12 months of pre-planned (and pre-paid) dates

Dating once married has been said should be made a priority. Once a few kids come along dating your spouse often goes to the back burner. It has in our relationship. In the last 12 years I can tell you how many dates we have had... Not enough. 

I have been planning this for almost 2 years. I have a whole pin board devoted to it on Pinterest. I had to make some last minute changes due to finances. Thank you to my eldest for staying up really late helping me put the finishing touches on this and for the creative mind when mine was completely shot. I really wouldn't have been able to come up with all the cute sayings without the help! 

The idea of this gift is to provide 12 pre-planned and pre-paid for date nights. This way there should be NO excuse for not going on them. The 1st of each month another envelope will be opened and the date will be scheduled.

Without further ado here is my version of the popular 12 months of dates:

All the months lined up in an old box that I covered with some generic gift wrap.

I attached some curly ribbons.

Close up of the gift tag. It says, "With love, from me to you".

Underneath the gift tag

*** I found the gift tags online somewhere and can't remember where. 

When I do find them again I will link to that blog here.***

Now for each of the months. I will start with this month (July) because today is our 12th anniversary. I gave Scott this gift after his ridiculously long post work pampering session shower tonight. To be fair, it only seemed to take a really long time because I was standing ready to take this (see below) picture the entire time. 

July:    July 19, 2014

He opened this 1 date tonight. We already had a date planned so this one was an after date, date. We visited our local Hayman's Dari Bar and had some super yummy ice cream!

Contents: $ and a cute note

August:

We have a family membership to The Wilds. We go there several times with the kids. Anyone with kids can probably guess how the trip goes. Hot temperatures + dusty, bumpy ride + 2.5 hours = lots of whining.

For this date we are taking a visit to the kids sans little wild ones. I also picked up some new binoculars so hopefully we can catch a better glimpse of some of the more shy animals.

Contents: New binoculars and a cute note

September:

We haven't been apple picking in several years. When we go, the kids are in tow and the outing goes a little like this:

Parents: Kids we are looking to pick big juicy apples that do not have a lot of marks/bruises.
Kids: Alright, got it! (They were running away before we even finished our part)

Then we spend the remainder of the time reminding them to not pick tiny dinged up apples. To stop eating them. We return home later that evening to inspect the bag and find about 50% are seconds quality that we paid premium price for. Oh, well into the apple cider they go waste not want not!

For this date I thought it would be nice to 1 pick big juicy apples that are without marks and marring and 2 explore the parts of the Granville Apple Orchard we have not yet been. Maybe we will throw caution to the wind and visit a NEW orchard such as Lynd Fruit Farm or Branstool Orchard.

Contents: $ (to cover the cost of the apple bag) and a cute note

October:

Every fall we take the kids to pick out pumpkins and then spend an evening helping them hack and gut them. Our porch is always decorated with the kids interesting beautiful Jack-O-Lanterns. This date will be a chance for the adults to come up with our own beautiful interesting additions to the porch.

Contents: 2 pumpkin carving sets and a fun note to tell how f***ing pumpkin much I love him.

November:

Date night IN! November marks the crunch time of the Holiday season. We can grab some DVD's and just stay in. Perfect to recharge the batteries for the next couple months of LONG days and nights!

Contents: 5 pack of Redbox codes, movie snacks and a funny note.

December:

Every year our local zoo, The Columbus Zoo, does a Christmas light display. We went once about 6 years ago. We brought the kids and while that experience didn't scare us away from the entire zoo it did pretty much destined us to never return with the kids. Well, at least not until the kids have kids.
Cold + Dark + Late + our kids = Not happening! So for December's date I think we should bundle up and peruse the zoo and check out all the pretty sparkling lights. Maybe we will sing a few Christmas songs.

Contents: Hot cocoa packs and a cute note.

January:

Taken 3 comes to theaters this month (yeah that took some skills to find out, lol, j/k). We both really liked the 1st 2 Taken movies and Scoot has been talking almost non stop a lot about how much he wants to see it. For January's date I pilfered both copies of Taken from our outrageous DVD collection. We can have a Taken marathon at home then head off to the theater to catch the new one.

Contents: Taken 1 and 2, movie snacks (for home), $ (for the theater) and a note.

February:

For this month's date we are going to have a fancy foreign getaway at home. The theme is France (yes I know the candy is NOT French, but it's candy we love and it is pretty much IMPOSSIBLE to find French candy in the American stores around here). Not pictured below is the bottle of wine, grapes, baguette and brie cheese. We will listen to some French music, eat our French foods and maybe do a little French...

Contents: Frerro Roche chocolates, Lindor Chocolates and a note (en Français)

March:

Spring is starting to show up this month but outdoor dates are off the table for a little while yet because it is Spring in Ohio after all, and the weather is hard to predict. Lunar Bowling at Park Lanes sounds like a blast. We get to don some crusty old loaner shoes (hold the foot fungus please), grab a ball and knock some pins down while rocking out to some loud music in the neon lights. Might just make us feel like teens again.

Contents: $, note and a coupon.

April:

By this time of the year the weather should be fair enough that we can venture the 30-ish minute drive to Columbus for a date. This date will allow us to put on our artsy hats and take in some of the finer things in life like the Columbus Art Museum and a quick lunch. I haven't been to this museum in MANY years and I really hope they still have some of my absolute favorite art pieces. If not this date will be the perfect time to find a new favorite!

Contents: $ (for lunch) and a note.

May:

Oh May, the finally warm days, cool nights and clear skies make a perfect setting to head to the Skyview Drive-in Theater for a double (if we are lucky a triple) feature. We can pack some blankets and pillows and watch the movie under the stars (we can share a giggle about the "risky" commercials before the shows too).

Contents: $ (tickets and pizza) and movie snacks.

June:

Summer vacation is here. The weather is hot, the sun is bright! It is a perfect time to go on a fishing trip. Grab the poles, some bait and a picnic and don't come home till the bugs are biting.

Contents: $, new hooks, odor eliminator hand gel and a note.

Scott, it's your turn to plan and pre-pay for the next 12 dates... ;)