"dating " hubby budget ideas.........

[njcarita]

Husband and I decided to go out on a date once a week.....we need some together time desperately......afraid we are going to wake up one day , once the kids are grown..with "who the heck are you".....

so we are looking for budget idea....

so far last night we went to Friendlys...since they have the 9.99 meal deal....
we figure we will hit the movies one night before 6pm ( matinee prices).... walk into town when the weather is better and hit the icecream shop..... go biking now that it stays lighter later....... any other "deals " at any chain restaurants or ideas out there????

 

[lucigo]

Husband and I decided to go out on a date once a week.....we need some together time desperately......afraid we are going to wake up one day , once the kids are grown..with "who the heck are you".....

so we are looking for budget idea....

so far last night we went to Friendlys...since they have the 9.99 meal deal....
we figure we will hit the movies one night before 6pm ( matinee prices).... walk into town when the weather is better and hit the icecream shop..... go biking now that it stays lighter later....... any other "deals " at any chain restaurants or ideas out there????

Ok first of all who is Danny and why is he pooping in your head?

How about getting the kids to go somewhere and having a date at home?

 

[njcarita]

Ok first of all who is Danny and why is he pooping in your head?

How about getting the kids to go somewhere and having a date at home?

Danny Terrio ( Dance Fever) just popped in my head.... I mistakenly typed pooped and the Tag Fairy caught it before I could correct my spelling....
it was from one of my favorite threads "Bring back the good o' days, Things .......... Tag Fairy had a field day giving out tags from that thread ... here's the link http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1499800

 

[Leader of the Club]

Not sure where you are (we haven't seen a Friendly's in years!), but Texas Roadhouse has a great early bird special. O'Charley's has a two meal for 14.99 deal, but once you start adding drinks, tax and tip, its gonna add up.

Brainstorm some things cost little to no money.

* a visit to the library to look through books together--start your own little book club!
* work together on a volunteer project. It doesn't have to be a big production, just go over to an elderly neighbor and clean up the yard, plant some flowers
* go bowling. I've been buying Tony's pizza for afterschool snacks and on the back are coupons for FREE bowling
*take up a new hobby. We like birdwatching. After the expense of new binoculars and a field guide, there is no other cost really. and its fun to build your list together.
* visit your local park or nature center. We have great ones here with trails, educational programs, lectures, etc., all for FREE
* Check with your local YMCA or parks and rec. Many offer classes. You could learn ballroom dance, line dancing, wood working, beginner Japanese or something else fun for little money.
*If you have a public university in your area see what they offer to the public. We have been to great FREE movie screenings, concerts, dance recitals, plays, lectures and sporting events.
*and when all else fails, just sit in the park together and hold hands and watch the sun set. You won't even need to talk.

 

[ACS228]

My husband and I discovered Pizza Hut has a meal deal for 2 salad bars, a medium pizza and 2 sodas for $19.99. After that we go to a local movie theatre that plays 2nd run movies for 2 bucks each. Its out favorite budget date night!

 

[StephMK]

Ah, my kids LOVE Friendlys, we don't have one and always have to go when we visit my parents!

How about -

- a picnic
-walk along a body of water or mountains - whatever you have available
-TGIF Fridays & Applebees often run 2 for $20 dinner specials
-visit a local museum
-DH loves Sonic, once we just went there on a date & they had a dinner deal & we sat in the car & chatted

-hobby or sport you can share - tennis, running, train for a race, etc., golf or mini-golf could be fun

 

[puffkin]

Miniature Golf is cheap and it is much more competitive with no kids. We also like to do the driving range even though we are terrible at it.

We love movies so that is usually our first choice too. We actually met at the movie theater (worked there) so it is a special place for us.

We also like to do game nights with friends. Bottle of wine and some board games, can't get cheaper than that.

 

[MickeyMomOfThree]

I LOVE to hear you went to Friendly's, good for job security (that is who my DH works for!)

