Home Date Night: 5 Foolproof Ideas

It’s freezing outside, the snow won’t stop falling, and I just want to wrap myself up in a cozy blanket and hibernate. 

Sure, I’ll do my necessary grocery shopping and errands. I’ll try my best to combat the cabin fever. And occasionally I’ll enjoy some winter activities with my family – for memories sake, clearly. 

But for the most part, you’ll find me in my nice warm home, with fuzzy socks and space heaters cranked up. 

Whether you need a cozy home date night because of the wintery weather, or you have another reason to keep it at home (maybe you’re just a homebody like me ;)), here are some ideas we’ve enjoyed or look forward to trying in the future.

None of these require a lot of preparation or money, and they’re sure to provide a fun time for you and your hubby!

Once inside, you can…

1. Read your favorite children’s books together
2. Watch a movie (yeah, I know it’s tv again. But at least you’ve added a fun new twist to the default date idea)
3. Enjoy the aesthetic and share your favorite memories about camping as a kid. Or plan your next family camping trip! 
4. Play a card game. 
5. Make smores, roasting marshmallows over a candle. 

Another variation of this that my husband enjoys is to pull off all of the couch cushions and put them together on the floor to form a big comfy bed in the living room. He really goes all-out, layering blankets and pillows on top. It seems like a lot of work to me, but he gets excited to create the perfect lounge spot for us.

Our favorites are cooperative games like Ravine or Forbidden Island (both are only about $20-30 on amazon). My brother and his wife even have a cooperative game that’s ‘Back to the Future’ themed. Especially since it’s date night, it’s fun to work together to solve the game. 

But if you’re big into competition, you do you! Just try to choose something that won’t cause unnecessary contention during your home date night . Another game we love is Rummikub.

And if you’re saving money, choose a board game that you already own and love. Or play games like charades, Pictionary, etc. Sometimes, the simple classics are where it’s at. 

I love this one. Even at times when we haven’t had the money to go on a big vacation right away, it’s so fun to imagine the possibilities of one day. 

Don’t take it too seriously, but ask questions like, “where have you always wanted to travel?” and “what kind of activities would you enjoy once we get there?” 

You can even browse the internet, looking for attractions, resorts, and food in your dream vacation spot. (If you feel so inclined, plan how you will start saving your money to make the vacation a reality.)

You may learn something new about your spouse’s idea of the perfect vacation – For example, I had no idea that my husband’s dream destination is Cambodia. And he thinks it’s best to have a very relaxing and laid back experience, while I think we should pack our itinerary full with sightseeing and activities. Now we know to have a good balance of both for our future trips, and we’ve decided a cruise is the perfect option for us to try next! (You can read about our cruise budget planning here!)

My husband has a thing for good mac n cheese. The quick and easy out-the-box stuff just doesn’t measure up to his expectations. He’d much rather make it from scratch. Usually, it’s delicious that way. Five star rating from me.

But… he does like to experiment, and not every random ingredient results in a masterpiece. It’s definitely hit or miss… Always interesting to try something new though.

Now, I’m not saying you have to make mac n cheese. But my point is, don’t overcomplicate this one by trying to make an award winning delicacy. Just look through your food, turn on some fun music, and cook a new meal together during your home date night. Then enjoy…however tasty or strange it turns out!

We haven’t tried this one yet, but I’ve had several friends who have done a Bob Ross painting challenge, and it looks so fun! 

All you need is some paint, paintbrushes, and canvases. 

(But, even then, you could improvise further and increase the challenge – try painting with a spoon, use a brown paper bag as your canvas, maybe mix some shaving cream with food dye or use condiments like ketchup and mustard for paints – it doesn’t need to be any extra expense or preparation, and the results could be seriously hilarious.) 

Choose one of Bob Ross’s tutorials on Youtube, and paint away! (I’ve linked one of those videos for you here. ;))

At the end, you could text pictures of your finished work to friends and have them judge whether you or your spouse is the winner of “best household artist.”