Lesson: As parents of young children who are very particular about whom we allow to babysit, my husband and I have pretty much mastered the art of having “date night” at home. With the busyness that comes with being a parent, it can be very difficult to connect with your spouse no matter the age of your children. Children require a lot of time and energy and if we aren’t purposeful about planning out undivided time for our spouse, we can get lost in the demands of parenthood and damage our marriage in the process.

I am a firm believer in putting effort into balancing and “feeding” the many roles and responsibilities of life in order to be the best whole person you can be. It’s not selfish to take time for yourself or spouse, it’s actually one of the best things you can do for your children. The more fulfilled and balanced you are, the better parent you will be for your children!

If you are anything like me and you are hesitant to drop off your little ones at someone’s house for a sleepover in order to get a date in, then being creative for a nice date at home after the children are asleep is the way to go. Don’t get me wrong; when Nana is ready for a sleepover with her grandchildren we take full advantage of a date out as well. 🙂

Nevertheless, lately most of our dates are at home. Here are 7 easy and practical ideas that we’ve done or plan to do in the future for “date night” at home. All of them are designed for a loving and enjoyable evening with the one you love:

1. Cooking a meal together: This is one of my favorites! My husband and I love a good meal and we’re not afraid to explore and be creative with trying and cooking new foods. Our favorite is surf and turf, which we tend to choose most of the time. 🙂 We set a nice table and light some candles once we’re done cooking for a nice candlelight dinner.
2. Spa night at home: Prior to having our youngest children, my husband and I were fortunate enough to get a masseuse to bring their table to our home and give us each a massage at home. It was amazing! Today we would probably be more practical and give each other spa services. J A nice massage or pedicure/manicure would be a great way to relax and pamper each other.
3. Dance: We usually build in slow dancing into our dinner date nights. We have a “husband and wife” music playlist that we turn on during our date night and after dinner we slow dance, usually in front of the fireplace.
4. Karaoke: We haven’t done this one yet but I had this idea after having a great time singing karaoke with my husband’s family when we went to visit them out west. We love to laugh at ourselves and be silly, so I think this would be fun to do for a “date night.”
5. Take a bubble bath: This one is pretty self-explanatory. It’s enjoyable and relaxing. Picking out a bubble bath, bath oil or bath salts that you both like is the hardest part. Light a few candles and you are off to a relaxing and enjoyable date. 🙂
6. Work on a dream journal together: My husband and I love to dream out loud and I am very visual, so pictures speak to me. We put pictures in our journal. This is totally a bonding experience! Sharing your hopes, desires and dreams for your future and the future of your family brings you together and puts you on the same page in this journey of life.
7. Learn a new hobby together: This is something that we’ve talked about but we haven’t done yet. We have to decide on a shared hobby that we’d bother like first. 🙂

A few other ideas are games, movies and even a picnic in the backyard on a blanket if you have the space. I recently heard about something called Date Night Box. It’s basically a company that will provide you with everything you need for a creative date at home all in one box. I haven’t done any research on this yet so this isn’t an endorsement, just another idea you might want to look into. At the end of the day just spending quality time together is the ultimate goal even if that means just sitting down looking into each other’s eyes and talking about something other than your children. 🙂

Application: The next time you find yourself missing undivided attention with your spouse, designate a night, decide on an activity that you will both enjoy, put the kids to sleep and make it happen! Side note: This is the time when having your kids on scheduled bedtimes works to your benefit! 🙂