In our part of the country, winter is fierce. In the last 12 months, there were 8 where it snowed. And last winter was particularly cold, barely above freezing. All that spells Vitamin D deficiency. You can imagine why our family loves the summer solstice so much.
The theme for date nights for busy parents is the summer solstice.
Frugal/Free
Where I live, the sunrise will be at 5:56am and the sunset will be at 9:32pm. That’s almost 16 hours of sunlight, folks! And we want to enjoy every minute of it. Your frugal and free date idea is to make use of every moment of sunlight!
Get Up!
Get up with the sunrise and have some quiet time first thing before the kids get up.
Set your alarm.
Make an effort to be affectionate every time the alarm goes off.
Speed through the bucket list.
There are 15+ hours of sunlight. Use that time to speed through some of your summer bucket list. What? No bucket list? Go here to find a cute summer bucket list printable from the Dating Divas. Every hour on the hour pick a new activity.
Bonus points for keeping it under $30 ($1/hr/pp). Even more bonus points for finding a way to keep each one spicy ;).
At Home
Since the summer solstice is on a Saturday this year, you may have the kids with you all day or may be running them all over hill and dale. You can still have a date at home. With 15 hours of daylight, there is plenty of time for fun on either (or both!) ends of your day.
Set your alarm.
Set a gentle alarm for sunrise and enjoy one another’s company ;D.
Quiet breakfast.
Enjoying the early morning quiet with breakfast and beverage of choice outside. Prep their breakfast on the table and put a Do Not Disturb sign on the door.
Midday siesta.
If your kids are nappers, or you have a break in your day, plan for a midday retreat. Some ideas include sunbathing, swimming, reading, or even having a mini life-planning session. Sometimes looking forward to things can build excitement in all sorts of areas!
Late night fun.
My kids are still young enough to go to bed early, even in summer. We have a good hour before sunset. Do you have a good place to watch the sunset? Grab a drink, sit outside & watch the longest day of the year gently end. If you are more the active type, you could play a game. Croquet? Horseshoes? Bocce ball? Find something enjoyable to do outside after the kids are in bed, but it’s still daylight.
For Fun
If you are childless for the day and have the time & money, you can totally make this day rock. I’m so jealous :). Here are some fun ideas.
Wake Up.
Set your alarm and watch the sunrise. Get inspired to start your day out right ;).
Get started.
Have a leisurely breakfast outdoors, either at home or out. Restaurants have great deals at silly early, although it might not be so early, since you have time. Ha!
Plan your day.
Plan to be out All. Day. Doing what?
- Live near the shore? Pick a different beach every few hours.
- Live in a city? Check out a new local restaurant every hour, preferably with a deck. Think progressive dinner and pace yourselves. One item per place.
- Active type? Plan a mini-triathlon of sorts. Run a little, walk a little, bike a little. Or whatever sport strikes your fancy.
- Be a local tourist. Pick up your local tourism planner and things to try that you’ve never done–outside if at all possible. You could even stay at a hotel!
Take a day trip.
An extra long day is a good time to take a day trip somewhere. Personally, I would go to Mackinac Island, but hubs isn’t a fan. Where could you go?
Have a nightcap.
Honestly, after being outside all day, you are going to be bushed. Get a drink, snuggle up to watch the sunset somewhere, then go up to bed. That why we STARTED the day with leisurely fun :).
Are you fans of the summer solstice? Do you do anything special that day?
You can see all the Serve Your Spouse Saturday Posts here. This link will take you to all the Date Night Ideas for Busy Parents series.
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