Home date night ideas for couples with young kids.

One of the best gifts you can give to your kids is a mom and dad who clearly love each other 😍.

However, when these kids are little and dependent, they are the very reason it can be challenging to create opportunities to bond with your spouse, especially when you have little or no help or you’re just very intentional about how they are raised.

So, if going out on regular dates is no longer feasible, our marriage still is top priority and we should still create special opportunities to relax, reconnect, reaffirm, and refuel each other.

Hence, these date night ideas that you can intentionally incorporate into your busy lives, once or twice every week/month, after you put your kids to bed.

1. Good ole fashioned movie night:

This is definitely my number one (and probably everyone’s number one too 😂). When we come across good movies, we save it to watch together (usually, lol). Cozy up in our pajamas and we sometimes throw in popcorn 🍿, chips and drinks for the full effect. I definitely enjoy watching movies with my husband.

The catch to a great movie night is it must be something we’d both enjoy. There has to be shared laughter, side talks, shared shock/exclamations, hand grabbing etc. It’s no fun when one person is enduring the movie the entire time.

2. Dinner date:

If you’re like us, and can’t even eat what’s on the menu outside, then enjoy a good dinner together in the comfort of your home. Share the responsibilities between you and your spouse. Decide who is in charge of the food, drinks, music, light decorations and whatever detail is necessary to make it special for you both, then make it happen.

Set the table, play some music, put on some romantic light or candle light etc. Put in the little effort to turn ordinary into special! And if tiredness is constantly an issue, you can learn how to create one on one time with your spouse when raising very young kids.

3. Massage and Music:

In the event that you are too tired, date night doesn’t have to be completely cancelled. This can be relaxing for your body as well as rejuvenating for your marriage. You don’t have to be a masseuse, just bring out the oil and rub each other’s bodies away, while listening to something refreshing. Oh and don’t forget to put on the scented candles. You may realize that you weren’t too tired after all 😉.

4. Book night:

I’m a book lover 😍 so this has to feature😁. Choose a book you and your spouse can benefit from (a book on marriage preferably), take turns reading a chosen chapter to each other and sharing your thoughts and feelings based on what you read.

Listen intently to what your spouse is saying and ask questions to gain good understanding. Growing in knowledge together is a crucial part of a healthy marriage. Plus every now and then you need to stop talking about the kids and have healthy conversations about your marriage.

5. Mani & Pedi :

As a mom of young kids, you probably desire to take better care of your body but don’t seem to find the time and energy to. On a date night, you can relax and let your husband paint your nails 💅. Just try to focus on it being more fun than on it being perfect.

6. Vision board date:

One of the beauties of courtship is our willingness to dream. We haven’t started our lives together, aren’t bogged down by responsibilities so all we can do is dream of a beautiful future.

That doesn’t have to stop after marriage, so tonight you’re talking about your dreams and goals, just like you used to do when you were dating. Only now, you’d take it a step further by printing out pictures or cutting out magazine clippings that signify your dreams and pasting them on a board where you both can see them.

Your life may not be what you had both dreamed of yet, and parenting young kids can make you feel like you’re living for them, like your life revolves around what’s best for them. So, the beauty of doing this with your spouse is the fresh hope and perspective it gives you. The knowledge that you matter, that this is a phase, it would pass and you can still accomplish your dreams no matter what ❤️

7. Dream vacation planning:

The fact that you’re stuck in the cycle of parenting young kids doesn’t mean you can’t start preparing for when you would be free to explore.

Get a vacation journal and talk about one place you’d like to visit and when you’d like to visit said place. Research together how much it would cost, the important places to visit in that area etc.

You would have fun talking about something new or someplace new you both haven’t experienced and you would have ticked off the first step in making it become a reality. Get a cookie jar and start putting aside a little bit weekly or monthly towards it.

8. Make a bucket list:

Perhaps you can’t afford a vacation, but what four fun things can you do together within the next one year?

It’s hard to spontaneously have fun when you’re raising young kids, so if you want to have fun, you have to plan for it. There are 4 quarters in a year or 4 seasons depending on where you live, so plan one thing for each quarter.

Make your list together. Open your calendar and date each activity. Research the cost. Plan where the kids are going to be when you’re out doing these things. And of course get a cookie jar and start putting aside a little bit of money for these fun things.

The point to all these is, you’re with your spouse, you’re taking your mind out of the humdrum of daily life, you are talking about things that matter to you both, you are creating new dreams, reigniting hope, laughing, refueling your desire for life and for each other, falling in love 😍 over and again. And that is worth every bit of strength you have in you.

Are you a parent of young kids? What one thing are you going to try on your next in house date night? Or perhaps you have an idea that isn’t mentioned above, I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.❤️

Until next week,😎

With all my love❤️

Mrs O😊

P.S: I’m sure you noticed how all these date night ideas are dependent on your kids being asleep, so if you still struggle in that area, you will find early bedtime tips for young kids here.

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