[Antoinette Minor – Ambassador]

Hi All,

So we have been talking about this topic at work for quite a bit. When I was on the dating scene I never thought of having a budget for dates but when I think about it dating can be a crazy expense. This may be particularly expensive for men who are typically the party who pays. Single or married, do you have a date night budget and how much do you think is reasonable to set aside or spend?

[Kayla Buell – Ambassador]

What an interesting concept! I’d never thought of that. Thank goodness I’m no longer in the dating scene, but even as a married couple, my hubby and I do try to stick to a date-night budget. We’ve got $150 to spend on one really nice date night a month or a couple less expensive options. But if we didn’t have that budget in place, going out would get very costly.

[Stacey Daprile – Ambassador]

Antoinette, dating can get expensive! Dinner and a movie can really add up. One less expensive alternative is meeting up for appetizers and a drink during happy hour, coffee and breakfast in the morning, or plan a picnic at the beach.

[Cara Reynolds – SUM180 Community Manager]

Yikes, dating can be expensive for sure! Instead of dinner, which always means higher prices on everything, maybe meet for a specific fabulous dessert and coffee? Or, like Stacey suggested, breakfast; I am a big fan of brunch dates. Or “let’s check out the X,Y, or Z” dates (farmer’s market, street art festival, classic car show, etc).

The challenge, I think, is to defuse the pressure most of us feel to impress a date via spending… (No one wants to appear “cheap,” even when we’re on a budget…) But if we can find things to do that are interesting and fun in themselves (besides being affordable) then maybe we can better focus on the moment, and enjoying each other’s company.

[Antoinette Minor – Ambassador]

I really like your point Cara. Most of us tie in the dollar amount with how we feel about that person and that’s not how it should be at all.

I also really love brunch ideas Stacey!