I'm a coffee loving, travel-obsessed, twenty-something based out of Central Illinois. I'm lucky enough to make a living doing what I love - photographing people! I specialize in weddings (destination + local), senior portraits, + boudoir.
Whether or not you celebrate the “Hallmark Holiday” (as my husband lovingly puts it), date nights are crucial to having a significant other! If you’ve just started dating, just got engaged (or maybe today’s the day!), have been married 10 years, or have 6 kids, dating your partner should be a priority! Brandon and I personally try to have frequent date nights to remember to “take time to make time” and spend a night out – and kid free! Though I’ll admit, doing the same thing routinely over and over can get a bit boring, so for today’s occasion I wanted to share 5 date night ideas for you and your boo to do anytime – or maybe tonight!
If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook this one should come at no surprise to you. A few weeks ago Brandon surprised me with a note on the door explaining that he handled finding a babysitter and we were leaving in an hour. It also stated that my wardrobe was on the bed. When I walked in I realized that he bought me a brand new dress, shoes, and necklace! MAJOR points, and many thanks to my friend Kaula who helped him pick everything out behind my back. 😂I got ready and when I was done he came from the other room all dressed up to match! It was so nice to get dressed up for a date night for a change and we went to dinner at one of my favorite spots – Everyday Kitchen and followed with some Marble Slab ice cream to end the evening! It was super fun and such a treat to be surprised – I had NO idea. Regardless of what you plan to do, it’s nice to catch your significant other off guard with something every once in a while and I love that Brandon thought to handle everything for me! Trust me, it can be hard to surprise my guy! I have gotten a few items from Groovy Guy Gifts in the past to get some things for Brandon, and I’ve never been disappointed!
We recently attended a cooking demonstration and it was so cool to do something different! Led by my friend Shawnae of Pan & Cake Catering, she walked us all through a four course meal with take-home instructions on how to recreate them later! Let me tell you, when Shawnae warned me it was an onion-heavy meal, I was NOT thrilled. 😂However I LOVED everything she made, onions included! She may have changed my idea on cooking with onions… The class was held at Grovestone which is a really cute store in Champaign specializing in olive oil (did I mention bacon infused?!), spices and rubs, vinaigrettes, and more! I’m thinking we’re going to have to take Bex back for one of their cotton candy ice cream burritos! It doesn’t sound like a thing, but apparently it is. Anyways, it was relaxing, fun to taste everything and learn the process behind it all, and there was WINE! I mean, what more could you want?
PS – We’re totally going to book a private cooking sesh with Shawnae for a future date night, or maybe night with friends, and I’m so excited! Contact her for details!
This for us is a no brainer. Brandon and I have been together for over 10 years now, and looooovvveeee massages. Lately we’ve been trying to keep up on regular massages (just single) to avoid getting too stiff or sore, but every once in a while we enjoy doing a couples massage. There’s something special about taking the time to get a massage together. It’s relaxing, low-stress, and you’ll both walk out feeling rejuvenated! Brandon and I both love going to our girl Macey at Massage Elements in Paxton, and they offer couples massages! I’m thinking it’s about time to book our own soon…
We. Love. Movies.
But let’s be honest – dinner and a movie is the ‘ol classic, and it gets a bit old, am I right? Luckily, there’s a fun twist that we too often don’t think of; the drive-in! Pack up those pillows and blankets and make a comfy spot in the back of your car, or go early enough to eat a picnic dinner and lounge out on the lawn together. Best part? You can even go in your pj’s!
This is one of our more recent favorite date night activities! As lovers of everything true-crime, the idea of solving a murder is faaannntastic. Enter: murder mystery boxes! I did a lot of research and wanted to find something that felt pretty involved and would provide us with a challenge to work together on – and that husband of mine is one sharp cookie, so I didn’t want something that he’d get right off the bat. There are multiple subscription like services to choose from, but I ultimately landed on the Hunt a Killer boxes! It’s SO cool, each box eliminates one of your suspects, and leaves you asking SO many questions. We have yet to solve our murder, we’re on box 4 at the moment! I will say, it’s nice to have a dedicated work space out of the reach of little ones to keep our findings relevant and avoid us having to set it all up every time we open a new box. So far we’ve received items of evidence, “local” paperwork to provide background information on the subjects, and it even links up with an online website to listen to audio such as the 911 call. I love the provided Spotify playlist to play in the background while going through everything, such attention to detail! We’re excited to get every box and figure it all out, and it’s so cool to have a challenge to work on together! If you would like to try it for yourself, Lucas over at Hunt A Killer hooked me up with the code “MAGERIMAGE” that will give you 20% off your first box!
I will say, once we’re all said and done, we’ll have quite a bit invested in our murder mystery boxes so in a hunt (pun intended) to find a more budget friendly option, I found these kits on Amazon! For about the price of one box (around $30), these seem to provide ALL of your information to solve the case, but might not be as involved or detail oriented (which sounds too easy tbh 😉). I’m still willing to give them a try once we’re done with the Hunt a Killer boxes!
What other date night ideas do you like to do? I’d love to chat with you in the comments!
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