Sarah Hanley
May 22,2025
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After 16 years and two grown kids, people ask how we still feel close.

How we still flirt.

How we still laugh like we’re on date three.

How we still see each other.

 

Here’s our secret:

We still get ready for each other.

A few summers ago, we were deep in that “co-existence” phase.

 

Schedules. Errands. Laundry.
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Title

Everything felt... functional.

 

One Friday night, we had a sitter and dinner plans.

Nothing fancy. Just a warm evening and a table on the patio.

 

I wasn’t planning to dress up.

I felt tired. Heavy. Worn out in a way that only shows up after a long week.

 

Then he came down the hall.

Fresh shave. Clean shirt. New shoes I hadn’t seen before.

He looked good—and I knew he’d done it for me.

 

So I went upstairs.

Did something with my hair.

Put on that linen dress he always compliments.

 

Slipped into my new sandals—soft leather, comfortable, still felt a little special.

When I walked back in, and he looked at me like that—like I was still the woman he wanted?
 
Something in me softened.

I didn't feel like a mom 

Didn't feel like a checklist

I felt like ... me again

That night reminded us of something we’d let slide.

 

Intimacy doesn’t start in the bedroom.

 

It starts with attention.

 

With effort.

 

With choosing to say, “You matter enough for me to try.”

 

Now, it's become part of our rhythm

I still ask if he likes my outfit.

I still spritz the perfume he always notices.

I still slide into sandals that make me stand taller—just for him.

 

He still freshens up.

Still wears cologne I picked.

Still notices when I’ve done my nails.

 

We don’t do it for the world.

We do it for the way we look at each other when we show up—present, polished, choosing each other again.

I remember sitting in the salon once before dinner, getting my hair done.

 

The woman next to me smiled and said,


“Those sandals are beautiful. Where did you get them?”

 

I told her, “They were on sale at Clarks Bloomfield.”

 

Then she smiled again and asked,
“What’s the occasion?”

 

I said, “Just dinner with my husband.”

 

She blinked. “Wow. Most people stop doing that.”

But we stopped once. And we missed it.

So we started again.

And we haven’t stopped since.

 

Because when I look down and see the sandals I chose to feel beautiful,

and I look up and see his face light up like it used to...

Thats everything

That’s what keeps it going.
The haircut. The dress. The sandals.
The simple message we send when we show up:
 
“You’re still the one I want to look good for.”
 
And every time we do?
 
It still works.
 
Every. Single. Time. ❤️

Show up for yourself. And for him.

 

Right Now Clarks Bloomfield is on an Anniversary Sale 

 

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