My husband and I were able to go on a spontaneous date night Monday and it made me think about all the cheap dates we’ve had over the years. I thought I would share a few in case you’re in need of inspiration.
Spending time alone without the kids is key to keeping your sanity and your marriage, but with a tight budget it can be difficult to plan. Here are some ideas that we’ve tried:
Picnic in the Park-We spread out a blanket, ate french bread, cheese, grapes and chocolate and read short stories to each other (okay, we’re nerdy!).
Resort Hotel- (Not what you think!) We went to a local resort hotel, walked around the lobby and sat by the pool for a while to talk. It felt like we were on vacation, but didn’t cost a thing.
Book Store Date- We went to the travel section together and talked about places we wanted to visit and then had drinks in the cafe. You could also choose a book that you think your spouse could have written or choose books for each other to read and tell why you made the choice.
Walking Tour- We like to wander around older downtown areas in nearby towns to explore the shops. We then go in one of the cafes to split a dessert.
Festival Fun-Check the paper for festivals in your area. We’ve enjoyed Celtic festivals, Car Shows and County Fairs to name a few. Focus on enjoying each other’s company and avoid spending money. 
Stay Home-We love to have at-home dates after the kids are in bed. We don’t watch television, so watching a movie is a treat. We pop some popcorn and enjoy some bubbly water or a little ice cream and snuggle up.
In order to make our date nights more fun for both of us we’ve instituted some guidelines:
Keep it Light-We try to keep the conversation light and fun and avoid discussing problem areas, although this week I didn’t follow that rule and we had a short argument. We recovered quickly and ended up having a great time.
Schedule It-We keep one day a week as date night. Having a weekly date night ensures that we keep our marriage at the forefront. Even if we just go for a drive, it’s nice to have an uninterrupted conversation!
Try Something New-Going to new places and doing new things keeps our conversation fresh and enables us to see each other as something besides “that guy who works” and “the woman who cooks my dinner”.
If you need some time out with your husband try one of these cheap ideas and have fun!
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{ 16 comments… read them below or add one }
Love this post so much. I didn’t see a blogger link to share on my actual blog All Things Purple, but I shared it on my Facebook page: The Purple Lady
Thanks for the simple goodness.
Thanks for sharing it! I use Word Press instead of Blogger, but you could make a link inside a post I believe.
The simple dates have always been my favorites. In our area we also have free concerts. Earlier this summer my husband planned a surprise date in the middle of the week to a local outdoor concert. The band was a Beatles music band. He took care of everything…dinner at a hamburger joint (with coupons), lawn chairs and a blanket. One of our best dates ever…cost: $15. (We splurged on ice cream after the concert or it would have been less than $10.)
That sounds like so much fun Kathy! You husband definitely gets brownie points for that one.
Just found this blog yesterday and I am loving the posts! My husband and I have been seriously slacking in the date department, and these sound like GREAT ideas. THANKS!!!! (Ialso love Happy Housewife– I see her badge on the sidebar).
Lindsey @ GrowingKidsMinistry.com
Welcome Lindsey! So glad you’re here.
Just stumbled upon your blog today and am sooo glad i did! Once again thank you pinterest! My husband and i are quite the same! We’ve made the choice of me staying home and him working for less at a much more steady job with more family time! I love your ideas and appreciate you sharing! Thank you!
Welcome Janice (and thank you Pinterest
)! I’m glad you’re here.
I just found your site today and I am loving it. We have 3 children under the age of 5 and find it hard to get away due to the cost of babysitting. Even if the date is free, we are hesitant to go out due to this. What did you do when your kids were little?
Hi Ginger! We did a couple of things. One was to trade with another couple. It works well when one family has children that are a little older so that neither family is overwhelmed when they babysit. I also taught Spanish lessons to a home schooled teenager in exchange for babysitting. Could you possibly clean someone’s house or provide another service in exchange for babysitting? For one five year perios, we also had family in the area for a little while who would babysit for us. You could also try asking someone who works in your church’s nursery if they would do childcare. Hope this helps.
I just discovered your blog and have enjoyed browsing through your Living on $28,000/yr series. My husband is a fireman, loves his job, but we live on about the same after taxes. We have 3 kids ages 3,6 and 9 and I’ve been home for the last 6yrs. I have my own photography business that brings in some extra income here and there for “fun” stuff. One thing that has helped us with date nights is that his parents have started giving us gift cards each Christmas. Instead of larger gifts like a new electronic (like they used to do) they now give us a little card book filled with gift cards to our favorite places to eat. Some are fast food and others are sit-down. We use about 1 a month or so to be able to go out on a nice date. Also, the big theaters here allowed firemen and policemen to see movies for free along with a date. They have recently stopped that deal but we took advantage of it for about 8 or 9 years! Now it’s redbox at home! Thank you for sharing your ideas. It’s encouraging to see how others are living on small incomes like ours!
Hana
the MomTog Diaries
I LOVE that gift idea Hana! Thanks for sharing.
Great Ideas! My husband and I are newlyweds and have already established a date night. It’s important to us both since we have custody of his ten-year-old daughter. She’s with her mother every Wednesday, so that’s our opportunity to go out. Since finances are tight sometimes, it’s nice to have ideas to go out together without spending much money.
Way to go Brittany! Making date night a priority will really help your marriage.
Hi there!
I just stumbled upon your blog about a week ago and have been returning about once daily to read a post or two, or three..
I have been reading your series on how to live on $28,000 a year and just printed off “the freedom account page” to start using it. I was curious as how you make it work because I barely get by. I’m engaged and will be married in 5 weeks, so stumbling upon your blog was a true God moment. I plan to start using your ideas and guidelines. My fiancé is a veteran, he was in the Air Force for six years, and I work retail, so our income is small. We don’t need much, but it sure is stressful at times. Thanks for being open about your finances to help others. Reading everything you post makes God appear more real and that he really does love us and wants the best for us.
I liked this post about date night ideas, and wanted to say that’s what my fiancé and I do almost every week! We love walking around old town Mesa and antique shopping (we don’t buy anything but we sure do like looking around). We splurged on a zoo membership pass, and we go once weekly to walk around and just be with each other.
God bless you! And thank you for your blog!
Your new reader,
LauraD
Welcome Laura! I am so glad that you found the blog.
God IS definitely real and He really does love you!