Anyway, we started several years doing this as well. It is amazing for a marriage. I am totally head over heels for my DH after 19 years together and I credit getting away with him the reason. BUT, we are on a budget, so I can relate.
One thing we go (in fact I will be meeting him at 11:30 today is meetfor lunch. It may not be evening out romantic, but we look forward to it. Out place for lunch is Uno (if you have one.) They have lucnh deals that start at $5.99 and you get all you can eat soup or salad with it. Their soups are amazing!!! I usually eat a bowl of french onion and a bowl of broccoli and bring my lunch home. Then at least half the time we get a survey on our receipt and if you do it you get $5 off so today we will use that so one of our lunches is about free! We also love their happy hour deals including mini pizzas for like $3! If you join their insiders club you often get B1G1 dinners so we can both have a steak dinner for $10 (plus a nice tip of course!)

We also go to Outback, which may not seem budget but they have dinners for $9.99 including a small steak with 2 sides! We usually spend a little more because I like the $10 steak byt DH likes prime rib for $15 but still not too bad and we usually split a drink and those run like $6 but we love a good Wallaby Darned! Still not too bad though. You can also join them on Facebook and get a free appetiser when you do and often will get them on your receipt too.

There is a little dessert place we love to go to if we don't want to go to dinner or need to save a few bucks. We sit for a long time enjoying dessert and a coffee for DH and an Italian Soda for me. It's quiet, romantic and a treat we usually try to avoid.

We like to go out for breakfast and then a walk in the park. (Did you notice those new breakfasts when you were at Friendly's??? YUM!!!!)

When it is nice out we will go for a long walk. Good for us mentally and physically (unless of course we walk to get ice cream!)

We pack a picnic or hit Subway and take it to the beach to eat (OK not recently, but in the summer we do.)

I would sign up online or on Facebook or both for every place you like to go because they will send you coupons!!!

We go to the cheap movies if you have one of those, if not we go to the early show for $5. Also, bowling isn't too bad and fun! And like a PP said, Mini Golf is way more competitive without the kids!

If money is tight we will get the kids a movie to watch in the other room from Redbox and get us our own and cuddle up on the couch and watch that. It's nice, cheap and better then not having a date at all!

When all else fails, and we just need a break, we will go grocery shopping together. (Not a big shopping, DH wouldn't like that, but a small shopping trip he can handle.) We will sit in the coffee area first and he will have a coffee and I will have anything but coffee (a smoothie or something) and we will talk and decompress and then we will get what we need before goinghome to being mom and dad again. Again, not ultra romantic, but it gts us away sometimes when the kids are making us crazy.

We do a MINIMUM of one date a week. Like I said, it has changed me. It gives me something to always look forward to during a stressful week. I lvoe it, it's great! I need to get in the shower now, I have a lucnh date with my hubby and a bowl of really good french onion soup !

 

[jlm]

One of the best dates my dh and I were on recently:

Went to a local bar that served 1.00 tap beer.
Played a game of pool 1.50
Had two beers 2.00
total date: 3.50!! We had the best time!! We are a bit rusty on our pool game-laughed the whole time.

We have also sent the kids to Grandma's and rented a redbox movie for 1.07 and made popcorn~

Jen

 

[leight]

How about pairing up with another family and making babysitting swap nites? That way each family gets the chance to have at least one date nite a month?

DH & I loved doing afternoon dates where we could go do activities that normally included the kids but can make a couple feel like we're dating again. Pack a lunch and some old (or cheap) bread and go to the park and feed the ducks. Walk around the mall and buy an icecream or fav coffee. We love looking at model homes or stopping in at open houses- get great decorating ideas.

Inexpensive dates - check your local high school and go to a football game or buy tickets to the school play. Check with your library for any sponsored trips-they are usually very inexpensive although it does usually include a bus trip.

Go to the zoo, museum, arboretium. Things you would normally do with the kids and get bored because the kids are the focus.

Rent a movie, make steaks with special sides, have fondue for two or another special dessert.

 

[cjnix29]

Try restaurant.com. We use these all the time for date nights! We also do in house date nights. Kids go to friend's houses, we redbox a movie, order in...and voila!

 

[PrincessSuzanne]

Sign up for the TGIFriday's Stripes card and get some great cojupons e-mail to you. We usually get B1G1 and can eat tax and tip for $15-$20 depending on if I get a dessert or not.

Smokey Bones has a card and some great combo meals starting at $9.99 and we have been getting coupons for $10 off for several weeks, last weekend we ate for $14.79 including tax, I gave a large tip, since we had a great waitress.

Dh and I are going to start going fishing together. We have hit some great sales at a couple of Bass Pro Shops and picked up gear and tackle for next to nothing, now we just need to get our fishing license and some better weather and we will be set. We are pretty close to some great fishing spots. We will pack a picnic lunch and just spend the day together..

