Welcome to Budget Date Nights!

We have scoured our brains and used the internet as a resource to compile ideas for date nights that can fit any budget. Enjoy!

Your Fortune Awaits You . . .

2009's theme was "Your Fortune Awaits You".

This one was based on a Chinese theme. Each clue was in a fortune cookie (we made homemade fortune cookies so they were bigger than usual).

I can't find the pictures or the clues right now, but this year we did it at people's houses. So, one house, they had to make a valentine for their wife. The next house they had to wrap a box of chocolates for their wife. The next one, they had to write a song for the ladies (to be performed when they got to us). The next house they had to decorate a sugar cookie for their wife.

And the last clue sent them to the "Woo's" house where we had a chinese dinner and then played the newlywed game. It was tons of fun! (If I find the pictures I will post them later . . .)

Cost: We each paid $1.00 for the box of chocolates (clearance after Valentine's Day), and each wife brought part of the dinner. The rest of the materials were supplied from people's craft stash in their basements. grin.:) )

The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly . . .

Every year for the past few years, a few ladies and I have done "Scavenger Hunt" style date nights around Valentine's Day. 2008's Theme was "The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly" theme. Each wife created a "wanted" poster of herself and left it on their front door and then snuck out of the house.


The husbands then followed the instructions on the wanted poster to their first meeting place. The wives were ahead of the husbands planting the clues while the husbands were following the clues and completing their tasks.


At each location, they had to collect an item: (their boots, a cowboy hat, handcuffs, flowers for their wife, etc.) so that by the time the showed up to the Restaurant where we were waiting for them, they were dressed as cowboys with flowers in hand.

It was a hoot!

Cost: I think we had to buy 2 cowboy hats ($3.00 each at Walmart) and a pair of handcuffs ($5 at Walmart). Split 9 ways, it was pretty cheap. Then each couple paid for dinner themselves. Ours ended up being around $20

Amazing Race--Valentines's Edition

This AWESOME group date idea came from My Insanity. I haven't tried this one out yet, but it seems fun! Thanks for posting it My Insanity! Head on over there for full details!

Amazing Race--Valentines's Edition

Some friends and I put together this crazy group date for our husbands for Valentine's Day, one year, after they had sent us on a crazy video scavenger hunt the year before (so they could cook us dinner). I'm going to just give you the details of our date. I'm sure you can come up with clever ways to adapt it for your circumstances, if you and your Valentine like a little adventure with your romance!
I couldn't find any of the clues and invitation that I had saved to show you(just this photo), but my friend Felicia did a fantastic job on them. This was the logo she came up with that was found through out, and every clue was packaged in a tear-open envelope, with this logo on the outside, just like in the TV show.
My lovely SIL (she was my Kim Possible, too) acted as host for the race. She met our husbands at the church at the pre-arranged time and read these instructions:
Welcome to the Amazing Race-Valentine Edition. You were each brought here by your lovely, adoring, beautiful, smart, sexy, and talented wives. Who knew you’d be up for a challenging Valentines Day adventure.

I must now take any money and wallets that you have on you.
Here are your uniforms that you must wear for the entire race.
(The uniforms were t-shirts that we designed and made using iron-on paper that said "I love my wife!")

Here are your funds for this leg of the race use them wisely.

(We each had a bag of change worth around $1, mostly in pennies, for our husbands)
Here is your video camera.

Race Rules:
1. You must wear your uniform at all times
2. You must make a video of the events and each member of the team must be in the video
3. You must have completed all clues and the following tasks in order to win:

* Acquire a bouquet of flowers for your wife, without spending any money
* Purchase a gift for your wife, using only the funds provided.

Good luck Boys, here’s your first clue. You may begin the race at the sound of the whistle.

Clue #1

Make your way with great speed,
To the store you use when you need…
To send a package in brown,
From this south side of town.
Mary will tell you what you need to do,
In order to get your very next clue.

