Dating your spouse after you’re married is so important to keeping a healthy, strong marriage. It can be hard, though, to keep dating a priority after you’ve thrown a baby or two in the mix.
First, you have little time to yourselves anymore, and most of that time you’d really rather spend sleeping (let’s be honest). Second, dates are expensive. They’re even more expensive when you have to hire a babysitter to go on one. Spending that kind of money on “just a date” can be really off-putting for couples who are also raising expensive children. That’s why date nights at home can be just what you need to put your marriage back on your priority list without breaking the bank.
Personally, I really want to start making date night a regular thing for my husband and I again. We don’t get to do much alone together anymore and I think it’s vital that we start to reconnect on a personal level again (two kids under 5 years old makes that hard!). I’ve been brainstorming some ways we can have a date night without having to leave the house (or the yard, as the case may be) and I thought I’d share my ideas with you too!
15 Ideas for Date Night at Home
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Bake something from scratch: Pick a recipe and make sure you have the ingredients. That evening, get to baking! Make a mess, have a glass of wine, have fun. And then eat your tasty treat!
Have a spa night: light some candles, play some music and exchange massages and facials, or take a bubble bath.
Beer or wine tasting: buy several different types of craft beer or wine and pair it with cheese or chocolate for an in-house tasting!
Living room picnic: throw a blanket on the floor, light the fire or some candles and have your dinner picnic style.
Ice-cream sundae night: buy several different flavors, add some toppings, and go to town!
Video game night: choose a game you can both enjoy (Mario Kart anyone?) and have a blast trying to beat each other. Try not to wake up the children with all your laughter!
Stargazing: go out back on a clear night with a blanket and some pillows. Watch the night sky and try to find the constellations.
Game night: grab a puzzle or Scrabble or any other two player game and enjoy a friendly competition.
Build a fort: make a cozy little den using blankets and furniture and rediscover the old-school fun of a blanket fort!
Dance class: pull up a YouTube dance class video and learn how to salsa together.
Painting night: you can also pull up an easy how-to-paint video on YouTube and get artsy together.
Old movie night: choose an old movie you both love or have been wanting to see.
Blind taste test: each of you choose 3-5 different flavors (all edible, please!) and a blind fold. Take turns tasting and guessing what the flavors are!
20 Questions: grab a box of Table Topics or a similar question game and take turns asking and answering questions. You may learn something you didn’t know about your spouse!
Lip-reading: take turns wearing a pair of noise-cancelling headphones (or play music really loud in a normal pair of headphones) and have your spouse say something that you have to guess!
BONUS IDEA: buy a subscription to Date Night In! This cool company will send you a new box every month filled with fun date night items and ideas. Each month has a new theme. I love this idea because it takes the stress out of trying to plan a unique and fun date night every month; they do all the hard work for you! Check them out and order a box for you or give it as a gift. I can’t wait to get mine!
As you can see, date night at home doesn’t have to be boring! In fact, I would rather do any one of these ideas with my spouse than get all dressed up for a regular old dinner-and-a-movie!
What are some of your favorite ideas for date nights at home?
Great tips to try to make some time together. My husband works from home, but unfortunately, his job keeps him working well into the night. This reminds me to have him set aside a bit of time here and there and enjoy the little things. Thank you!
Fabulous suggestions for couples from all walks of life! Setting aside time to cook a meal together and watch a movie can make a whole week better.
I love these fun and romantic ideas. My hubby and I vowed to make date nights happen as our New Year’s Resolution…and we have not been able to get out yet to have one and it’s April! However, your ideas show us that we can have a romantic evening at home and still spend quality time together…even if we have a miniature sous chef helping us prepare a meal!
It’s so important to take time to invest in the people you love. Small ideas like this create a relationship that matters. Thank you for leaving these awesome ideas. I will be using one of them tonight to show my someone special how much they mean to me.
I love that lip reading idea! It’s also fun to do it and snapchat the whole thing or vlog it for your future kids! There’s a couple on YouTube that did the “lip reading” challenge together and it’s the cutest thing ever! The wife’s name is Tammy Hembrow. I laugh every time I replay it!