Last year I co-hosted the Revive Date Night series and I knew that I wanted to organize it again this year. Do you know what happened though? Bottom line–life got busy. Guess what though–life is always going to be busy! If you keep waiting for life to slow down so you can do this or that, you’re probably going to be waiting a pretty long time and if you’re anything like me by then you’ll have forgotten what it is you were waiting for. I’m just keeping it real folks. This post is part of a collaboration with PinkBlush, all opinions are completely my own.
However, whether you have no kids yet or ten, whether you’re newly wed or nearly dead, no matter how busy you are or aren’t, I believe that continuing to date your spouse after marriage is vital to a happy and healthy relationship. So all this month (the month of my wedding anniversary!) I’ll be sharing some posts about dating and I hope you’ll follow along!
how to revive date night
I’m fairly certain most of us have experienced hoops that we have to jump through for date night. I think this is why so often we fall into the routine of just skipping it all together. It’s important to keep in mind that there is no one right way to have date night. So if a babysitter isn’t available or funds are tight, what are some realistic ways that we can still throw on a great new top and make date night happen?
| Read : 10 Unique and Budget-friendly Date Night Ideas |
have date night after kids go to bed
One of the simplest things you can do is plan an at-home date night after the kids have gone to bed. Once they’re tucked in you could rent a movie, get some take out, or have a game night. The most important thing is that you actually do spend time together rather than on your electronic devices or working. Do you have a favorite at-home date?
have a family date night
Another fun option is to plan a family date night where you can separate from the kiddos a little bit. Go to Chick-fil-A and enjoy dinner together while the kids play. Take the kids to see a family-friendly movie at the drive-in and sit outside the car catching up. Go to a indoor playground (like a trampoline place) and sit together while the kids go crazy. Go bowling and rent two lanes side-by-side. What other ideas do you have?
swap babysitting with another couple
If funds are too tight for a babysitter then consider swapping babysitting with another couple, my bet is that you have some friends who are in the same boat as you are. If you each watched each other’s kids once a month then you’d have a guaranteed date night, and your kids would be able to have some fun with friends too! Have you ever swapped babysitting before?
| Read: Revive Date Night at Studio Movie Grill |
Thank you to PinkBlush for this fun and bright nursing-friendly top! The shade of pink was even better in person and I love how comfortable it is. It’s also great for wearing all day and then dressing up for date night!
How do you revive date night?
13 Responses to revive date night… realistically
I have to be honest. My husband and I have had maybe 3 dates in the last 12 years. But…. we do go for coffee or breakfast/lunch occasionally when the girls are out. We make the best of our time together.
I am getting so into family date nights! My kids are 6 and 9 and are actually at an age where they are fun to hang out with!
Swapping babysitting is a genius idea! That way you’re not spending all of your date night budget on the babysitter, so smart. Love that top by the way, the pink is gorgeous on you!
These are really great insights and ideas. I’m not yet married, and have no kids, but I definitely look forward to being able to do this when I am.
I love this. Matt and I have been working hard to keep date night alive, especially in this last year. We haven’t yet tried swapping date nights with another family, but that sounds like a great idea to me! Stay at home date nights have been key for us, we have one every week. (sometimes more than that.)
So excited to follow along, we are fortunate enough to have family nearby who watch our kids so we can have a weekly date night, I know not everyone has that. So true that life get’s so busy, man it takes effort to prioritize our spouse. I love your Chik-fil-A family date idea.
We love doing at home dates after the kids go to bed too! Its hard with 2 kids to get out and date your husband. I can’t imagine doing it with 5!
love this. We’re big fans of date night. Actually, my husband brought up date night hte other day and said he wants to plan on going on one every three weeks. I wasn’t expecting him to say that at all, but I’m so excited that he’s invested in us and badly wants to spend time with just me 🙂 Can’t wait!!
Love this, need to put a post together for this!! When is genlink up going to happen?
These area all great ideas! We most recently had family come over after I put the baby down for bed and stay with our toddler/get him to bed while we went out and it was wonderful! We need to do that more often! I’m also a big fan of movie nights at home!
I really, really, need to find another family to swap babysitting with! LOL
These are such great tips!! Swapping babysitting with another couple is SUCH a great idea..we started doing it last year and it was the best!!
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