Tag Archives: creative date ideas

Free Date Idea: Take a Fantasy Tour Around the Globe

Happy anniversary! Can you believe it’s been a full year since the Happy Wives Club book was released on January 7, 2014. Where did the time go?

Since it is, technically, it’s birthday or anniversary, or whatever celebratory thing you want to call it, how about we create a brand new -and scrumptiously unique- date idea?

Free date ideas are the best kind in my book. With at least 52 potential weekly date nights in a year, you can never have too many ideas to choose from. And if your hubby is like mine and loves variety, it’s a great idea to have a few plans in your back pocket and ready to go.

Today we are combining food, travel, TV, *and* using a little inspiration from the Happy Wives Club book– what’s not to love?

One of my favorite parts of the Happy Wives Club book was feeling like I was seeing, smelling and tasting all the places Fawn went to interview happy couples and learn their secrets to happy marriages.

When I was thinking about a FUN and FREE date night idea, I remembered how much fun The Hubs and I have watching House Hunters International and fantasizing about whether or not we would ever live anywhere but home.

Soooo I thought it would be even more fun to go on a fantasy vacation, inspired by the fabulous locales in the Happy Wives Club Book and approved by the hubby!

What you will need:

1. Laptop or Tablet – to cue up the Travel Channel’s website.

I suggest taking all the links below and opening them in new tabs, that way they are cued up and ready to go so you have the mechanics out of the way and can snuggle and discuss as you go along the tour.

2. Some yummy food – check out great snack ideas inspired by the book (see links to fabulous recipes at the end of every country I’ve listed below.)

3. A little conversation – one of my favorite things to do with the hubby is PAUSE THE TV and DISCUSS. Would we want to go there? What do we want to see? Is it a “must-go-before-we-die-place?” or a “would-be-nice-but-eh-place?”

Ready for the World Tour? (You don’t even need a passport! Score.)

Cape Town, South Africa –

This one is on my own bucket list. I loved this video because I must admit, I was curious to see the South African version of McDonald’s. It does not disappoint.

http://www.travelchannel.com/video/mcfeasting-in-south-africa

The recipes from this fabulous part of the world:

http://www.food.com/recipes/south-african

And who could forget about the red cappuccino’s Fawn raved about, and are only served as espresso’s in South Africa? Well, this may not be identical but I think we found a way to enjoy the taste without needing to take the flight:

http://capepointpress.com/rooibos-cappuccino-latte/

Perth, Australia

When I was a kid Olivia Newton John was one of my idols (thank you, Grease! And yes, it’s still the word.) So Australia has been magical and beautiful since I was 13. When Oprah went during her final season, I fell in love with it all over again.

When I was looking for the most viewed videos on Australia it turned out to be a review of their Superman roller coaster.

That reminded me of one of the things I just love about travel – the way you can plan a thousand details and yet a place will surprise you and the last thing you thought you would ever do there turns out to be your favorite part.

So, here is the link to Superman Down Under -

http://www.travelchannel.com/video/superman-flies-down-under

And a little dive into the Great Barrier Reef –

http://www.travelchannel.com/video/dive-into-the-great-barrier-reef-11550

And a little 5 Star Spa Day to relax after all that exploring!

http://www.travelchannel.com/video/lilianfels-spa-and-resort

And we can’t forget some great local recipes from down under (or what the locals call “Oz”) -

http://www.abc.net.au/perth/recipes/

Mauritius –

Since we are half way around the world already, let’s just hop over to Mauritius for some “Street Eats” and snacks.

http://www.travelchannel.com/video/mauritian-mash-up

Don’t forget to try out some of the fabulous Creole food from Mauritius -

http://www.sbs.com.au/food/cuisine/mauritian

Or you can do what Fawn did when dining with a French couple married more than half a century, enjoy some fabulous (and buttery) French cuisine -

http://www.foodandwine.com/french-recipes

Europe – Rome & London

Let’s wrap up our world tour with some Gladiator school in Rome –

http://www.travelchannel.com/video/gladiator-school-in-rome-11153

a mini tour of Rome neighborhoods -

http://www.travelchannel.com/video/romes-neighborhoods-11156

a look around London -

http://www.travelchannel.com/video/taking-a-look-around-london

and finally, the food!

