And no money.
There is no shame in being poor, but sometimes it kinda sucks. Especially those times when you want to do something real romantic, like a weekend beach get-away, or a moonlit dinner cruise, or heck, maybe just dinner and a movie. All those options become a moot point when finances dictate some of the most humdrum aspects of your life. Like groceries and gasoline. My husband and I have our priorities in the right place and definitely value groceries that will provide us with dinner for the next two weeks over seeing the next super-hero movie or eating at the swank restaurant that has a dress code requirement. Besides, the car needs new tires next month.
So what is a couple to do? I say do not despair! Even if you don't live near a lovely beach or near a scenic national park, there are creative solutions to this problem. I call them dollar dates! Most of them can be done with just a few gallons of gas and a few dollars in your pocket. They generally don't need much advance prep work and can even be done with kids in tow. But a word warning, these dates require a little bit of creativity, a good sense of humor and a willingness to break away from the stereo types of dates. If you are ready to get creative - read on!
- Picnic at the park. Requirements - decent weather. Bag to put food stuff in. Maybe a blanket. Even if the kids are just having a few hours with grandparents, you can slip away, sit down and relax. Want to make it even more exciting, pick a park that you have never visited or that has a view. Pack food that you would not pack if your kids were going, like fancy cheese. Or in our case, flaming hot potato chips.
- Mall coffee! Sounds weird, but can be a whole lot of fun. Don't even need good weather if you go to an indoor mall. You will need a few dollars for a cup of coffee and a bench or table to sit an talk and people watch. My husband and I once spent part of an afternoon talking and laughing over people's choice in footwear.
- Free concerts in the park. Nothing says romantic like a free concert in the park. You can just sit and listen and be together. Oaklee's Family Guide can be a great resource to find these hidden free gems (you don't have to have kids in tow to enjoy), but just about any internet surf can help you uncover free concerts. Too cold for the park - look to local park districts - they often have free concert events.
- Take a tour! Often an internet search will yield a free tour going on in your area. It may be a garden walk, a theater tour or a winery. Not seeing any of these, create your own. There are historic districts to walk through, scenic river byways and even churches that are open to courteous visitors. Tours can be taken on foot, on bike or even from the comfort of your car (well not church tours, they frown on bikes or cars in their facilities).
- Check out the community calendar! Events often abound just a short distance away. Is there a fall festival in town? How about a historic rendezvous at the forest preserve. Without the kids, you might get a chance to watch a demonstration of basket weaving or ask questions about raising goats! Imagine, just you and your spouse enjoying the art fair and no one gets bored. Or perhaps checking out a car show without having to worry that someone will touch all the cars!
- Like to treasure hunt? How about Geocaching? Our forest preserve district offers a Geocaching Passport to collect stickers and a Trackable Geocoin. There are also apps are available for smart phones as well as websites with directions if this catches your fancy. You may need to fuel your vehicle for the excursion, but pack snacks and drinks and you could be off to explore the world.
- Seek and find that elusive restaurant you have a gift card for. Too expensive for dinner even with a gift card? Just stop for dessert and coffee. Mid afternoons are great times to do this. Restaurants tend to be less busy and servers more relaxed.
- What's going on at the library? Libraries often have programs free of charge. Sometimes they are free movies. Sometimes live performances or musical concerts.
Hopefully now your imagination is fired up. Just think about what you as a couple like to do. Not sure what that is anymore, try experimenting, maybe you will find a new interest together.
What did we do with our romantic weekend? We toured the local historic movie theater. Really neat to see the backstage and learn a little history. Tour included the theater facility as well as a behind the scenes peep at the bowling alley located in the same building. Later that afternoon we went and saw a band concert in a cool forest preserve that we had never visited before. If we had wanted to spend a few bucks, they sold wine and food too! Concert was great. Location was pretty. We were relaxed.
Then we stayed in an area hotel - for free! Last Christmas at the office holiday party we had won two bottles of South African wine. Not being wine drinkers, we swapped with friends who won a free night at the Holiday Inn...down the block from their house! Everyone was happy. After sleeping in and eating the free hotel breakfast, we wandered over to the local Ikea, trying out all the couches, and opening all the drawers before we sat down and had a free cup of coffee in their cafe. (You can get one too - just stop at the Kiosk in the lobby and sign up for a free Ikea card!). Later we went exploring (kinda like Geocaching) to find a restaurant. We had a gift card begging to be used and the restaurant was not exactly close to home. Half the adventure was trying to find the place. Especially when we took a wrong turn into a neighborhood and our GPS keep telling us to make a u-turn. Despite the recalculating and u-turns, we only used about a quarter tank of gas all weekend. It may not have been margaritas on a beach, but it was fun, relaxing and an affordable way to spend time together.
And where was our darling daughter? Can you say sleep-over? On Friday night she attended a birthday party sleep-over. When one of my best friends heard that we were trying to plan an overnight for Saturday, she jumped in and offered to pick up our daughter from the sleepover and keep her until Sunday afternoon. It just happens that her daughter and my daughter are best buddies. All around happiness. I am more than happy to return the favor in the future and take her kids so they can also enjoy some well deserved couple time.
I highly recommend dollar dates. Sometimes the less spent, the more fun!
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