I read a funny article in the Wall Street Journal this week - When Four Play the Dating Game - that discusses the challenges and often hilarious situations couples sometimes encounter when they start hanging out with new, couple friends. It's so funny how there are certain people you just automatically click with and others that you just can't wait to get away from. And it makes things even more interesting when there are four people involved instead of just two.

My husband and I have gone through the new friend cycle a couple of times now. When we first moved to Jacksonville, we knew only one couple. So we both made friends where we worked and slowly started finding great "couple" friends that we both enjoyed hanging out with. We were extremely lucky and ended up making friends with couples that I know we'll always keep in touch with, no matter where our lives take us. But there were definitely a few times where we ran into uncomfortable, strange and interesting instances with new people.

I feel like we're now going through the new friend cycle again. Many of our friends have moved away, started families, etc. so our once large group of friends is slowly dwindling away. It makes me sad to think about it, but I know it is a natural part of life that just takes some getting used to. I can't imagine going online to find new couple friends, but it doesn't surprise me that option is out there. After all, online dating is now a hugely popular and seemingly successful way to find a life long partner...so why not try it with friends?

What do you think? Any couples dating horror stories? Any tips on how to make new friends?