Date Night - Free Ideas

Geocaching:  Once you own a hand held GPS device you can do this as a couple for free!  Geocaching is a treasure hunt except with a modern twist:  couples search for a location and then follow clues to find a hidden log, a treasure to pass on, or even a prize.  You will be surprised at all the locations and ingenious hidden treasures and finds even in Sioux City.  Go to www.geocaching.com and get started.  This is good for a married couple or for the whole family!  Make sure you talk as a couple along the way!


Volunteering:  Sometimes a date night can involve helping others. For example, help for a couple hours at the Food Bank of Siouxland. Collect food, backpacks, or even attend their "Empty Bowls Dinner and Auction (February - http://www.siouxlandfoodbank.org/bowls.html ) This gives a chance to help others but also a time to talk with one another about the joys of helping others. Another opportunity is to help at the Sioux City Soup Kitchen (258-0027) for an hour or the Sioux City Gospel Mission http://www.siouxcitygospelmission.org/index.html (255-1769). They serve Monday - Friday and Saturday Lunches. I recommend doing this as a couple, but make sure the two of you go out afterwards for time to talk about the experience before returning home. You can help directly or contact your church for an assigned help time.  Anonymous Sioux City


Date Night Game:

1.  Play a "how much do you know about your spouse" game based on the newly wed game.
 
2.  Husband and wife separately answer ten questions on effective communications, then compare answers.
 
3.  Together make a list of ten things that you pledge to do together in the next 6 months.


River Walk Date Night:  An evening picnic on the banks of a creek, river, lake or pond. Candles and a bottle of wine along with your favorite picnic food. What is more romantic than that? Pack the picnic together so your evening starts at home and from the beginning. Watch the sun set and reminisce about: your wedding day, birth of children, other noteable days.  Jayna, Sioux City 

Taking a Street Stroll: We like to take a stroll down the street as our date night. We enjoy different archetecture. Walk hand in hand. Talk about the day and get a little excersise in the process.  Anonymous, Sioux City

Biking Trails:  Sioux City is full of walking and biking trails. A good date night during the summer is to start at the corner of Stone Blvd and Hamilton. You can park around the corner on Woodland Way. Then trail leaves from here all the way to down town Sioux City. Then take a break and spend some time at Palmers Candy Shop, sit at Riverside Park and talk, or enjoy a down town resturant (This part is not free but not nessisary if you eat first). The trail guide is found at the chamber of commerse website: http://www.siouxlandchamber.com/trail-systems.html

They have a map also: http://www.siouxlandchamber.com/files/chamber/media/SiouxlandTrails.pdf

 

Dinner and Event

Theme Park adventure: I can't think of more fun than riding thrill rides clutched to your spouse. A day at a theme park could be filled with adventure, fun, and quality time with your spouse. Afterwards, the married couple could relax in the hotel's hot tub and/or pool.  Linda 

Explorers Game:  One of our favorite date night evenings is to go to an Explorers Game. If you take the family it becomes a family date, but with a babysitter we take time to enjoy time together. We have found we have to be deliberate.  Sometimes it is good to sit in the bleacher section and you can have more time for each other.  Anonymous Sioux City

Crystal Cove Park South Sioux City: To be able to just be with my husband even for an hour let alone a whole evening would be a dream come true. Being busy with 5 girls, 1 grandson and now 2 cats plus working full-time and then on-call for the Urgent Cares leave little time for 'US' time. I think going out for a pizza and pop (or beer) and then coming back to South Sioux(where we live) and walking around Chrystal Cove at a slow pace would be wonderful. We would be able to just talk and enjoy each others' company like we used to and get to reconnect and actually find out what the other person is thinking and feeling. We do things together now but it usually includes the kids or other 'family' things and to be just alone/together would be a 'Dream Come True.'  Paula, South Sioux City.

Make Homeade Ice Cream:  During the warm summer nights, it is fun to make homemade ice cream. It requires a little time and a bit of cooperative work to make the perfect flavors. It is fun to make the ice cream and top it with all the favorite toppings.  The cost: the ingredients for the ice cream and toppings.  Linda

Dinner at Home:   It it is fun to do a romantic dinner at home. Take the kids to a babysitter, then set the table with the best china. Buy flowers and candles and prepare our favorite menu. At our house it is a tender steak on the grill with a side of rice and vegatables. A glass of wine. After talking it is good to take a piece a paper a write down on the piece what we like about the other person. If we come with 5 to 10 items. For example, I might write, "I like it when you send a text message during the day asking how I am doing." Or one my spouse did for me, "I like it when you make dinner for me even without asking. We then exchange our lists and try to carry out the things on the list randomly. This can work for a year at a time and then we do the lists again. Also with any good date is a word of prayer and asking a blessing on our relationship.

Romantic picnic for two: This could take place at any of the many wonderful parks in the siouxland area. If the pools are open, the couple could enjoy some time in the pool followed by a romantic picnic for two. The picnic could be anything from fast food to a wonderfully prepared picnic lunch. A romantic stroll could follow the picnic.

Cost: picnic food/ money for swimming
Preparation: just food ideas, check pool schedule, check weather conditions, picnic lunch and supplies