Date Nights That Include The Kids

Finding a babysitter for Valentine's dates can be tough to do. They do have lives after all. This can be fun, though. As a stay at home mom with three babies, I am hear to tell you, I know it's not easy. The fact that I have three girls brings ideas to me on how I can wisely use this time, though.

What girl doesn't want to be spoiled? I know I do! This is the perfect chance to show my babies how women should be treated on a date. If you have boys, this is a great chance for daddy to teach them how to treat a woman. My husband and I don't have much money to spend on a babysitter right now. Plus, I have a hard time trusting people I don't know with my kids. This is becoming an opportunity to test that feeling.

 We usually ask someone in the family to watch them for us, but since our move over 300 miles away from them has put a damper on that, we get to include our kids on our nights out.

It is hard to find the right places to take a family in a new city. Some restaurants aren't very kid friendly. Sadly, most of them here are this way. We have found a few with great service, though. We are figuring it out. I love taking my kids with us on dates.

I wanted to share a few dates you can go on when you have to include your kids. Some of these dates can happen without your kids, too. If you have any other ideas that I haven't included, please feel free to share them in the comments below so we can gain some perspective from you!


1. Have a Picnic in the park.

I love doing this with or without the kids. Go get take out or pack all of your favorites. Take a blanket to sit on of course. It's peaceful and relaxing. The girls can play while me and the hubby watch and talk to each other without little ears. We like to take a stroll around the area. We do play with the girls, but we also get a few minutes to ourselves, too.

2. Visit a Museum.

Some museums even have a children's exhibit. Some have live music or local art shows to support their community. We recently went to an art museum for a class assignment that I had and the girls loved it. My 7 year old was so into the Greek and Roman art work and even carried around the audio stick. She is just like her momma, lol. I had no idea how they were going to behave, but to my surprise it was great. We went and had lunch afterward at a restaurant of their choosing.

3. Go to the Movies.

My girls love the superhero movies. So, choosing a movie isn't hard considering there is a new one ever couple of months. They would rather watch Avengers than go see a cartoon like Trolls. We used to go to a Drive-In Theater and curl up in the trunk of the SUV, but since we moved there aren't any close enough. They behave pretty well inside, too. We order our food and they are content. It helps with the newer theaters offering more than nachos and popcorn.

4. Hit the alley.

The bowling alley, that is. We could spend all night having friendly competition. Bonus, the girls actually listen to "ROLL THE BALL" for once, lol. If you have friends with kids, invite them along. Get two lanes and let the kids use one while the adults use the other. We did this a lot when I was a kid. We went on Saturday night to Cosmic bowl. We had a blast dancing to the loud music in the dark and bowling. My parents loved it, too. Like pizza was a Friday night ritual, Cosmic Bowling became a Saturday night ritual.

5. Go golfing.

Of course, I mean putt-putt golfing. This was another childhood favorite of mine. We rode the Go-Karts, played Laser-Tag, and putted to our hearts content. My girls love it, too. They get to choose what color putter they have and the matching ball. We never cared about score, either. It was all about getting it in to the hole. We would even try to block each others shots, lol.

6. Have a Party.

This another one you could include your friends with kids in, also. Spend the afternoon making decorations to hang up around the house. Have dinner and bake special treats together. After eating, turn on some music and have a dance party. I actually did stuff like this with a family I babysat for during my early years in college. The mother had been kind enough to invite me to help out. I still do this during all of our favorite holidays with my kids.

7. Go out to eat.

Take your kids to a nice restaurant. This is a great opportunity to teach them table manners and how they should be treated on a date. Get them dressed up nice like you do for a date. "Dress to impress," I've been told. Teach them how a man opens the door for a woman, he pays for the meal, he knocks on the door when picking up his date (My parents weren't the only ones who hated when my boyfriend came to pick me up and just honked the horn when he arrived. I sent him on his way.) Teach them what it means to be polite. There are a ton of teaching opportunities here.

8. Create.

Stay home. Get out the craft supplies. Let your kids create Valentine's for their favorite people. Make some for your favorite people. Learn how to make paper roses together and share them with a loved one. During our first years together my husband gave me a bouquet of roses with a fake one involved and told me, "I'll love you til the last petal falls." Romantic!

Now, remember, you can do these without kids, too. It is important to have some time to yourselves. But if you are stuck like I am, these are great ideas. Dates don't have to be romantic, they can be childish and fun, too. That's how my flame reignites.

People that know me know that I tend to be serious ALL THE TIME! Doing things like these helps me to let my guard down and relax. I sometimes forget what it's like to have fun. I get too busy adulting. Dating takes that pressure off.

Now, it's your turn. Add your ideas into the comments! Tell me what you think. What do you do with your significant other or the kids. I WANT TO KNOW!

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