Playdough isn't Just for Kids

Sometimes it’s fun to feel like a carefree kid; wind in your hair, dirt on your clothes and a smile on your face. But how many of us have a time machine? A good way to feel like a kid again is by playing with playdough. Many childhood memories were created with our hands, either in paint, dirt or toys. Revisit those memories with this homemade playdough recipe. It’s easy and inexpensive.

1 part Hair Conditioner or Shaving Cream

2 parts Cornstarch

Food Coloring if desired

Cookie cutters for fun shapes

Just mix all of these ingredients together in a bowl, and then knead them with your hands. It’s that simple. For softer dough, add more hair conditioner or cream. For chalkier dough, add more cornstarch. Warning, it can be messy and wearing black isn’t recommended, but it sure is fun to feel like a kid again.  

Revitalize that Relationship!

Ask your spouse these three questions about their childhood, and answer them yourself:

·       What was your favorite childhood toy?

·       What is a fun memory you have with your family as a child?

·       How can we create fun memories for our children?

Make sure not to worry about the mess or washing your hands. Just enjoy the date with your spouse and learn more about them.

Homemade Body Paint – Parent Date Night

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Sometimes, as a parent, we hear about great safe activities for our children. One idea is a homemade nontoxic paint, but we want to make sure it works. What a great idea for a date with your spouse! The recipe is simple:

2 tsp. Cornstarch

1 tsp. lotion

1 tsp. water

Food Coloring

* This recipe is good for 1 body paint color.

This paint is safe to go on skin and washes off! With this in mind, you can make a game out of your new creation of body paint. Before getting your hands dirty, make a list of objects you should paint on each other, letters, shapes, scenery or your favorite cartoon characters. Toss all of these ideas into a bowl, and take turns picking out an object to paint on the other person. You can wear an old or cheap white shirt, although there is no guarantee the paint will wash out. Have fun together being creative and laughing.

Revitalize that Relationship!

If you are a parent, discuss with your spouse about each of your children, sharing fun memories of them and how you can help them in their future activities. If you do not yet have children, discuss how you want to help your children to become their best selves. 

Can you Escape?

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A fun date is the Puzzle Break- Escape Room! “What is that?” you may be asking yourself, well let me explain. Escape Rooms are starting to pop up all over the country. Each is different but they all have the same premise. You have a team of 10-12 people. You can bring a big group of friends or family, or be paired up with other couples. You have one hour to be in a room together, filled with puzzles and clues, to solve the mystery. You get more information when you sign up and actually talk with the people who work there. It is a fun and unique date while being a little out of your comfort zone. It is 100% safe                                                             and reviewers are raving about them.

To book a time or learn more, check out their website: Puzzle Break- Room Escape

Would Your Rather...

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When we think of dates, we usually think about big ideas that tend to cost money. Dates like those are nice, and help to build great memories with your spouse. But what about those weeks where you are seemingly too busy for a date? Play a little game called "Would You Rather." Take a half hour, sit down together and try and answer the following questions. These questions are for fun, a great way to laugh and spending time with each other in a hopefully novel way.

WOULD YOU RATHER…

-Be half your height, or double your weight?

-Fight a horse sized duck, or 100 duck sized horses?

-Live in the world of Harry Potter or Narnia?

-Have a zombie apocalypse or WWIII?

-Be super-fast or super strong?

-Have no internet, or no phone?

-Change the past, or see into the future?

-Be invisible, or fly?

-Lose sense of touch or taste?

-Be able to talk to all animals or be able to speak all languages?

Revitalize that Relationship!

Life can be hectic and your relationship may be the last thing on your To Do List. However, marriage can be an uphill battle. Research shows that once kids enter the picture, marital satisfaction goes down and continues that pattern until the children leave (at which time marital satisfaction goes back up). You can’t afford to slip away from each other. Even taking an hour a week to just be together can strengthen your marriage, and help fight the odds.

Hungry for Love?

Experience an evening of fine Seattle dining with your sweetie! Savor Seattle offers several different kinds of tours, including the Chocolate Indulgence Tour and the Gourmet Seattle Tour.

Location: “Near 1^st Ave. & Pine St.”

Cost: Varies, depending on the type of food tour (at least $40)

http://www.savorseattletours.com/

Image courtesy of imagerymajestic at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Reconnection Emphasis/Ideas: Having the opportunity to dress up, get out together for a nice evening, and feel fancy! 

~TRY:

If you have children, resist talking about them during this date. Also, avoid talking about work. Try hard to focus on each other and your relationship, just as you did when you were dating.

***Relationship skill:

Making regular date nights a priority is crucial for every married couple. According to the National Marriage Project, date nights can help strengthen: communication, novelty (livens things up, makes you less likely to take each other for granted), Eros (passion), commitment, and ability to handle stress (Wilcox & Dew).

Regular date nights don’t have to be every week- they can be once a month, once every other week, or whatever works for you and your spouse. Just make it a regular part of your romance/relationship routine, and make your dates deliberate- plan the date and make each one special, even if it doesn’t cost a lot.

--- Source: http://nationalmarriageproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/NMP-DateNight.pdf

A Taste of Autumn *At Home Date!*

Spice up the night with a cozy, romantic date at home- focused on the wonderful flavors and colors of fall.

Image courtesy of patrisyu at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Location: Your home!

Cost: You should only need to buy ingredients for your meal. J

Activities (do them in whatever order you want):

-Wear your favorite fall outfit.

-Make a fall-inspired meal together. Some ideas are below.*

-Play your favorite board game together.

-Take pictures outside in the leaves.