We do have an advantage though, we don' t have children and we try to spend every weekend Dh is off doing something together.

Suzanne

 

[ohanaMAMA]

My honey and I are "daters" too. We both had a child from a previous relationship when we were married so we try to go on "date nights" often. We consider our marriage a living breathing entity. Ya gotta feed it or it will die!

We love to go to Barnes and Noble and find a cozy corner with a coffee and some books. We chat and read.

We go to our local 2nd run movie house.

we both enjoy shopping so we "window shop"

we live near Myrtle Beach and for a splurge in the off season we get a room at a place with an indoor pool/hot tub usually for around $45 a night. We order pizza and play in the hot tubs.... its an AWESOME getaway and cheap too!

 

[beansmom]

picnic! It's cheap and easy. We keep a basket, blanket and battery powered radio in the car for nice days just so we can picnic. We also do 'tea' for dinner on the patio together...finger sandwiches, fruit, cheese--quick and easy.

DH and I take bubble baths together...candles, a glass of wine, some soft music...it's doesn't get more romantic than that. We also make a point to turn off the tv, leave the family room where his work station is and goin lay on the chaise in the front room and look outthe skylights at the stars and just talk about nothing for a while.

Walks in the woods, park, whatever. We also do lunches together...sometimes we sneak home in the middle of the day for some fun then go back to work.

We use restaurant.com coupons to go to our local nouvelle cuisine bistro for a special night. Even just going for ice cream is fun with the right person.

 

[Leleluvsdis]

Dh and I's favorite thing to do is get a pizza and salad kit and rent a movie. It's so relaxing and you don't have to get dressed up, and you don't have to feel rushed when eating.

 

[beansmom]

we live near Myrtle Beach and for a splurge in the off season we get a room at a place with an indoor pool/hot tub usually for around $45 a night. We order pizza and play in the hot tubs.... its an AWESOME getaway and cheap too!

I also second this! It's not SUPER budget but we go an hour and half outta town, get a room at a fabulous b&b (for half of the 'season' rates) that includes afternoon tea, a kingsize bed, a 2person jacuzzi, woodburning fireplace, made to order breakfast served in bed on a silver tray. It is such indulgent luxury! It's about $135 a nite but with the tea and breakfast, we don't go out to eat anything else...we just relax in the jacuzzi and lay in bed and read or snuggle or.....

 

[jofo]

Bank of America has a promotion where you can get in free to a number of museums the first full weekend of every month. You must show a BofA credit card or ATM card (I believe you need one per person, not one per couple, although I'm not positive):

museums.bankofamerica.com

 

[Sadie22]

We've done the early bird special movies for years, but we only go to a theater a couple of times a year! We've been borrowing DVDs from the local library.

 

[vicki_c]

When all else fails, and we just need a break, we will go grocery shopping together. (Not a big shopping, DH wouldn't like that, but a small shopping trip he can handle.) We will sit in the coffee area first and he will have a coffee and I will have anything but coffee (a smoothie or something) and we will talk and decompress and then we will get what we need before goinghome to being mom and dad again. Again, not ultra romantic, but it gts us away sometimes when the kids are making us crazy.

Based on your location - I can just see you 2 sitting in those comfy little chairs at Wegman's! I wish our Wegman's was close enough that we could do that.

And to the OP - my husband and I (although we haven't had a date night for a zillion years) used to like to go to Barnes & Noble sometimes and just browse without the kids. You're not exactly TOGETHER all the time while you're in the store, I guess, but it was still a nice escape and if you didn't buy (or buy much) it's not too expensive. And they have a coffee bar there and desserts.

edited: oh - I just realized ohanaMAMA said the same thing about B&N! I like her -- good choice!

 

[vsimeone]

DH and I started doing this about 6 years ago. We go to Don Pablos every Friday night. Happy Hour beers are $1.50 and margaritas are $3. We usually get a few drinks and an appetizer (or dinner if we're hungry). There is a Borders in the same plaza so we usually go either there or Starbucks afterwards for coffee. If we go to Borders, we each get a stack of magazines and read and chat.

It's a dirt cheap Friday night and it has done SO MUCH to help us reconnect!

Have a GREAT time on your dates!