Our friends owned a UPS store franchise, so we had asked Mary to let the guys in (after hours), take their photos--passport style, and supervise their making Valentine's cards for us, using their pictures. We had provided her with Scrapbook paper and supplies, as well as the next clue for when they had completed their task. This is what she gave them:

Your first task in this race,
is to take a picture of your face.
Then glue it on a card,
It really isn’t all that hard.
Make a Valentines card to your wife from you,
When you’ve all done this, then Mary will give you your next clue.

Clue #2

Beautiful people pass through these doors,
To seek an agent for acting and more,
One of you should already have the key,
Look for your clue where things are frosty…

One of our friends on the date, is a talent agent, so she planted the clues at her office, knowing her husband had the key. The clue was in the refrigerator.

Clue #3

The “father of our ward” may be younger than you,
But at his house you’ll find your next clue….
We sent them to the home of our bishop from church (he's young...hence the clue). And he gave them the key to his mailbox and this clue.

Clue #4

This is the key to get your next clue,
The lock on the box may be stickier than glue.

*Return the key, before you are through!

Inside the mailbox they found:

Clue #5

Out in the country a family you’ll find,
Who love to hunt animals of every kind.
And more animals still you’ll find at their place,
Ask the lady of the house for your next task in this race

We took advantage of some friends who have horses and other animals for this clue. We asked our friend to make them do something for them before giving them the clue. We were thinking some kind of manual labor, but her husband had just returned from a hunt, and they decided to make them eat javalina tongue, instead. (Barry brags that he was the first one to down it. Some of the guys struggled with this one). When they were finished she gave them:
Clue #6

[local high school] High is the very next place,
You would go to practice if you want to run a race.
Get your heart rate up and take in the view…
Get a good workout, while you find your next clue.

We had taped this clue on one of the top bleachers, I believe.

Clue #7

Have you got your bouquet, your card, and your gifts, yet?
If not, do it now, or you’ll be quite upset
When you reach the finish-line
And have to turn around.
The race isn’t finished until these things have been found.
The finish line, and your fabulous prize
Are waiting at a place familiar to your eyes.
Make your way through traffic,
Obey all the signs
And step on the mat of the home whose name rhymes with Valentines!
Conveniently, our friends have a name that rhymes with Valentines. We were at their house this whole time cooking dinner and setting things up. It actually took the guys quite a while to accomplish those tasks. We took pictures while we waited. How cute are we?
After a few failed attempts at getting real flowers, my crafty husband taught all of the guys how to make roses out of paper napkins, so they each showed up with a lovely bouquet of paper roses. (I should totally have him do a tutorial!)
Kristin met them at the door:

Congratulations! You have completed the amazing Valentines Day Race!
You are the first team to arrive. (So what if they were just one big team!)
As winners of the amazing Valentines Race,
You each get the grand prize,
A dream date with your lovely, adoring, beautiful, smart, sexy, talented wives.
Congratulations!
We were wearing coordinating t-shirts that said: "I love my husband!"
and we presented them each with bouquets made out of big hunk candy bars (and whatever other candy is their favorite).
Then treated them to a yummy flaming filet mignon dinner (I might share that recipe sometime if Kim, that I stole it from, says it's ok).
I love how I look so comfortable with a pan on fire in this picture (that's not usually the case!).
And these beautiful chocolate heart-shaped desserts, my SIL, Kristin made. She had just finished culinary school! Wish I had a better picture!



We had a little too much planned for one evening, since we all had babysitters to get home, but there were so many fun ideas in a group this size. The rest of the festivities included, couples' pictures, group lip syncs (girls and then guys) in goofy costumes, and a slide show of all of the couples present and the evolution of their relationships.

I hope this gives you a few ideas (you don't have to use them all) for a creative date night. It was a fun evening, full of romance and tons of creative insanity!

Thanks to the Ballantyne's for the photos, and all of the ladies I worked and played with that night for your creative contributions!