Romantic Date Nights At Home For Parents

Date nights for Parents.

Making time for your partner or spouse is important for any relationship but once children are involved it becomes so much harder. There’s no getting around it, kids are exhausting and at the end of the day, sometimes all you wanna do is climb in bed, often leaving no time for you both to work on your relationship.Even if you have the energy for a date, you might not be able to get a babysitter. But dates don’t have to be out of the house and away from the kids.
Liam and I have pledged to make at least one night a month, a romantic date night, at home. Just for us. No phones and gadgets, just a bit of time to spend with each other. Here are some ideas of ways you can stay at home and still feel like you’ve spent some quality time with your other half.

Ambience

Tidy up first. It can be hard to concentrate on your partner when the living room is scattered with kids toys. Vacuum, wash up. At the very least, get it to point where you can forget about it. You don’t want to be cuddling while all your thinking about is the big pile of washing up that needs doing. Then, set the mood. Soft lighting, scented candles, maybe a cosy throw to snuggle in.

Dress to impress

Have a shower. Wear a little perfume/cologne, your favourite underwear. Ladies: Do your hair and makeup. Gents: put a shirt on, or something nice. Do exactly what you would do if you were actually going out-out. Make sure you compliment each other too.

Conversation

TV/Radio off. Phones down. Talk. Talk about your day (keep work/kids talk to a minimum). You could talk about the future. Play ‘would you rather’. Talk about your dream house. What would you do if you won the lottery? If you have differing views on religion and politics.. don’t bring them up. There is a time and a place, date night is not it.

Meal

If you didn’t eat together, was it even a date?
Order in your favourite takeaway, cook something together or get one of those ‘2 dine meal deal’ thingies from M&S. Set the table with candles and sit opposite each other. Perhaps you could have a living room picnic. A bottle of wine or your favourite tipple will just make it a bit more special and make it feel a bit more like a treat.

 

Games

Liam and I often play scrabble on our home date nights but there are loads of other games you can play. 20 questions anyone? Or how about charades? Card games are simple and only require a pack of cards. You could even use the kids toys and build lego together (or race each other). Play Twister. Want something a little steamier? What about strip trivia? Or strip anything for that matter!

Movie

Watch something on Netflix or download something new to watch. If you cant agree watch 2 and pick one each. Get some cushions and a blanket, a bowl of popcorn and get cosy.

Dance

Get your favourite ballad album, put the music channel on, play your wedding song, or create a date night playlist on Spotify. You may feel like a complete tit but who cares, it’s just the two of you and even if you laugh at yourself, at least you’re laughing, right?

Try something new

Get a block of clay and try and create something together. Have a cheese tasting evening. If you have separate hobbies, maybe take the time to share them for example if you like to crochet, teach your partner how to make something simple like a granny square. They could then teach you how to draw or play an instrument.

Something a bit naughty

Have a romantic bath together with bubbles, candles and oils. Give each other a massage. Get some of those love dice with different actions. Talk about your fantasies.  Take it upstairs….. Oh, come on, use your imagination. Don’t make me spell it out for you…. Sex is important. Don’t let life get in the way of it just because you’re tired or busy. Make the effort. It’ll be worth it.