding child free time with your partner. Not content with giving us dark TV crime and jumper obsessions. Scandinavians are leading the way on improving relationships. The Norwegian Government has encouraged parents to take up ‘date nights’ in a bid to combat rising divorce rates. I suspect they don’t fund the babysitters (Being Scandinavian they probably will eventually).

The importance of quality time with your partner is, of course, supported by various experts. As I tweak another link, I can see that makes sense, time out of the domestic front-line. It doesn’t have to be outside of the home, it could be a bottle of wine and take away, quality time together, except there’s the children.

We’ve evolved as family units, our children are more central, we enjoy more time together as a family to the exclusion of parent relationships. My son is in bed later, than he would have been a generation ago. Saturday evening settling to watch a family film, thinking you’ve ticked a quality parenting box, it seems that’s to the detriment of your relationship. Children infringe on adult time (who knew?).

My Saturday evening, is being claimed by Date Night and Quality Family Time, both worthy causes. However, once Google is appeased there is a ‘presence’ to maintain across various social media ‘platforms’, posts to write, artful photographs to upload, other blogs to read, plugins to update. Sometimes, I think, it requires the logistics of a particularly sophisticated Scandinavian serial killer. Thankfully, there is a lack of research into the impact of blogging and family life.

Is there anyone out there who gets it all right? Probably, not. There are better ways to spend a weekend evening. No matter how cleverly it rearranges and themes, its primary coloured letters, Google does not make my day. Snuggling on the sofa with my family, snacks and a Pixar film does. In a blink of an eye my child will be a teenager and either out or shut in his bedroom. Then it will just be me and the other half. Best make an effort now then and “Date Night” might make a nice post.

How do you spend your Saturday Night?

About Gemma M

Gemma blogs at Helloitsgemma, see link below She is an older not wiser, mother of one small boy. Gemma always has painted toe nails and enjoys cake.

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