My husband and I have date night every week. We started this when we first got married. It kinda didn’t happen so much once our little monkey was born. When we moved into my parent’s house (and free babysitting! Thanks Mom and sisters!) we revived the tradition. Mostly to keep our sanity. With so many people under one roof, we need the time to reconnect as a couple and to reunite as Mom and Dad to the monkey. This is an at-home date, something I miss most desperately by the way. Inexpensive and totally do-able after the kiddos are in bed. Everyone wins.
You can decorate a bit if you like, to help set the atmosphere. Spider web, caution tape and plastic spiders are pretty cheap. And they do a good job. Find a cheap Dollar Store bowl, spray paint it black and call it a cauldron. Put some individually wrapped candies in it to munch on.
Dinner: Include your kiddos in this one. They will be so thrilled! If you haven’t already done the Spider Web Nachos until they are coming out your ears, this would be a great time to try it. Also, some cute little bone breadsticks with optional blood (marinara) sauce for dipping are nice appetizers. You could also do Mummy Sticks (hotdogs wrapped in breadsticks). I usually do Shirley Temples (gingerale, orange juice and grenadine) for the beverage with a little orange food coloring in them to give ’em that Halloween touch and a nice treat. You could also do some fun cupcakes or cookies for dessert.
If you haven’t already, now would be a fantastic time to carve pumpkins. My Mr. Right and I each carve our own for now, I’m sure that will change as more kiddos come along. It’s fun to see each other’s creativity. If you have already carved your pumpkins, check out a corn maze or pumpkin patch. Or drive around and look at all the Halloween decorations. Find some Halloween games online. There’s lots of ideas out there.
After you get the kids to bed, cuddle up and watch a scary movie. Not a big fan of Horror films (I’m not), go for a Thriller/Suspense instead. I get way too caught up in movies to sleep well after I watch scary ones… and as a momma, I treasure my sleep! Pull out a bag from your Halloween stash (you can replace it later if you need to). Pop some corn, some drinks and a nice cozy blanket. Enjoy your snuggle.
