marriage Archives - the frugal millionaire

How to Spoil Your Husband without Spending Money

If there’s one person who deserves to be spoiled, that would be my husband. He is truly the most incredible dad to our three little girls. They love him so much that they cry when he leaves and ask for him all day long (aren’t kids supposed to be more attached to their moms?!). He spends quality time with them, reads to them before bed, wakes up with them in the middle of the night, changes diapers and more. I am incredibly thankful to have him by my side.

Today, I wanted to share a list of ways I spoil my husband without spending any money. If you’re looking for free gift ideas or just want to say “thanks” to your man, you’ll want to keep reading!!

Romantic Ideas for Valentine’s Day on a Budget

Valentine’s Day is just a few weeks away! I will admit that I love this holiday. Not for the roses or the gifts, but because it’s a day to profess my love to my husband. Sure, I do this everyday, but it just feels extra-special on Valentine’s Day.

However, the idea of spending money on a silly holiday is not my cup of tea, so I try to find little ways to show romance on Valentine’s Day without spending a fortune. Here are my ideas for this year – I hope you’re able to use a few of them, too!

8 Ideas for Valentine’s Day on a Budget

Breakfast in bed

Who says you have to wait until dinner to do something special for your love? I know for a fact I would win “Wife of the Year” if I made breakfast in bed for my husband, so this year, I will try my best to do that 🙂 A few yummy ideas include heart-shaped waffles or pancakes (add some red food coloring or make them red velvet flavored!), these strawberries and cream doughnuts, or a red fruit platter (strawberries, raspberries, watermelon) and heart-shaped bacon (fold the bacon into a heart and bake in the oven).

Be a helping hand for the day

We have two little girls, and I’ll be the first to admit that I serve them all day and make my husband fend for himself. Since Valentine’s Day falls on a Sunday this year, I plan to serve him all day and meet his needs. This will be small things – such as taking out the trash for him (his chore), getting him his coffee in the morning and asking him if he needs anything while I’m up. I know, I know, this is probably stuff I should be doing anyways. But, with young kids, I will admit that I don’t do these things as often as I should. Maybe Valentine’s Day will jump-start a good habit for me.

Give a good, spa-like massage

My husband loves when I give him a massage. Because of this, I do try and give him one a few times a week, but he’s lucky if they last more than five minutes. On Valentine’s Day, I plan on creating a spa-like experience for him in our bedroom: candles, soft music playing, lotion, etc. I’ll also bring in a timer and give him a full, 30-minute massage this time.

Start a project together

One of the best ways to bond with your husband is to do something together, side by side. Recently, my husband and I have painted our kitchen nook table white and we did a puzzle together. Think of a project to start with your husband and begin it on Valentine’s Day!

Cook dinner together

Right after we had our first baby, we started Friday Night Date Night where we made dinner together after our daughter went to sleep. However, three years later and with another baby in the mix, this has slowly fizzled out of our routine. For Valentine’s Day this year, the main thing I want to do is make dinner together after the kids go to bed, just like old times. I’m thinking my husband will grill the steak and I’ll make a few sides (a favorite of mine is chopped Brussels sprouts sauteed with olive oil and about 1/4 cup of pesto!).

Write a love letter

Ok, this is not something I can see myself doing, but I thought I’d throw it out there in case it helps any of you! Write your husband a love letter telling him how much you appreciate him and love him. Even though I would probably never do this, I can’t say I wouldn’t be completely blown away if my husband did this for me! (Hmmm, perhaps I should write him one!)

Go on a long walk, hand in hand

Late in the morning or early in the evening, grab your honey and head out for a walk, weather permitted. You can walk around your neighborhood or drive to a local park or nature preserve. My husband and I have come up with some of our best ideas while walking and chatting side by side.

Talk about your goals for your relationship

These types of conversations are my absolute favorite. Ask your husband first what he would like to see more of in 2016. Then, think about areas you’d like to see your relationship progress. Perhaps you want to run a marathon together or take an epic summer vacation. Or, maybe you just want to make little changes that will improve your relationship, such as limiting the amount of time you spend in front of technology or making sure Date Night actually happens. My most favorite part of being married is that we get to do life together, and I don’t ever want to stop doing life with John. This year, our huge goal is to purchase a rental property. But, I’d be curious to see what else he would like to see us do!

Valentine’s Day really does not have to be about expensive gifts and fancy meals out, but it also doesn’t have to be completely skipped altogether. This year, enjoy the holiday for what it is by showing your spouse just how much they mean to you without having to break your budget.

What are you planning this year for Valentine’s Day?!

5 Things I’m Thankful For

You guys, Thanksgiving is less than a week away. This year has really just flown by. Last year was the first year John, me and the girls celebrated all by our lonesome. I took the girls to the park in the morning while John prepared the turkey, and then he watched them in the afternoon while I made the side dishes. We had a lot of fun, even if it was just the four of us (for new readers, we recently moved across the country and no longer live near family).

This year, some wonderful friends that we made here in NC invited us over to their Thanksgiving dinner. They also aren’t from here, so we figured we may as well celebrate together. I couldn’t be more excited at their generosity!

Here are five things I’m thankful for this year.

Financial tips for newlyweds

John and I are celebrating our four year wedding anniversary next week! In addition, my little sister is getting married a few days after our four year anniversary. In celebration of her new marriage and our upcoming anniversary, I thought I’d share my financial tips for newlyweds.

Our story

Budget-friendly Valentine’s Day gift ideas

Valentine’s Day is just around the corner! John and I don’t go all-out for the holiday, but we do enjoy an excuse to celebrate our love. In the past, we’ve both made dinner at home and gone out to eat at fancy steakhouses. While going out to eat on Valentine’s Day was fun, this year we’re opting to stay in. There’s really nothing better than being at home with the one I love – plus, let’s be honest, no one likes to be in crowded restaurants and spend money on overpriced food.

This past weekend, our local grocery store – Publix – had a Valentine’s Day tasting event. It may be pathetic, but yes, I planned my day around this event. Free samples of desserts, cheeses, wines and yummy food – yes please. We sampled a Blackened-Barbecue Shrimp Salad with Orange Dream Shakes that were both to die for, so that’s what we’re making on Saturday. We budgeted $50 for the meal, but if you look at the ingredients, it doesn’t look like it will cost more than $25 or so.

As far as gifts go, we sometimes exchange and sometimes don’t. It really depends on what’s going on with our financial situation at the time. The year we went to the steakhouse, we didn’t exchange, but normally we buy each other something small to exchange over dinner. John has also gone all-out before and surprised me with jewelry, candles and clothing. Even though I’m a saver, it’s a really sweet gesture to be surprised, regardless of cost 🙂

So, I thought it would be fun to create a little gift-guide for your loved ones. All of these ideas are affordable and less than $35!

Keeping your relationship a priority when working from home

Anyone that works from home knows that it can be hard to separate your work life from your home life. That means emails may be checked while playing with your kids, blog ideas may be brainstormed when cooking dinner and you may be spending your evenings glued to your computer instead of with your loved ones. I know all about this first hand, as I’ve been working from home (with kids, no less) for nearly three years now. Along the way, it’s been a top priority of mine to not lose sight of the important things in life – especially my marriage. With close to half of all marriages ending in divorce, I want to make sure mine isn’t one of them. While I truly enjoy working and love what I do, it shouldn’t be my entire life.

Today I’m sharing tips on how I manage to keep my relationship a priority while working from home with little kids over on Tie the Money Knot. If you’ve been struggling with balance in your life, this isn’t a post you’ll want to miss! Head on over and check it out!