I am what I would consider an okay gift giver. I can come up with clever ideas about 75 percent of the time. My mom, on the other hand, is an awesome gift giver. She comes up with the most creative, thoughtful and personal gifts for anyone and everyone. I aspire to be as good as she is!
This past fall I saw an idea on Pinterest (where else) in which a wife gave her husband the gift of a year of dates, one date a month for 12 months. The idea resonated with me, and because I didn’t have a home run idea for a gift for my husband, I was sold. Anyway, the hubs and I don’t get out together nearly as often as we should.
While this idea does take a bit of planning, it’s the perfect gift for that special someone for Christmas, Valentine’s Day or even a birthday. Not only does this make a great gift for a spouse, it could work just as well with kids. What better present to give your children than the gift of time together? The best part is that you get to enjoy this gift as much as the recipient.
To get your creative juices flowing, here are the 12 dates that I gave to my husband:
- January: Tickets to a movie event at Alamo Drafthouse and a gift card for food.
- February: Gift card to a local bowling center and a new pair of socks to wear bowling.
- March: Dinner and a show at New Theatre Restaurant.
- April: Gift card to Black Dog Coffeehouse and a new card game.
- May: Drive-in movie tickets, popcorn and candy.
- June: Tickets to a local venue for a concert.
- July: Anniversary month! Dinner at Gaslight Grill.
- August: Progressive dinner through the mall and people watching bingo.
- September: At-home date night. Pizza gift certificate, new movie to watch and copies of quiz books How Well Do You Know Your Husband? and How Well Do You Know Your Wife?
- October: Gift card to Power Play.
- November: Bookstore date night. I printed up bookstore task cards and got a certificate to Russell Stover’s for dessert after the bookstore.
- December: Night out painting at Thirsty Pallet.
I placed all items for each date in a manila envelope and wrote a note explaining what we would be doing on each date night. I purchased all gift cards and collateral items in advance to ensure that each date would happen. With the money already spent, we had to find the time to make each one happen so that the money wouldn’t go to waste. At the beginning of each month, we pull out that month’s envelope and sit down with the calendar to find a date for our night out.
Those manila envelopes have become a fun highlight in our relationship. We both certainly look forward to some special time together. They’re also a regular reminder to my husband of how much he is loved. Give it a try with someone you love.
Tips:
Watch Groupon. I was able to get dinner at a nice restaurant for our July anniversary date at a great rate thanks to Groupon.
“Like” potential date locales on Facebook. One of our date destinations was running a deal through FB. I purchased an $80 gift card for only $40!
Search the internet. I found several creative date night ideas on various blogs. This helped to ensure that every date wasn’t dinner and a movie (our go-to night out).
Start early. The longer you can watch for deals and specials, the more money you will save.
Margaret Sarver lives in Lenexa with her family. She and her husband can be found out and about at least once a month on their date night.