While in Rome…eat as the Romans do: http://www.aboutroma.com/rome-cuisine.html

While in London, authentic fish and chips are a must: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/english-style-fish-and-chips-recipe.html

Winnipeg, Canada–

According to Fawn, those living in Winnipeg will be the first to tell you there’s not a whole lot to do there other than The Forks. But what they do have and are so proud to share (aside from a beautiful culture and love for family and mastering the art of simplicity): Poutine. It’s so popular, Canadians even tried to make it their official national food.

http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Classic-Gravy-Fries

These are just a few of the 12 countries Fawn visited during her research for the Happy Wives Club book, there’s so much fun to see and learn about.

After this date night, always remember that it doesn’t take a lot of money to travel the world – just an Internet connection and a little creativity.

Where do you and your spouse want to travel next? Please share in the comments.

We’re SO close to our goal! JOIN THE 1,000,000 MEMBER CHALLENGE: If you haven’t already done it, what are you waiting for? Join the club! It takes only a few seconds and, of course, is free.

THE NEW YORK TIMES® BEST-SELLING BOOK: It’s been described as, “Like Eat, Pray, Love but not down on marriage.” Make sure to check out the Happy Wives Club book. I had the great honor of traveling to 12 countries on 6 continents, interviewing couples happily married 25 years or more, with 1 mission only: to find out what makes marriages happy…and keeps them that way. It’s a marriage book like none other. Guaranteed.

Progressive Dinner for Two!

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Today I mentioned on Facebook that I was looking for some fun and creative date night ideas. To my surprise one of the BEST date night ideas that I’ve ever heard of emerged.

Tricia Callahan, my friend and an awesome blogger over at OnceAMonthMeals.com, gave me permission to share her fabulous date night idea with you.

Have you ever heard of a progressive dinner? It’s a fun dinner that you usually have with friends or neighbors. The way a traditional progressive dinner works is that you have a 3 course meal that is spread out over the course of the night.

The catch is, with a progressive party, you don’t eat the meal all in one place. Each course is served at someone else’s home. For instance, you would have the appetizers at house “A”. Next you’d move down the street to your neighbors home for the main course, which of course will take a couple of hours there. Finally, you go to the last home for dessert.

Well the traditional progressive party has lots of families or couples involved. Tricia’s idea just involves two people, you and your man.

So how does it work?

How to Have a Progressive Dinner for Two Date Night:

Make a list of some of your favorite (or new) restaurants. You’ll need a list of 9 places in the same general area of town. One set of 3 that have great appetizers, another set that has yummy dinners, and the final 3 that have amazing sweet treats. You will let your hubby choose from the list which places you’ll go to (or take turns picking).

Get in you car, and while you are on the way to the appetizer location call in your order for take out! Hop out, go get it, and bring it back to your vehicle. Use your phone wifi to connect your iPad, computer, or phone and watch your favorite Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon movie or series from the comfort (and privacy) of your own ride.

When you are finishing up your appetizer, pick the dinner location from the list, call in your order, pick it up, eat, and have fun watching your next series episode. Then repeat again with the dessert location of your choice.

Variations to the night that I thought of, and weren’t in Tricia’s plan, include having a different activity at each location instead of watching a show. For instance, while you are eating appetizers have a phone game contest, like see who can get the high score on Flappy Birds, or whatever phone craze game is out now. At your dinner location play a 21 questions game, see if you can find out something new about your spouse that you didn’t already know. During dessert you can have on hand your favorite board or card game to play in your vehicle.

Remember you are in your car and you can go anywhere you like. So, a fun idea could be taking your dessert to the beach, or a mountainside to watch the sunset.

The possibilities are endless. Make the night light, creative, delicious, and fun!

Comment Below: What’s will you do on your progressive dinner for two?

Free Date Night Idea: The Today Show Date

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My personal date-night challenge was this: come up with either a cheap or free date night idea. Preferably something free, fun, and that parents with small children could do easily – no baby sitter needed.

I started thinking about what my favorite things to do with my hubby are. Number one on my list is talking and cuddling. Any variation of talking and cuddling will *always* make me happy.

I had the idea for this blog post and then was thrilled to see a conversation on the Happy Wives Club Facebook page where HWC members repeatedly agreed that “talking and cuddling” is where it’s at as far as our favorite bonding activity with our hubbies.

