Just in time for planning your romantic Valentine’s Day night is a list of 9 simple and frugal ideas for creating a wonderful night with your spouse. If my recipes for a fantastic steakhouse dinner don’t win your husband over, maybe one of these inexpensive ideas will!
I don’t know about you, but I never knew how creative I would have to be in order to squeeze in a little alone time with my spouse. We don’t get to escape as often as I would like and it is hard to find people you really love and trust enough to watch those that are most precious to you. Not only that, but teenagers sure seem to be a lot busier than they used to be! I am so thankful for the grandparents who offer to take our kiddos time and time again so we can get that time away.
With that in mind, I wanted to share with you some creative ideas for dating that will cost you little/no money and won’t even require paying a babysitter. These are the ideas that have worked for us through these years and I hope you can share some ways that you have found to creatively date your spouse when you are low on cash and sitters.
Book Club Night- My husband and I have started, what I jokingly refer to as, our “magical book club” together. I have been dying for him to read the Twilight series and he has been dying for me to read the Harry Potter series. We made a deal to exchange books and talk about them each night. Obviously, this is not intellectual material we are talking about, but I have to say that I am so enjoying every moment of this exchange.
You could also read the same series together or tackle a literary classic together. Better yet, reread those amazing books from your childhood. Have a book club night together instead of a night parked in front of the television.
Once we have finished the books though, we plan to have a screening night of the movies together too. I am wondering if I am pushing the envelope too much if I make my Edward cupcakes?
Engage in Conversation Starters- I think I know just about everything there is to know about my husband, especially since we have been together since we were teenagers. Conversation starter questions though can sometimes lead to some beautiful surprises of happy memories that we had never heard before. Look at these unique conversation starters, these sweet conversation starters, or this list of fun questions to get the ball rolling. My husband & I sometimes just ask each other questions in Facebook quizzes. Anything that gets you talking together is a great investment of your time!
Late Night Dinners- When our kids were really little, our time alone really felt few and far between. We would sometimes shift our dinner hour until after the kids went to bed to enjoy a romantic and quiet dinner together. I would put table linens on the table, break out the beautiful dishes and stemware, and make a fancy dinner that the grocery budget would not be able to normally accommodate. After all, you are still staying in so there is still a great savings in that!
Don’t be afraid to move your dinner somewhere else in the house. Sometimes I would set up a folding table and chairs and dress it up in a different area of the home or put a fancy spread out on the coffee table with a fun movie. In those long days of newborn feedings and diaper changes, this little change in location was really something to look forward to.
Game Time- My husband & I are both very competitive so we love to play games together after the kids head to bed. For outdoor games, we love a good badminton match and for indoor games we love a good board game challenge or a fun game of Wii bowling. Challenge each other to a match and feel free to indulge in childish behavior to escape the reality of adulthood.
Dollar Store Extravaganza- This is something that I have planned for the two of us as a fun date night idea. Just make a small budget of $10 or less and challenge each other to a contest to see who you can come up with the most creative gift from the dollar store for each other. You can really put a lot of creativity into this and it will be a fun exchange to do after the kids go to bed. See if your husband really knows what your favorite candy in the world is and he can see if you know how to pick a great book for him or what type of puzzle book would be a fun one.
Enjoy Some Time By the Fire- After the kids go to bed, we love to start a little fire in our fire pit and sit by it together. We are finding it is a great way to unwind and have some time to discuss the day together. Make some s’mores and snuggle up under a blanket together. If you have a fireplace, you can do the same thing with some cocoa in your warm house on a wintry night.
Plan an Anniversary Getaway- I decided awhile ago to begin putting money into a separate savings account for our ten year anniversary. At the time, we were really penny-pinching, but $25 a month didn’t seem like a ton of money so it has been automatically transferred every month for our anniversary getaway.
I swear that we talk about this (at least) once a month. Even though there is just $1,000 saved, we have come up with a zillion places we could go to and have been number-crunching to see how much we will have from making this tiny investment each month.
Sitting around and just planning a vacation can be so much fun together. It is such a fun way to spend your time, imagining the places you will go and talking about how quickly we are approaching our big anniversary.
Make it more fun by challenging each other to plan the best anniversary getaway package. You could each research and put together your own vacations and then sit down together and see who came up with the best ideas for the least amount of money. File it away for future reference when you actually do to get to go on that getaway.
Exchange Babysitting With a Friend- I am really lucky because if I really want to go out with my spouse, I can call up my sister and ask if we can do a babysitting exchange. If you have a good friend that you can exchange babysitting with and trade nights out, then you get great care for your kids without having to shell out any money.
While you are enjoying some time alone, you can still enjoy the frugal things in life. Some of my favorite date nights are hitting a movie at the second-run theater, packing up a picnic dinner and taking it somewhere with a view, lounging around Barnes & Noble looking for home improvement inspiration, or even enjoying an evening at home without the kids.
