My husband and I are not rich. We don't have six-figure jobs and we're still renting a two-bedroom apartment. What I'm saying is...we don't live the life of luxury (yet!) With that in mind, we have been trying to come up with creative ways to spend time with each other and spice up our date-nights without breaking the bank!
I came up with an idea earlier this year that we've been trying to the last few months and we've loved it so far. We are finding creative ways to surprise each other while only spending $5!
Here's how it works: Once a month, not on a specific day, we each buy one $5 scratch off ticket. (We happen to love the Crossword ones from the Colorado Lottery)
The deal is, whatever is won on the scratcher has to be spent completely on the other person! Whether you win $5 or $500, the winnings must be spent on the other person! We also agreed that whatever we decided to do with the winnings had to be a surprise.
"But what if my card doesn't win?"
As I'm sure you know if you've ever played a scratch card ticket, a lot of times, they are not winners. (That's that sneaky downside to gambling...) If the card doesn't win, we simply spend the original $5 we spent on the card on the other person (keeping in mind that whatever you choose must be a surprise!)
Please do note, I am not promoting gambling as an effective means of financial gain, and we never buy another scratch ticket if the first one doesn't win.
**If you have or had problems with gambling addictions, this plan is not for you!** (Further down in the post, I have explained how to accomplish this WITHOUT gambling!)
You don't have to use a $5 scratcher either, you could use $1, $10 -- whatever works for you.
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"How am I going to surprise my husband/wife with $5?..."
I find that most people think of the word "surprise" and immediately see the dollar signs floating around it. A surprise, by definition, is unexpected, NOT expensive. A surprise can be free. A surprise can be SIMPLE.
For example, my husband won $5 last month and simply surprised me with my favorite Starbucks drink at work. When I won $5 in January, I bought my husband a quirky little coffee table book from a used book store that I knew he'd enjoy.
I think the key here is to challenge your imagination and think of something thoughtful that will really be appreciated. Feeling spoiled is different for every person and unique to every couple -- I think you'll find there are many options for spoiling your spouse!
Not a gambler?
No problem! This cheap and cheerful little idea can be altered in so many ways to fit your finances and demographic! If you're not old enough to gamble, are prone to gambling addiction, can't gamble for religious reasons, or simply don't like the idea of gambling - you can use the same concepts with different presentations!
- You could cut up a few pieces of paper, write different amounts on each piece (i.e. $1, $5, $10, $0) and put them into a hat/jar and randomly draw one once a month and use that amount to come up with a creative way to spoil your spouse.
- You could simply agree on an amount each month, it could be $5, $1, $25, whatever works for the two of you, and find a way to spoil your spouse!
- You can get yourself a good old-fashioned piggy bank! Put all your extra change in a piggy bank, or any other container really, and once a month take it to the bank to exchange for cash. Whatever that change added up to can be spent on a date, something you've been saving up for together. (The last time my husband and I cashed in on our piggy bank, we had almost $125, so we spoiled ourselves to a night in a hotel downtown!)
- Have a cash back credit card? If you use a credit card with cash back, use that at the end of each month for a fun little surprise!
- Sell some things you never use and use that money! The internet is filled with places you can sell your stuff - Facebook even has it's own marketplace now! - Make a couple bucks from something you can live without and pocket that cash for a tiny baby spoil-a-thon.
However you choose to do this, remember, the takeaway here is that there are many ways to show your spouse you appreciate them! Surprises don't need to extravagant or expensive to be effective!
If you've got ideas on cheap but meaningful surprises OR if you and your hubby/wifey have a similar idea for pocketing a quick, extra $5, leave a comment and let us know!
As always, thank you for reading, and try to spread some happiness today!
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