So here it is, super simple and I discovered it totally by accident. We had recorded the Today Show and when I turned it on the big headline was that the government was monitoring our cell phone usage. Remember the day, when that story broke?

Well as it turns out, my husband had very strong feelings about it, as he is in IT, and understands the nuts and bolts of *how* the monitoring would work. I had very strong opinions too and asked him a ton of questions.

I found out things I didn’t know about him, just by asking him a question from the news story on the Today Show.

Then I realized he is my favorite person. I want to know what he thinks about everything. So I asked him to stay and watch the show with me and if we could pause on different segments and discuss. He is used to my zany suggestions and said yes.

We laughed, we debated, and we watched Martha Stewart using Match.com to find a date. We found that both gripping and hilarious at the same time. We talked about how having cameras following you around is probably not conducive to opening up your soul.

I could not get over how much Natalie Morales and Savannah Guthrie look alike. My hubby laughed, highly amused at my observations.

In the end we fast forwarded through some segments (latest and greatest makeup on sale) and had long, thoughtful discussions about others (what is our expectation of privacy in this digital-shareable world?) and overall had a great time.

This is so easy to do, I had to share.

Record the show. Watch together. Discuss. (If you have little kids, you can totally do this once they are asleep at night.)

Disclaimer: I am not associated with the Today Show in any way, other than watching it. I took the pictures on my camera at home and I hope the team at the Today Show thinks this is a really GREAT idea! – Maggie

Let the Road Take You Away

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When was the last time you just hopped in your vehicle and let the road take you away?

Spending time with your husband doesn’t have to be complicated – the experience doesn’t have to be planned. Sometimes the unexpected creates the most memories.

Last Sunday we just took off in our truck – Robert and me. We came out from our neighborhood and turned left. That’s all we planned. Turning left. It was a beautiful, yet hot, North Carolina afternoon, and after a busy week we needed to escape. (Ever feel the need to escape? Yup. I thought so.) Because of commitments on Monday morning, our escape could only be for a few hours, but that didn’t stop us.

North Carolina back-roads are usually pretty smooth, so we meandered down first one road to another and then the next. No map. No GPS. At each crossroads Robert would ask me – “Left, right or straight?” It became a game.

We saw fields of fairly tall corn, tobacco plants shooting up and fresh cut hay. Because it was Sunday the combines were still and silent in the fields, waiting for Monday. Those who were out walking, or working in their yards alongside the road would lift a hand in greeting. We, of course, waved back. The clouds moved and shifted in the sky with the sun often peeking out. First through one small town, and then another. Wonderful names like Spring Hope, and Murray’s Millpond, Turkey Creek, and Peachtree Hills.

Then we came to Justice.

How many people search for justice and never find it? Well, we did. Right down the road. In North Carolina. Who knew?

What’s waiting for you just down the road?

This weekend, or next, take a few hours and be wanderers… explore. If you have kids, you may have to plan a drop off at a friends (or grandmas). Being alone with your spouse is key – it’s gotta be just the two of you!

Here are three things to keep in mind for your afternoon (or morning or evening) escape:

Don’t Plan - the fun is in the discovery! Create your own game for deciding which way to turn or when to stay straight.
Keep a Camera Handy – because you’re going to want to remember your adventure!
Don’t Be Afraid to Turn Around – you’re going to see things that will catch your imagination, so be ready and open to turning around, or going down a lane or stopping for an ice cream.

Remember, there’s no agenda – you don’t have to be anywhere. You’re just wandering.

When was the last time you escaped on an adventure?

Another First Date

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Can you still remember the first date or outing that you and your husband shared? The excitement, the butterflies, nervousness and maybe even a bit of awkwardness.

This fun little date night idea will help you reminisce on those old memories. All you have to do is think about your first date and try to recreate it. Eat at the same restaurant, visit the same places, or watch the same movie (at home). You could even try to wear similar clothing or take photos in the same places that you did so many years ago.

Recreating the first date can be a super fun and romantic way to celebrate anniversary milestones, or just to revisit old memories together! It’s the perfect time to think about how far your relationship has come, since that first butterfly-filled evening together.

