Simple Date Hacks That’ll Bring Newness and Spontaneity to Date Night
Are you a creature of habit? Do you and your spouse prefer sticking to what you know because it’s more comfortable? There’s nothing wrong with doing what you love because you know you’ll love it. But don’t let yourself get stuck in a rut, especially when it comes to dating your spouse. It’s vital to keep dating, even when you’re married, because that’s how you continue to learn about one another and stay connected amid the hecticness of life. So, we encourage you to make dating a priority, and when you want to switch it up, check out our nine easy date hacks to help bring something new, and even spontaneous, to your next date!
An Easy Date Hack for Deciding Where To Eat
An Easy Date Hack That Taps Into How Well You Know Each Other
An Easy Date Hack That’ll Send You on a Dinner Adventure
An Easy Date Hack for Those With a Sweet Tooth
An Easy Date Hack for Those on a Budget
An Easy Date Hack for Those Who Want the Thinking Done for Them
An Easy Date Hack To Capture This Specific Season of Your Marriage
An Easy Date Hack for a Non-Dinnertime Date
An Easy Date Hack That’ll Keep You on Your Toes
An Easy Date Hack for Deciding Where To Eat
Breakfast, lunch, and dinner dates are a fun and easy way to spend quality time together, but if you ever run into this, “Where do you want to eat?”; “I don’t know. Where do you want to eat?”; “I don’t know,” we’re here to save the day with this simple hack.
- Pick three restaurants.
- Have your spouse narrow it down to two options.
- Pick your favorite of the two options, and eat there!
An Easy Date Hack That Taps Into How Well You Know Each Other
Don’t just settle for a date over a meal. Instead, get out of the house, and try this date challenge to see how well you know each other.
- Pick a store of your choice to go to together. Target and Walmart are good options.
- Split up, and spend time searching for one item in each of the following categories to surprise your spouse with. Make sure to set some ground rules. What’s your budget? What’s your time limit? Are you searching for all 10 items, or do you want to just pick five?
- Something that’s their favorite color
- One of their favorite snacks
- One of their favorite drinks
- Something they need
- Something you want them to try
- Something that reminds you of them
- Something that will make them laugh
- Something related to their favorite hobby
- Something they would wear
- Something for the upcoming season
- Have fun thinking about your better half, and get creative with the items you select for them!
- Meet back up, and decide where you want to exchange your gifts whether at the store, at dinner, or at home.
An Easy Date Hack That’ll Send You on a Dinner Adventure
Get ready to tackle our 4 Course Meal Challenge. You and your spouse will play four rounds of rock paper scissors. The winner of each round will decide what you’re drinking and eating during your 4 course meal. Decide ahead of time as a pair if you’re choosing to do takeout, drive-thrus, or sit-down restaurants. You might do a mixture of all three.
Round 1: Drinks
Round 2: Appetizers
Round 3: Entrées
Round 4: Desserts
For example, if your spouse wins round one, they may choose to get drinks at Chick-fil-A. Then, if you win round two, you might choose to grab a chips and queso appetizer at your favorite Mexican restaurant. The possibilities are endless! Enjoy the time spent moving from place to place as you fill up on good food. Then, head home with full bellies and fun memories.
An Easy Date Hack for Those With a Sweet Tooth
Dates can be as creative as you make them. Remember, you don’t have to do anything extravagant to spice things up a bit. Try this simple hack to make any old date unique—order dessert first and dinner last!
How often have you gotten to the end of your meal and you’re too full for dessert? Not this time! Next time you go out for lunch or dinner, skip the appetizer section of the menu, and head straight to the desserts. Pick one to order first.
Then, once you curb your sweet tooth, order your entrées. Who says you have to finish your meal before you get dessert?! It’s OK to change the rules for date night every now and then.
An Easy Date Hack for Those on a Budget
We like to call this easy date hack the Cheap Date Challenge. Fun dates don’t have to cost a lot of money. Try this challenge, and see what ideas you and your spouse come up with. Go old school and look for spare change—search your laundry room, couch cushions, pant pockets, car, and wherever else you think extra money or change may be lying around.
If you’re thinking, “Cash…what’s that?”, check your Venmo balance. Use whatever money you find to plan a fun date. You might only have enough to get dinner at Taco Bell or buy something at Five Below, but that’s the point—how creative can you get with a little spare change?
An Easy Date Hack for Those Who Want the Thinking Done for Them
It’s easier than you think to discover out-of-the-box date ideas near you. Bookmark these four websites, so you can quickly pick a fun date when you’re running out of ideas.
An Easy Date Hack To Capture This Specific Season of Your Marriage
When was the last time you had nice photos taken together? There doesn’t need to be a special occasion, like a wedding, to capture photos with your spouse. Mix things up! Schedule a photo shoot date to capture memories you’ll cherish for years to come. One day, you’ll look back and reflect on how much you’ve both grown in your marriage.
An Easy Date Hack for a Non-Dinnertime Date
It’s so easy to get in the habit of thinking dates must be over dinner or at nighttime once the kids have gone to bed. But, we’ve got another simple hack for you to switch it up. Dates don’t have to be at dinnertime—take your spouse on a date in the morning, or really get wild and go on a date with your spouse for no other reason than it’s a Tuesday at noon.
Look at your calendars, and find space to go on a date at a time that’s out of the ordinary. Are you a stay-at-home mom or dad? Hire a babysitter from 1 – 3 p.m. and see if your spouse can take a half day off work. Date idea—go see a matinee movie…it’s cheaper! Or, send a surprise text (when you know they don’t have a big business meeting), “Meet me outside at 11:30 a.m. I’m taking you to lunch!”
Just because “everyone goes on dates on Friday night” doesn’t mean you can’t date your better half at another time. Get creative!
An Easy Date Hack That’ll Keep You on Your Toes
If you and your spouse already switch back and forth on who plans dates, try also switching back and forth on your date location. Aim to go on at least two dates each month. Let one of you plan a date at home, and have the other plan a date out. Next month, switch.
“Stay at Home Date” Ideas To Get You Started:
- Dust off your cookbook. Fan the pages of the book, and have your spouse say, “Stop.” Open that page, and get to cooking!
- Turn up the heat, and indulge in an at-home spa day. Slather on face masks, run a bubble bath, and give each other massages.
“Date Night Out” Ideas To Get You Started:
- Reenact your first date. Reminisce on your relationship over coffee, dinner, or whatever you did together for the first time.
- Learn a new skill—sign up for a cooking, dancing, or pottery making class you can experience with one another.
Are you feeling inspired to think of a new, creative date? We hope so! What other unique ideas will you and your spouse come up with? Remember to tag us in your pictures @winshapemarriage. We’d love to see your cool adventures!