If your spouse can take off work, use a vacation day and try and plan your date during the day. You can take advantage of cheaper matinee rates and even affordable meals out at restaurants because of the earlier hour.
Start a New TV Series- Now that I have given you lots of ideas that don’t involve the television, I think I can bring up an idea that does. I love to pick up a new television series together, particularly in the summer months when nothing good is really on television. You can rent these using a movie membership or check on Hulu or the network websites to watch a series. Try looking for an older series that you have never seen before and watching it for the first time. On our list of never seen television- Lost, 24, and House. We also love to watch rerun sitcoms and relive all those funny moments all over again and watch Friends, Everybody Loves Raymond, & That 70’s Show just for laughs.
I don’t mean to brag, but this man of mine is awesome! He works a full-time job AND manages to run all of the programming on this website too. I am willing to set aside as many fun & free nights as I can to hang out with him. Even when times were very lean, we have found creative ways to spend time together. I know we both benefit from it and so do our children!
What is your favorite budget-friendly date night activity? Please share your creative and unique ideas for keeping the romance alive!
We have tv date nights quite often. Last year someone loaned us the entire 10 seasons of the Stargate series. We finished it over the summer and it was so fun. I would make us a dinner of appetizers and we’d eat and watch. Lots of fun! Hulu.com is great! Also, check the network websites because they often have the episodes there too.
I also love our dinner by the fireplace dates after the kids go to bed.
Our newest way to spend time together is I got the 30 Day Shred and The BL Power Sculpt dvd. I get up when hubby gets up for work, we exercise for 20-30 minutes together, and then eat breakfast. All this before the kids wake up. During this time I used to just be sleeping, but now we are accomplishing something and having fun.
Great idea with your book club talk!!
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Our favorite alone time is a walk outside (weather permitting) – can’t wait til spring. It allows us to do 2 things at the same time – exercise and chat.
We also purchased a motorcycle about 2 years ago. Now that our girls are old enough to be home by themselves, we enjoy taking a spin during the warmer months. We both love it.
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I read about your site in Parent’s Magazine, it is just wonderful! I love this post because who couldn’t use more time with their hubby and so often, the most memoriable times cost very little. It is all about togetherness and I love your ideas. Thanks again!
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I definitely like the Dollar Store idea. You would probably be surprised at the items that you can purchase for $10. Yes, frugal, creative and “you are so special” all on it.
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Great ideas! Thanks Amy! Blessings!!!
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Thanks for the great ideas! Now that we have 2 under 2, finding time to be alone is nearly impossible. I love your idea of a late dinner, we’re going to try to do this at least once a week. Now, if I could only get my husband to read the Twilight series…
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I LOVED
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I LOVED this post! We actually do so many of the same things (we play wii bowling, watch a few flicks on hulu or fancast, do babysitting exchanges). I’m really digging the book club idea, and I’m going to try it out!
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I became a single parent when my daughter was ten years old….I focused on making her Valentines Day special.
I will always remember that a married couple that were friends of mine ALWAYS
ALWAYS sent me a card and sometimes candy and flowers….it meant a lot to me to be remembered fondly….when sometimes it felt like everyone else had a “special someone”. I passed it forward to a local women’s shelter
by sending notes and flowers to the women living there….sooooo if you have a single friend send her a note…buy her a flower….let her know she is loved…God Bless, Pam,
South Bend
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I enjoyed reading your article. Our dates nights were actually date drives. When our children were still of nap age we had 3 taking a nap in the car while we would grab two mocha’s from Starbucks and drive, drink and talk (all under $10.00) Now that gas prices are up there, we still grab a coffee and walk around. Sometimes the boys (yes, all 3) come with and drink their frapps. while we talk and drink ours. We do have the babysitting exchange with our friends, and we do read books and share. Movies too. We have the wii and we take walks around our neighborhood while the boys play at the park on our street. We are in times of watching our budget, but there is always a way of spending time together.
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Hi Amy, Although there are limitless variations to the dinner/entertainment at home it can get too on-note.
I’m rather practical and creative and so one of our favorite date night events was to try out hand at couples art, at home. I purchased 3 prestretched canvases and some cheap acrylic from a local art supply.
After a generous application of dinner and wine we proceeded to lay out the three canvases on a drop cloth on the kitchen and went about collectively painting, but as minimalist as possible.
Keeping the paint “suggestive” and taking turns keeps it from being overcrowded and the light brush strokes show the feeling and emotion without the feeling of permanence from heavy errant strokes of the non-artist.
In all it was a fun collaborative date night that we get to enjoy now every day on a wall of our home.
Just remember: don’t force it and quit while you’re ahead.
Best Regards,
Ryan
.-= Ryan in Chicago´s last blog ..Limited time offer! $25 restaurant.com gift certificates just $4 =-.
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There are some great tips on here. One that I’d suggest would be a $1 pack of playing cards.
With all the electronics and gadgets out there it’s funny how fun a night of gin rummy or bridge or poker can be with the TV and computer off.
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