A Year of Dates with the Husband

As with every year, I put together an Easter basket for my husband.  Last year his basket was filled with BBQ goodies and tools, but this year - after some rough times - I felt more dates was just what our marriage needed.  After searching Pintrest, I stumbled across this blog post Life in general which inspired me to create my own year of dates. 

April - Minigolf and dinner out: I bought a gift card for two games of golf at our local mini golf as well as a gift certificate from Restaurant.com.  We have never eaten at Strings, so hopefully it is delicious! Total Cost: $18

May - Dinner at Sums (where we had our first date) and parking to watch the stars: Our first date was so memorable and we love this place for its Mongolian BBQ.  Up in the foothills of Northern California, it is not far from the Foresthill Bridge which offers stunning views and time for us to just sit and talk like we did so many years ago. I included a $20 bill for dinner.  Total cost: $20.

June - Bowling and cupcakes: Lucky us, Icing on the Cupcake and the local bowling alley are just a few blocks apart.  We can head over for a sweet treat and then go burn off the calories! Total cost: $25.50

July - Summer Sleepover: I loved the original bloggers idea and stuck with it.  I included a Blockbuster gift card and some Do You Know quiz books.  I bought the Bride and Groom versions before our wedding and thought they would be fun to try again. Total cost: $17

August - Picnic lunch and hike: We have been talking about taking hikes forever and I figured summer was the best time to fit this in.  In September we are running the Tough Mudder together and this may be great practice.  I included a book of local hikes and some Cliff Bars. Total cost: $11

September - This month we will be staying in for a special night with all my attention focused on my husband.  I have a bottle of Pink waiting for this month.  Total cost: Free, because the wine is in our wine cellar.

October - Disneyland anniversary trip: My husband has been asking for a trip to the 'Land for just the two of us so I am making it happen.  It is too early to make reservations for dinner so I just wrote a note to him.  I should have included a park map, but really, that exists in my head.  We will be doing the Mickey's Halloween Party on Friday night and dinner at the upscale Napa Rose on Saturday night.  Total cost: about $500.

November - Movie and Jamba Juice: November always seems to be the month of great movie releases so the plan is to check out one of them.  The last of the Twilight movies is coming out this month, I wonder if I can get the hubby to watch that one... Total cost: $40

December - Mall shopping date and comedy club: We have several free passes to Comedy Sportz that I have been itching to use.  This place is all improv and side-splittingly funny.  Before the show we can shop at the mall just down the street and maybe pick up a few last minute gifts for our sons.  Total cost: free

January - Dinner out, movie in: My husband loves sushi, but I am not a big fan of raw fish so we never end up going.  I thought it would be nice to pick up a gift certificate for a sushi dinnner.  Arigatos always has half-off sushi so you can eat a ton for not a lot of money.  Afterwards we will head home, put the boys to bed, and put on a movie from our massive collection. Total cost: $20

February - Home spa night: Tonight will be a night of pampering starting with foot soaks, foot massages, face masks, and a back massage.  We love Lush and I feel so lucky that it is in the local mall.  In this envelope I placed a massage bar, we have all of the other pampering goodies in our cupboards.  Total cost: $11

March - Subway and Rock climbing: I loved this idea from the original blogger the best, but am a little bummed we have to wait so long to go.  I may just cheat and go this summer while I am not teaching.  I included $10 since our local wall, the Roseville Sports Center, has a $5 drop in fee per person, a carabeaner, and a Subway gift card.  Total cost: $30.
       
I am hoping we get the time to go on more dates and I have many other ideas for dates and weekends away.

Other date ideas:

• Rivercats Game, Minor League Baseball - head over for a baseball game, complete with hot dogs and beer!
• Lazer Tag and Go Carts - act like kids again and spend the night chasing each other
• County fair - we love the Nevada County Fair in beautiful Grass Valley, CA
• Horseback riding - rent horses and take a tour around local trails
• Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk - drive down for a day in the fun and sun.
• Winchester Mystery House tour
• Hot cocoa and firepit - make some hot chocolate and sit and chat by the firepit
• Geocaching adventure - seach for local geocaching; find something to be your "marker"
• Go see a local play - Support local artists by catching a play
• Vintage Craft Fair - every Spring in Old Roseville.  This year April 21st from 8-4.
• Lake Tahoe sledding date - steal the kids sled and head up for sledding, snowmen, and snowangles.
• Apple Hill trip to taste wine - Apples galore at this event up Highway 50 in California.  The apple pie and apple beer are also fun things to sample.
• Drive in movies - pack some snacks and drinks and head over to one of the last remaining drive-ins.
• Movie marathon - Maybe I can suck it up and spend the day watching Lord of the Rings with my husband.
• Run a race together - we are running the Tough Mudder together, but maybe you might want to start out with something a little less intense.
• International nights - choose a theme and cook a meal  - maybe Italian night with pasta and wine; Mexican with enchiladas and margaritas.  Maybe choose a movie that is based from that country and watch it afterwards.
• Batting cages - head over and practice hitting some balls together.  To keep with the American theme, go out for milkshakes afterwards.
• Go to a Car show or Tattoo convention - get ideas of dream cars or dream tattoos
• Watch a Roller Derby game
• Watch a concert - my husband has never been to one - I need to get him out!
• Go play billards
• Paintballing!  I must find a place nearby where we can try this.

Getaways we want to take:

• Fort Bragg, Ca - stay at a B&B and head over to Glass Beach and Sanddollar Beach
• San Francisco - Alcatraz!  I have also been dying to find that lookout past the Golden Gate Bridge where millions of people have taken amazing photos.
• Napa - for the wine train.  We have a gift certificate that is burning a hole in my purse.
• Reno - a night of Black Jack and free drinks
• Hawaii - someday we will go on a vacation here!

I hope my list has inspired you to try your own approaches to creative date nights :)  I know I am excited for tomorrow night when we head out for mini golf and dinner.