At Home Date Night With Datebox

One of the most common complaints I hear from couples is that they feel disconnected and aren’t making their relationship a priority. While there are a lot of factors to consider in repairing the connection, one easy place to start that makes a huge impact is date night. Sometimes it can be tough to plan a night out, and an at-home date can sound boring. Research suggests date nights help couples connect by spending time together and deepening their understanding of each other and their relationship.

Think about your date nights – how often have you had every intention of planning a date or going out for the evening, but you end up feeling tired or like you don’t have time to plan something fun and different? Recently, I heard about Datebox and got the opportunity to try one out. Date night is so important to be intentional about, but sometimes life just gets in the way. Datebox is a cool concept that encourages date night without the pressure of having to plan a date.  Most boxes provide everything you need for an at-home date night, so all you need to do is enjoy a fun night connecting with your partner.

First Impressions

I gave one of my friends the Datebox we got in the mail to try (check out their review here), and my husband and I decided to try out the less expensive PDF Datebox. Our Datebox included a link to a Spotify playlist to set the mood, a video of cooking instructions, an ingredients list, and talking points about the eight “ingredients” for a healthy relationship. The format itself was really easy to follow, and I was able to print out the ingredient list and cooking instructions so I didn’t have to keep looking at my phone or computer.

The Date

I loved staying in and cooking together. As a couple, we both cook a lot, but rarely together, as our schedules can sometimes be difficult to align. This may have made the date night easier for us than some, as we are comfortable in the kitchen, but DateBox chose a simple recipe that was easy to follow while still feeling fancy.

We made chicken Florentine crepes for dinner and banana foster crepes for dessert. Again, for us, this worked perfectly, but for those who may be vegetarians or have allergies, you could add your flair to this. Our crepes may not have turned out the most beautifully, but they were delicious. My husband and I both found it pretty comical how easy crepe makers make it look to have them come out perfectly, but making them “pretty” was challenging for both of us. We shared lots of laughs and jokes while cooking. 

Eight “ingredients” for a healthy relationship

The PDF date had a section on eight ingredients for a healthy relationship. They named communication, play, commitment, forgiveness, selfishness, work, friendship, and charity. My husband and I read what they were, but I’m going to be honest, we were having so much fun cooking and spending time together that we forgot to read why each of these was so important and the stories that went along with them. We’re planning to spend a night on the couch, with a glass of wine soon, to read through the stories and discuss. So really, we got two dates out of one for less than $8!

We did make time to answer the discussion questions that night. 5 easy questions that ask about the ingredients of a healthy relationship and how you want your marriage or relationship to be. We discussed these questions as we ate and ended up sitting and talking for over an hour about our relationship. It provided a great platform to check in and see how we are doing as a couple and what areas we need to focus more on. This may have been one of my favorite parts of the date!

The music

This is an aspect of the Datebox that I would have told you before we had the date was probably the least necessary. However, it played a nice role in setting the mood for the date. We also usually listen to the same music quite frequently, so in the spirit of trying new things and living outside our comfort zone, this was an easy way to do that, and it was fun talking about the different music as we cooked together.

Overall

At the end of the night, we had a slightly messy kitchen, but we had a very connected and fulfilling evening. I will say this date worked particularly well for my husband and me, as we don’t have kids, so we had the kitchen to ourselves, and we enjoy cooking.  To someone with kids, it may be harder to have a good discussion and spend time focusing on one another. The great thing about Datebox is that there are many different options and types of dates – you can even opt in to be sent on evenings out where Datebox provides vouchers for various activities in your town.  The food was good, the music was very thoughtfully put together, and the discussion questions were general enough to stimulate conversation that lasted much longer than our usual dinner chit chat.

My husband and I both agreed we loved our Datebox and want to continue subscribing so that even if we can’t make it out, we are intentional about putting our relationship first with an at-home date night. Want to give it a try for yourself? Datbox was kind enough to provide me with a coupon code to share with my readers! You can get 50% off your first box when using the coupon code: MARRIAGEDOCTOR50