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When you have kids, date night usually goes out the window! But now the little guy is a bit bigger, Date night is back on the menu. 

10 Fun, budget date night ideas so that no matter how broke you are you can always work on your relationship!

It’s important to share meaningful time together and have fun in a relationship and you should take time out of the hustle and bustle of life to connect with each other. That being said, we aren’t made of money! (I might have mentioned it!) and most people think of date nights as getting a babysitter, dressing up and going someplace extravagant or to a nice dinner.  Personally, I like to try new things, get outdoors (when I can) and be creative about ways to spend time together without spending a lot of money.

Here’s a few fun and frugal ideas to get you started:

1.Feed the ducks

We live near a local water lagoon where there are plenty of ducks (although you aren’t allowed to feed them so we have to go to a local lake for that hehe) but it’s fun to give them names and create duck stories (we aren’t crazy I swear). Why not take a couple of sandwiches for yourself or pack a picnic lunch and next time you visit you can see if you can spot your favorite ducks!

Feed the ducks - 10 Fun, Budget Date Night Ideas

2. Stargazing

You can do this one as a family if you want too but it’s great to snuggle up and check out the sky on a clear night with a glass of wine (ahem bottle). You can also download free constellation apps and see if you can spot any famous ones, you can see if you can see your star signs too!

Stargazing - 10 Fun, Budget Date Night Ideas

3. Create a Vine or video

Re-enact how you first met, create a vine or get miming to your favorite songs, you should post it to social media (so your friends can enjoy it too) but if not just keep it for yourself whenever you want a giggle! There are a ton of couple video challenges on YouTube that you can check out (letting your husband do your make-up is always hilarious) but either way having fun and laughing is key!

4. Karaoke 

This is not something my husband or I would (or should- love you) do because neither of us can carry a tune but we love listening to other couples doing karaoke, if they are great then we enjoy the music and if they aren’t we hilariously bond over how we could (but never would) do it better! It’s a win, win.

5. Workout

The couple who sweats together, stays together and in our house a workout would be like date night! My husband is a cycling nut! His bike is practically his second (probably first) wife and running is more my thing but when we try each others sport we get a great varied workout and appreciate the effort!

workout - 10 Fun, Budget Date Night Ideas
I wish this was us but we are nowhere near that graceful haha!

6. Build a fort

You should all know how much I love to build a fort because my frugal activities for your kids post shares one of our creations. But who says they are limited to kids! Make an adult pillow fort, throw on a movie and stuff your faces with popcorn, it’s the best bonding ever!

7. Candlelit dinner

If you are foodies (like we are) you can still have a restaurant experience from home! Experiment with new dishes, flavors and cook together, it’s a great way of chatting freely and you may even have leftovers! Eat by candlelight at the table and you’ll have a better atmosphere than any restaurant, with none of the cost!

romantic dinner - 10 Fun, Budget Date Night Ideas

8. Board Games

I know it sounds ridiculous playing scrabble, chess or Boggle in this day and age but we are a competitive bunch and sometimes we just enjoy thrashing each other at games (we can’t help it) admittedly though a lot of them are played on the iPad rather in person but they work just as well!

9. Photography challenge

If you know me, you know I love a selfie – my husband, on the other hand, loathes having his photo taken so will always take photos of what we are doing! (or the cats, the little guy or anything but himself) You can try and capture the best image and edit them together, it’s quite fun to show your creative sides together! Plus when you are searching for the best picture you can explore the city or area and go on an adventure!

photography challenge - 10 Fun, Budget Date Night Ideas

10. TV Marathon

You are already paying for Netflix, you might as well use it! I know it’s not outside etc but sometimes there is nothing better than snuggling and delving into another world together. Pick something that looks like it is for you both and you will find yourselves on a journey and will have plenty to talk about.

Overall it doesn’t matter what you do, as long as you are together and it doesn’t have to cost a lot just have fun! Which reminds me, I’ve got to plan a date night soon! What are your favorite freebie date night ideas?

10 Fun, budget date night ideas so that no matter how broke you are you can always work on your relationship!

19 comments on “10 Fun, Budget Date Night Ideas”

  1. Stargazing is cheesy but it’s one of my favorites because you get to talk while under the stars! It’s really romantic! Thanks for all the other ideas!

  2. It’s great to know that we don’t have to skip date night. I love these affordable ideas.

  3. Omg so many cute and fun ideas!!!! Hubby and I are all about dinners at home and binge watching shows on Netflix!

  4. My husband and I love to watch documentaries. Total geeky thing to do, but we enjoy it 🙂 And making videos too – I love vlogging, it is fun!

  5. The most important thing about having a date night is quality time together. These are some great ideas. I especially love the stargazing and candle light dinner.

  6. Now that we need to pay a sitter, we really try to do things cheap. And you know what? These ideas are so much more fun!

  7. I am always on the hunt for better date ideas that don’t break the bank. I need to share some of these with my Husband. This weekend could be fun!

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