Freewheeling Date Night Ideas for Flyers and Their Spouses

It seems the world of dating is ruled by planning. The problem is, people can put a massive amount of research and planning into a date and still have it go poorly. I’ve seen this happen to many of my friends and family, as well as myself. “There has to be a better way,” I thought one day, and decided to do something about it. I came up with some dating ideas to take as much planning out of the picture as possible. The first thing I did was take time to sit down and brainstorm. I then had to decide how many ideas to come up with. The next step was… well, this is awkward. Please see my date night ideas below while I review the definition of irony.

Idea 1: Random Date Bowling

Don’t let the title confuse you. This idea has nothing to do with bowling, though I suppose it could. Let me explain. One way to take the planning out of dating is to have some go-to ideas that require no planning themselves. I sat down and thought of activities my wife and I enjoy doing that we could do on the fly. This included miniature golfing, going for a walk, going out to dinner at a fast-food restaurant, or bowling (and we come full circle). I wrote each idea on its own slip of paper and put the papers into “The Bowl of Anti-Planning”. On the occasions when my wife and I want to go on a date, but can’t think of anything or want to spend time planning something, we just draw a paper from The Bowl of Anti-Planning. Just like that, our date night is planned. If the weather or a league bowling night prevents the idea from happening, we put the paper back and draw a new one. Works like magic.

Idea 2: Blindfolded, But Not Abducted

Just because I don’t feel like planning an evening doesn’t mean my wife feels the same. There are a lot of activities she enjoys and wants to try that require some planning ahead. Even though I tell her it’s fine, she doesn’t want to risk me backing out of the activity—especially after she’s put in the effort to set it up. My wife tells me that I have to wear a blindfold until we get to our destination. This adds some excitement for both of us, and even stimulates some conversation as I try to guess where we’re going. Once we arrive, I have to wait for her to tell me I can take off the blindfold before doing so. This is usually so she can get me out of the car and lock it so I can’t tell her I’ll be waiting in the car if I don’t want to do the activity (not that I would do that, but she’s the cautious type).

Idea 3: Verbal Exploration

Some of us think we know our spouse after being married to them for years and years. However, I would challenge that and say that you never know someone as well as you think you do. This is because, as human beings, we’re always changing and growing with daily experiences. Our favorite food in January can become tiresome by April and we’ve moved on to better, tastier things. Despite my best efforts, and even though we have weekly couple discussions, there are things about my wife that I don’t know.

I’ve found that a great way to discover your spouse’s hidden thoughts is to play verbal games such as “Truth or Dare” and “Would You Rather.” You can come up with your own questions, or find printed versions of these topics online and in some stores. These games are fun because they ask off-the-wall questions that neither of us would normally think of, which really gets our minds going. I should warn you, though, that you may discover your spouse would risk pushing you down a flight of stairs rather than eat a sandwich with mayo on it… But, at least you can make sure your stairs are well carpeted and practice your falling skills in the meantime.

Planning vs Spontaneous Date Ideas

It’s not for everyone, and it doesn’t guarantee a good outcome. There are times when the perfect date is the one that wasn’t planned at all. Look at the massive amount of planning that goes into the typical wedding. How many of those crash and burn? Far more than you would think. On the other hand, there are many times that people find themselves having fun and feeling good simply by living in the moment. I’m not saying you should never plan a date night, just don’t let the planning consume you. Remember, you’re going on a date to spend time with the one you love. As long as you’re together, any date can be a great one. 

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