At Home Date Nights: Wine and Cheese

My husband and I just celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary.  Sadly, though, I can count on my hands the number of date nights we have had in the last 4 years.  Trying to balance being working parents is challenging enough.  Who has time for dates?!  That said, we really are trying to make our relationship a priority.  We don't always have the extra time or money for a nice date night out but we want to "feel" like we're on an actual date instead of spending hours discussing {ah hem, arguing} over what to watch on Netflix while gobbling down some popcorn in our sweatpants.  We want to be intentional about our time so I've come up with a few creative ways to still enjoy a romantic evening together, but at home, for less than the cost of a babysitter.  

This past weekend's after-bedtime date night: a wine and cheese tasting.  Wine - yes, please! Cheese - my husband has never met a cheese he hasn't liked.  It was a win-win.

I came up with this idea early in the week.  {Thanks, Pinterest!} Shot the husband a quick text asking if he was on board and started looking into which cheeses and wines we might like to try.  By being intentional and planning ahead it made the anticipation of the evening exciting, the same way you look forward to getting ready and out of the house on an actual date night.  

Thankfully, our Publix has an amazing selection of cheeses in the deli and they were surprisingly very affordable.  I went with a Brie, a Blue Cheese, and a smoked Gouda - mostly because they were on sale, not because I'm any type of cheese connoisseur.  It was way more than enough cheese but I got carried away.  I grabbed some guava paste, blue cheese stuffed olives, and wheat crackers.  I finished the plate off with a few slices of prosciutto.  {Ask the deli counter for a few thin slices rather than buying an entire package.  My 4 slices cost just over $1.00 and were more than enough.} 

I spent a few minutes at the grocery store on my phone trying to decide what wine to pair with the cheese.  Ultimately, I wanted to pick wines that would pair nicely, but that were affordable and that we enjoyed.  I went with a dry Riesling and a Cabernet Sauvignon.  

All that was left was to assemble the tray {again, I got carried away but I just love this stuff}. I poured the wine, turned on some music, and enjoyed some quality time with my husband.  Don't be fooled though - I was still in my sweatpants with a top knot.  

The entire spread cost me around $30 ~ less than we would pay a babysitter had we left the house.