My husband and I did this on the 2 year anniversary of the day we met. We first talked inside a Starbucks, so we went back, 2 years later, sat in the same spot, and talked about how much had changed in just 2 short years.

This time we were married, and even had our newborn son with us! It was a bit surreal as we realized that just 2 years earlier we had sat there, getting to know each other, talking about our dreams. We had no idea that we would one day be there again, together, married for almost 2 years (for those doing the math, yes, we got married 35 days after we met), with our son next to us, and endless love between us.

On that first unofficial date that started it all, we never would have guessed that we would end up happy and in love, but we did.

Recreating special moments is such a romantic way to reminisce and it is a beautiful way to build new memories together.

Where did you and your husband share your first date? How can you re-create that day?

Date Night for Parents: The Faux Date

The Faux Date Night

Step 1: Secure a baby-sitter (preferably at someone else’s house).

Step 2: Drop your kids off.

Step 3: Grab a quick dinner.

Step 4: Go home and get busy!

The first time we went on a faux date it was unplanned. We dropped our daughter off at Gramma’s house with plans for dinner and a movie. However, we didn’t care for the selection and didn’t want to spend $8+ per ticket for something we weren’t excited to watch. We ended up renting a movie and headed home.

Home? Yes, a nice quiet, empty home.

So, we took advantage of that by spending the rest of our date in the bedroom. I’m not going to lie, having kids (babies especially) can make it tricky to have uninterrupted sex. This is why the faux date is one of my favorite date night ideas!

You may be wondering why anyone would lie about there plans. Well, when you ask grandparents to baby-sit at their house, they are naturally curious about your plans. If you are comfortable telling them straight out, that’s great! You can also tell them you’re going on a date night without telling them the exact place. Personally, I tell them we’re going to the movies.

I like to say we’re going to see a movie we’ve already seen before or heard enough about that we can share a brief synopsis if asked. Oh, and definitely go to the movies sometimes too. Just make sure your husband knows ahead of time if it’s a real movie date or a faux movie date!

QUESTION: Have you ever fibbed about your evening plans to your sitter?

Baby, Let’s Dance!

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“Let’s take a dancing lesson with lots of strangers, and then we’ll practice our brandy-new skills at the dance afterwards!”

Surprisingly, my suggestion for the evening wasn’t met with the same enthusiasm with which it was delivered.

I suspect some of my fellow vacationers imagined that we’d make fools of ourselves and be asked to leave the event faster than Fred Astaire could say “Would you like to dance?”

While searching for an impromptu date night idea, I had found a website for the Knoxville Swingdance Association.

Their message for beginners was welcoming and low-key:

No special shoes required

Dress comfortably

Most important of all HAVE FUN

They certainly were speaking our language!

Throwing caution to the wind, we headed to the Laurel Theater.

Friendly club members greeted us at the door, and we paid our two dollar entry fee.

We continued into the large, empty, dance space and nodded to the few college-age couples milling about.

In a matter of minutes, the room filled with smiling folks of different ages and abilities.

The students on the stage cued up the vintage music on their CD player, and our jean-clad instructors stepped to the middle of the floor.

They deftly demonstrated a couple of steps, and we attempted to follow.

As you can imagine, there was much laughter as we tried to keep time and keep from stepping all over each other’s feet.

Then, our teachers switched things up by having us move to the perimeter of the room.

Every minute or two they’d call on us to stop dancing and ask the women to move to partner up with the man to her right.

We’d do a few more steps, share a few more laughs and apologies, and the ladies would shift places again.

Thankfully, every man was a gentleman, and everyone was a good sport.

When the lesson was done, but before the free dance started, the instructors cleared the floor.

They then enthusiastically whirled, twirled, and rock-stepped into their high-spirited rendition of West Coast Swing.

A few moments after they began, one of the dj’s called out, “Snowball!”

The dancers broke apart, came to the fringes of the circle, and grabbed a partner.

This scenario repeated itself every few seconds until everyone was out on the floor doing the best they knew how.

There were moments of mild embarrassment and utter terror—I have to lead a stranger in dance steps I just learned?!—and frustration at the learning curve.

However, we deemed the evening a rousing success.

I highly recommend a “Let’s Dance!” date night, not only for getting your bodies and minds moving, but also for stepping out of your comfort zone!