Stay-at-Home Date Night
Carving out alone time with your partner and allowing yourselves to reconnect is so important to maintaining a healthy long-term relationship. When you have kids, especially in a pandemic, it can be really difficult (both financially and logistically) to get out of the house for a date with your partner.
To combat the tendency to fall into the rut of always being in parent-mode my husband and I have started to have stay-at-home date nights, where we can actually have a conversation with each other and put a little romance into our lives. Here are some tips for creating a home-bound date night of your own!
Create a romantic atmosphere. Choose a location in your home that you don’t normally use for meals, either indoors or outdoors. Make sure it is cleaned up and free from any toys or clutter. You can add pillows, flowers, tea lights or other touches to help create that romance. I have created a fancy picnic on the living room floor to keep things fun and unexpected.
Make it special. Use the fancy china and the good napkins. Open a nice bottle of wine or make a fancy mock-tail. If you get takeout, take the food out of the containers and plate it on your own dishes.
Switch it up. Do something a little different every time. If one week you make an elaborate cheese board, the next week get takeout from your favorite restaurant.
Make the effort. Having a date at home is a great opportunity for you and your partner to show each other some love. If you do a weekly date-night try alternating who does the set-up and planning. Dress up for your partner; pretend you are going somewhere really special, even if it really is just your living room.
Have fun!
