Let’s be honest: dating is not easy at any age. For most pre-teens and teens, though, this tender age marks the start of romantic ventures. One mom is making sure her son has a few dating lessons under his belt before going on a real one.
TikToker Melissa Ann Marie (@melissaannmarie), a single mom in California, shared how she is preparing her 13-year-old son to date and be a stand-up partner in the future. She has started a tradition of going on a “practice date” with him once a month, where he does all the planning with a $50 budget (an allowance given to him by her).
“Come with me on a date with my boy I heard about this idea from another teen/pre-teen boy mama and we’ve done this a handful of times now. We always have the best time with it!” she captioned the video.
In the video, she took viewers on her date with him. He planned a morning date to a cat cafe. The two spent time playing with the cats and sipping on yummy coffee drinks before heading to a coastal walking trail to take in some scenic ocean views. They also stopped for tacos (which set them slightly over the $50 budget), but she notes she had him practice paying with her credit card.
“The idea is you are prepping them for how to take a girl out on a date in the future so they aren’t completely lost when the time comes,” she wrote in the caption. “So you help them along the way with how to plan and execute a date and you teach them basic etiquette and manners.”
She added that the best part about investing time in teaching him to date is the quality time they spend together.
While dating culture may be different today, Melissa Ann Marie notes that she is instilling traditional values when it comes to teaching her son to date. “Trying to teach my boy all of these things so he can be the best partner for someone someday . What did he learn today?!” she shared, before offering a bullet list of lessons. These included:- To open the doors for his date
- Not to walk ahead of his date
- To pay attention to their preferences with things (places they would want to go, too)
- Pull their chair at a dinner table-learned how to give a waiter a non-verbal cue & signal for the check
- Learned how to make a reservation online
- Learned how to pay for everything all on his own
- To get creative and thoughtful with a date & not a lot of money to spend
Her followers are loving her example of how to teach her son about dating.
“I did Mom/son dates. My son is 23 now and his fiancé says he’s the sweetest guy she’s ever met,” one wrote, and Melissa Ann Marie replied, “YES MAMA we are raising men who will be husbands one day!”
Another added, “You’re going to be such an amazing mother in law, setting him up for success like that! ,” and she responded, “Yes!! That’s the goal! ”
And another touched viewer wrote, “This is SUCH a good and thoughtful idea. It warms my heart knowing there are parents out there that are doing everything they can to raise gentleman ❤️.”
