I know some of you would say that you cannot afford Date Night. Yes, going out can be really expensive….if you’re not creative. For the most part, I get free babysitting from family members. And of course, if we go out to eat I’m always looking for a coupon. Here are a few ideas for you to have Date Night without breaking the bank:
1. Ask a family member to watch your kids. I realize this doesn’t work for those of you who don’t live near family…or those of you who are afraid of your family. Ahem.
2. Barter with a friend. This is very popular! If you have a friend couple and they want Date Night too, then do an exchange with them. Watch their kids when they go out and they’ll watch yours when you do the same. Free babysitting. It ROCKS!
3. Ask your church to start a Parent’s Night Out. This would be a great way for the youth group to make some quick cash! They could do it once a month and charge a small $5 fee. You might want to make sure there are also some adults on hand. 😉 I imagine that some teenagers could quickly get overwhelmed at a 2-year-old toddler who just colored all over the walls…of the sanctuary.
4. Like I mentioned above, use coupons to eat out. You can find them pretty easily.
5. Take a picnic lunch. Who says you have to eat out? Take a sandwich from home and find a nice, pretty park to enjoy. Even going through the drive-thru for the $ Menu can add up…dollars make, uhhhhh dollars. Yeah.
6. Who says you have to eat out? Who made the rule that Date Night meant you had to eat out? Not me. Go Christmas shopping. Go antiquing. Do something. Avoid the extra cost of food if you want to. Stay at home and take a nap. You know you want to.
7. Take a tour of something local. Is there a local factory around you with something interesting to behold? I know I’d sure like to tour the Mayfield Dairy and get free ice cream. Around here we have a couple wineries that offer a tour with free wine. I’d skip the wine part because it makes me yak…but hey, whatever floats your boat.
8. Go out during the day. Don’t wait until Saturday night to live it up – try Saturday at lunch and hit a matinee. It’s a LOT cheaper and you can get the lunch special…and likely not have to wait 2 hours to get a table.
9. Take a hike. I realize this doesn’t excite most people…but we actually like hiking when we can get out and do it. Take a picnic lunch and you’ve got a super cheap date. Take bug repellent…you won’t be sorry. Or so I hear from OTHER PEOPLE. *Cough* Because I would never forget that.
10. Cook together at home. This might be a challenge for some of you – especially if your husband’s specialty is opening a can of Beanee Weenies. But, I bet he can chop or shred (maybe invest in a Kevlar glove). Barry and I really enjoy cooking together…as long as he does it my way.
So, how do we make this work? In order to keep ourselves accountable, we decided that we’d pick our twice monthly Date Night when we were doing our budget. Since that’s something we know we do every month, it helps us remember to also schedule in our time together.
Date Night works for us…and our marriage. And so far, Annie hasn’t even picked up on the fact that I’m gone. 😉 Which I try not to dwell on for too long or I get all weepy. “Oh, hey mom. You were gone? Can I just stay here forever?” And so it begins…
Please leave a comment with your favorite cheap date night idea so we can have a great resource on this post!
My husband and I like to go to the thrift store, since that is difficult to do with kids. We have fun!
My hubby try to go out once a week. One of our favorite “cheap” dates is to each get a $1 soda from McD’s and then swing by Little Caesars for a $5 pizza. Sometimes we add breadsticks, sometimes not.
We then find a park somewhere to hang out.
Fun & cheap too!
We like doing an at-home game night after the kids are in bed (ours are 4 and under, so we let them skip naps and get them to bed early). We can order in, or just make sure our favorite snacks or desert are in the house. Dominoes, Jenga, Scrabble, Cards…
Or, we like getting a Sunday paper and sharing it at a nearby beach/park for a while. This was much easier before we had children, though…
Love this post! Thanks!
We are Scrabble people over here! 🙂
My husband has become quite the expert griller 🙂 It has actually gotten to the point where we would like to eat out but we don’t because he can grill steaks or burgers much, much cheaper and they taste so much better. He grills while I make the sides and desert. It costs a fraction of the restaurant price and we get to spend time making our meal together.
I do so love a man who can grill.
During warm weather season we love to pack a picnic and sit along the river. We will sometimes bring ipod speakers and play music in the background. Another fairly cheap way to eat out is going to a Mexican restaurant. We order fajitas which are always huge and split them.
We like eating cheap at the Mexican place too! 🙂 And picnics are where it’s AT.
My husband and I had a FABULOUS “cook together at home” date night last night for Valentines. I cooked pork chops and potatoes au gratin. He made the salad and sweet tea. It was so nice to be in the kitchen working together, no TV on, just us talking and cooking. We made chocolate dipped strawberries for dessert. We devoured those tasty beauties along with some sparkling white grape juice while watching cuddling on the couch watching “The Princess Bride.” We spent the night in our guest bedroom, which was totally fun. Just sleeping in a different space made us feel like we were in a hotel. It was a super inexpensive date night but one of the best we’ve ever had.
Janise, that sounds WONDERFUL! 🙂
We take the bike out when it’s nice and we just look for new places to go my favorite is riding to Maine and the resivor an hour away 🙂
I have a bike….but my tires are flat. lol
My hubby and I go out every Saturday…morning! Six AM Mass followed by some time in Adoration followed by coffee at a local coffee shop. I usually bring a sweet treat for us to share and my 14 yo, who is quite the morning person, can get breakfast done and chores started for her 4 siblings while we’re away. By 9 am we’re back home and the kids barely had time to miss us! The benefits to our marraige from making this time for each other and our Lord have been nothing short of miraculous!
A morning date….awesome! I’m a morning person anyway. 🙂
When my kids were little my favorite was to eat a weekday lunch with my husband. I did not have any family near us then but I could usually find a mom from my mom’s group to watch the girls for a short time, and as you know lunch is always cheaper than dinner.
And you know something? I’m a lunch lover more than a dinner lover….this is right up my alley!
we just started autumn in awanas last night, and james and i got to hang out together for an hour and a half! since we live on base, it is provided for us for free at the church. they teach your child verses, do a craft and have daily lesson plans i am supposed to do with her everyday! it’s great, and fits in to our HS schedule. they do try to hand your child a snack, but i just block them and give her some homemade ones, instead.
That sounds wonderful Brittany! 🙂
Sometimes instead of going out for a full meal, we just get dessert somewhere. In fact, we’re going to do that this weekend. Cheesecake Factory!
Great idea, Anne! 🙂 Although my dessert of choice is ice cream!
My husband and I went to the beach one afternoon after he got home from work. Going later in the day meant that the weather was more enjoyable and there wasn’t a lot of traffic. It was nice to have some relaxing time together during the week.
Oooooh! That’s a good one! 🙂