Kid Stuff: 5 Surprise Ideas to Bring Back the Nostalgia of Childhood
Being an adult is tough work, but surprise ideas that bring back the nostalgia of childhood sometimes help to ease the pressure of life that can put a strain on your relationships. Get back to innocence and surprise your partner with their simple childhood loves. Make new memories from an old attachment. A little thought can go a long way.
Here are five surprise ideas to bring back the nostalgia of childhood:
5. Game Night
Heirloomed
One of the surprise ideas that could ignite the playfulness of childhood is game night. You can make a list of childhood activities you and your spouse both enjoyed, then pick the top favorite activities.
You can borrow or buy games or rummage through that closet of old stuff you barely look at and get some board games together. Not video games, though — shut off all screens and put on your favorite tunes. Even better, make a mixed tape (or playlist) of your favorite songs from middle school for the evening’s soundtrack.
Nothing is sweeter than the gift of nostalgia. Old toys and board games like Legos and others could stir the child in your partner, and romantic music from the past played anywhere in the car or bedroom could make them surprised and happy, keeping them in high spirits.
Also, apart from the romantic songs, old theme tunes are some of the best surprise ideas to spark nostalgia in your inner child.
This is not necessarily because they are better songs, but because they would remind your lover of the feelings of excitement that were felt when watching their favorite shows. Modern TV doesn’t give us that same rush.
Set up your kitchen table with some quick and healthy snacks and get out the scoreboard. Make it a little interesting and bet on doing the dishes or laundry for a week.
Watch your playful, competitive sides come out and see who wins the most games. Playfully talk trash and laugh about the heated games of the past. When was the last time you played Shoots and Ladders or Monopoly or Life? Blast into the past with vintage games and a soundtrack of memories.
4. Swimming
SwimSwam
No, not the lap pool. Taking a dip together is not only romantic but playful. There’s nothing like a little racing, splashing, Marco Polo and cannonballing to take your mind off your missed calls and put it back on enjoying time together. No electronics in the pool! Even better, get to the beach and ride some waves. Get playful and forget that you have an email address!
This will help both partners get free and lose shyness. It also helps in letting go of grudges from the past and gives the opportunity to start all over again on a clean slate.
3. Cupcakes
Baking Mad
A cupcake is just a muffin with a fancy hat. Customarily brought in for elementary school birthday parties, these single-serving cakes can bring up some whimsical thoughts of the past. How do you eat a cupcake? Icing first? What’s your favorite kind? How about Maple Bacon cupcakes?
Bake a batch of their favorite flavor after a particularly tough week, or pick some up at your grocer’s bakery. It’s just a little surprise treat for your sweet.
2. Playground Picnic
Reddeer
You might bring your kids or nieces and nephews to the park, but when was the last time you were on a tire swing?
Take a Saturday afternoon and leave housekeeping and financial planning for another day.
Pack a couple PB & Js to lead your lover down memory lane. Or get inspired by some picnic recipes. See who can swing the highest, or try to make it across the monkey bars. Boys chase girls for a kiss. Climb to the top of a structure and watch the sunset. Try to go at dusk, when it’s a bit cooler out; there will also be fewer kids around to disrupt the moment.
Also, one of the surprise ideas that could spark the feeling of childhood nostalgia in your lover is rewriting your love story while you are out.
Don’t worry, you don’t have to be a writer to pull this off. You could simply search and bring out those love letters or memories you had in your childhood.
1. Blanket Fort
Happy Mum Happy Child
It’s the home base for any rainy afternoon or snow day. While your significant other is out of the house, set up your finest fort in the living room. Chairs, ottoman, couch, comforters, sleeping bags, pillows — get creative and don’t forget to tuck in or anchor down loose corners.
The key to making a good fort is that it won’t cave in at the slightest movement. Now, give the blanket fort an adult twist.
Supplies like flashlights, soft music, wine and finger snacks create an oasis in the middle of your house. When your lover gets home, invite them in to escape any troubles. No kids allowed.
These are the moments you remember, not paying the bills on time, but playing around with your loved ones.
Make habits of these little surprises. No matter how long you’ve been with someone, there will always be something you might not know about them. Childhood is a good place to start.
Also, there are numerous benefits attached to nostalgia, as proven by various studies. So you are doing your lover a greater good by helping them remember their childhood.
Studies have shown that nostalgia can help increase self-esteem and clarity of purpose and even combat loneliness. Studies published in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin suggest that nostalgia can make you more optimistic about the future.
Another study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology suggests that nostalgia is often used to cope with negative mental states.
Enjoy these moments and try to think of many more throughout your relationship to help keep the romance alive!