*Recipe Ideas:

The Perfect Apple Crisp (The Girl Who Ate Everything)

 “Ingredients

-10 cups all-purpose apples, peeled, cored and sliced (I used about 6 Granny Smith apples)

-3/4 cup white sugar

-1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

-1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

-1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

“Topping:

-2 cups quick-cooking oats

-2 cups all-purpose flour

-2 cups packed brown sugar

-1/2 teaspoon baking powder

-1/2 teaspoon baking soda

-1 cup butter, melted

-1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)

“Instructions

1.      Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2.      Place the sliced apples in a 9x13 inch pan. Mix the white sugar, 1 tablespoon flour, nutmeg, and ground cinnamon together, and sprinkle over apples.

3.      For the Topping: Combine the oats, 2 cups flour, brown sugar, pecans, baking powder, baking soda and melted butter together. Crumble evenly over the apple mixture.

4.      Bake at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes.

5.      Serve with vanilla ice cream.”

Nuts About Berries Salad (I Heart Naptime)

“Ingredients:

·         Fresh spinach

·         Fresh strawberries (cut)

·         Fresh blackberries

·         Fresh raspberries

*Cinnamon sugared almonds:*

·         ½ cup sliced almonds

·         2 TB sugar

·         2 TB brown sugar

·         1 tsp cinnamon

*Poppyseed dressing:*

·         1 1/8 cup olive oil

·         1/3 cup red wine vinegar

·         ½ cup sugar

·         ¾ tsp dry mustard

·         ¾ tsp salt

·         1 tsp poppyseed

“Directions:

Wash your salad and berries and set aside.

*Almonds:*

In a small frying pan, combine your almonds and sugar. Cook on medium/low heat and watch closely. Keep stirring as the sugar begins to melt, to keep it from burning. Once sugar has coated the nuts, sprinkle with cinnamon and remove from heat and place on foil to cool.

*Dressing:*

Combine all of the ingredients in a blender or mason jar and mix until combined. Store in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Shake just before serving. For the salad, layer the spinach, berries and nuts and top with dressing.”

Skinny Spaghetti and Meatballs (Pinch of Yum)

“INGREDIENTS

·         1 1/3 lbs. lean ground turkey

·         2 cups minced bell peppers (about 15 mini peppers)

·         2 large eggs

·         ¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

·         ¾ cup Italian seasoned whole wheat breadcrumbs

·         ½ teaspoon salt, plus extra salt and pepper

·         35 ounces super smooth spaghetti sauce

·         16 ounces uncooked spaghetti

·         Fresh minced parsley and additional cheese for topping

“INSTRUCTIONS:

1.      Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prep the peppers. Beat the eggs in a large bowl. Add the Parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs and stir until thick and sticky. Add the bell peppers, turkey and salt. Mix with your hands to really get the mixture incorporated.

2.      Roll the mixture into meatballs…and place on a greased baking sheet. They WILL stick and brown on the bottom as they bake. Sprinkle the meatballs generously with salt and pepper. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the baking sheet and set aside.

3.      Cook spaghetti according to package directions. Heat the spaghetti sauce in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the meatballs and some fresh parsley; stir gently and cover. Let the mixture simmer until the noodles are done cooking and the sauce is warmed through. Combine the sauce and noodles directly in the pan, or just scoop the sauce on top. Sprinkle with a little cheese for good luck. ;)”

Take some time to spoil yourself and your partner by focusing on each other without distractions for a few hours. If you have children, do this date while they are in bed for the night. Try to accomplish everything on the list and take your time doing all of it!

Reconnection Emphasis/Idea:

Spending time alone, talking together about the things that make you YOU, completing specific tasks, getting in the cozy Autumn mood.

~TRY:

While on this special date, talk to each other about your favorite things- your favorite seasons, favorite foods, favorite hobbies, etc.

***Relationship skill:

---Sometimes married couples feel that they know everything there is to know about each other, but in reality, there is always something new to learn about your spouse! And with the hustle and bustle of life, it can be easy to forget that we need to keep DATING our spouse. Remember when you were dating you wanted to know everything about your boyfriend/girlfriend? Back then, dates were probably focused on talking and having fun. Well, we should not lose this desire and motivation when we get married! Actually, it’s even more important to know the “little” things about your spouse AFTER you marry them! And also remember: Your spouse is still your boyfriend/girlfriend!

98014 or 98121 A Night of Asian Cuisine

Try out this quaint Vietnamese restaurant for a romantic evening out!

Location: Green Leaf Vietnamese Restaurant

Green Leaf has two locations- one in Chinatown and one in Belltown. 

Reconnection Emphasis/Ideas: Eating a meal alone together

~TRY:

Bring a world map with you on this date. During dinner, talk about the places you and your spouse want to visit around the world, and mark on your map these places. Having specific topics of conversation to engage in can help married couples remember that they are still dating each other and that there is always something new to learn about each other!

http://greenleaftaste.com/#!/home/

***Relationship skill:

---Getting married does not have to mean that life stops and that your dreams need to get pushed to the side. Marriage should be quite the opposite, actually! Married partners should help each other fulfill their individual dreams and goals as well as strive to achieve partner dreams- dreams that you have come up with together. Even though traveling to far-away places may be out of the question at various times of life, it is still important (and fun!) to dream about where you want to go and what you want to experience. Making plans together (whether for the near future or distance future) is an encouraging and uplifting way for couples to connect and understand one another. Married couples without dreams and goals to aspire to may be at risk of becoming bored, unfulfilled, and disconnected. Think about all of the things you talked about and dreamt of while you were dating. These conversations and dreams are more important NOW than they were back then! And you don’t just have to make vacation plans together; dream about/plan other aspects of the future, such as parenting goals, your dream home, and your desired empty nester lifestyle.