Finding affordable things to do with your significant other really isn’t that difficult. After all, it’s time together that counts the most! Pick a great outdoor market, buy some great snacks, people watch, and if you’re really bold, visit a thrift store or costume shop and try on cool outfits!
An anniversary is a great time to reflect on all the time you’ve spent with your significant other. What a great time to relive some fun memories with you partner by revisiting the places those memories were made! Read what Franz has to say about planning his first anniversary with his wife:
The most creative date that I ever planned was for my wife on our first anniversary. This was something that I invented, it was called a daylong date. To begin with, I decided to start the day off with the same breakfast that we had on our wedding. I took her to our favorite hometown restaurant, and we had the same exact meal. When we got married it was early in the morning, the preacher was still in his robe. We got married in the back of a flower shop, so after we ate breakfast, I took her back to the same spot where we said our vows. The next thing we did was have a lunch next to the local lake, just as we did the day we got married. We then went back to the place that our very first apartment stood. It was our first place together as husband and wife. This daylong date was a time of memories and reflection about how far we had come in just a year. I planned to take her to all of our favorite hangouts, restaurants, and quiet places. This daylong date seemed spontaneous to her, but little did she know a husband who cared orchestrated it all creatively. If I were to give any advice to an individual who is planning a daylong date or just a creative date in general, it would be to be thoughtful. You need to think about what your significant other might like to do, not just what you to do. Sincerity is a crucial element to making a creative date work. A creative date needs to take into account meaningful and entertaining planning. You want to prove to your significant other that you were thinking of them with every step of your date.
Being on a budget forces you to make up in creativity what you lack in money, which means that often you create a more memorable experience. Read about how Christie celebrated her first anniversary with her husband:
It was our first anniversary. We were young and in love – and broke. Celebrating was important to us, but we had to do it without breaking the bank. With a little planning and a sense of fun, we made the day memorable. We started by making a trip to the local grocery store. While we were there, we picked up apples, fresh bread and cheese, and a bottle of cheap wine. It was a beautiful spring day, the kind that was made to order for young lovers. We grabbed a blanket, the food, and a kite, and headed to the hills of the local university, the same university where we had met and fallen in love. We walked along the wooded path around the small lake, hand in hand, enjoying the solitude of campus that can only happen after finals week was over. After our walk, we spread out our blanket, set down the food, and took out the kite. He slowly let out the string, bit by bit. Mother Nature even cooperated with us, blowing a cooling breeze just right to take that colorful bit of paper and string aloft. He put his arms around me as I held the straining kite. Paper kite for the paper anniversary – it seemed fitting to us. Later, we reeled in our toy, and sat, enjoying our fresh meal of wine, cheese, bread and apples. When the air got a little chilly, that was fine by us. It was a great excuse to cuddle closer, to share our bodies’ warmth. We’ve had many anniversaries since then, ones in which we had more money, others that we were scrambling to make ends meet. But that first one, when we planned a fresh air excursion, still is as fresh and innocent in my memory as we were on that day.
Planning a picnic date at the park is always a classic. Because picnics require things like advance planning and food preparation, they show that you care enough to invest time, thought and effort into your date. And, when done well, they can create memories that will last you and your loved one a lifetime. Read how Charlene created memories with her husband…
Veronica proves that a great date doesn’t have to be costly or flashy. Sometimes, the best dates are casual and fun – and centering a date around games or fun activities take all the pressure off!
If you’re looking for a fun, original date, try choosing a theme that will help you plan. You could start with a theme such as “new things” and structure a date around experiencing things, places or restaurants you and your date have never been, or you could choose a place such as Hawaii or Italy to give your date inspiration and a sense of cohesion. Shelby made a lot of great memories by choosing Mexico as her theme. Listen to what she did…
I will never forget the date I set up for my boyfriend in between his business trips. He had two destinations lined up and would only be able to return for the weekend in between each trip. Once he arrived home late on the Friday night following his first trip to Kansas City, I knew Saturday was going to be a rather dull day as most likely he would be somewhat bummed over having to do it all over again the coming week. Knowing that his next trip was going to be to Mexico and that he had missed out on Cinco de Mayo celebrations during his first trip, I decided to get him in the mood for Mexico a little and planned an entire Saturday date themed around Mexico. I first let him “siesta” as late as he wanted that day while I made him Huevos Rancheros for breakfast and put together a travel list of the “Top 10 Reasons for Loving Business Trips to Mexico” as well as a themed care package which contained spicy snacks and a few English to Spanish translations. Once breakfast was complete, I informed him that the afternoon’s festivities would include games with Mexican themes and my brother and his girlfriend surprised him by showing up to be part of the fun. The first game we played was a dominoes game called Mexican Train and the second was called Buenos Amigos, a game that my brother’s girlfriend showed us where you essentially set a timer and write down as many nice things about the person on your right as possible. Being that there were only four of us, each couple wrote a list for each other. However, I told him we needed to save our lists to read until he was in Mexico. We then watched an independent film with Spanish subtitles that my brother’s girlfriend brought over and we all made nachos and margaritas. By the time it was ready to send him off my boyfriend he was thoroughly cheered up and ready for his trip thanks to my day-long Mexico-themed, low-key date which I completely recommend to anyone, even if no trip is planned!
Today’s creative date idea is a little difficult to plan, but if you pull it off, it’ll be a really memorable day for you and your significant other. Visiting the zoo makes for a fun date, but it’s even more entertaining if you visit a private zoo!
If you’ve been dating awhile, it’s easy to get stuck in routines and lose the romance of dating. So spice things up with a surprise romantic date! It doesn’t have to be expensive or fancy; just make sure it’s personal, like Katie’s boyfriend did…
Focusing on your significant other’s hobbies and passions provides all the inspiration you need for a creative date. It’s easy to spend money on taking someone out to a fancy dinner or a movie, but these types of dates are not particularly original!
Erin might have an advantage planning a date in her city, since she and her boyfriend live in Manhattan – but don’t despair! Any city offers a variety of unique attractions all its own – many of which are free. So get creative and make a day of touring places that make your city unique!