What are some non-tv related things you do at night?

Growing up, my parents always watched tv at night and considered it what you do after dinner to spend time together.  My husband and I have fallen into the same pattern.  A little tv is fine, but I've been feeling like it's getting excessive and I'd like to do more active things.  Not to mention the fact that sitting on the couch all night watching tv also leads to indiscriminate snacking.  So, any suggestions? 

Sex is good....   or....

How about enrolling in a few courses together?  Ballroom dancing's pretty popular at the moment.  You could learn a language or some other skill.   My grandparents used to play cards all evening!  My Dad and I used to try to solve newspaper crosswords together... that gets you talking.   And I can recommend Scrabble, although it was a factor in why I'm no longer married (very sore loser...)

Switch off the TV and see what emerges...

How about couples Yoga?  Its a great way to unwind your day while your with your partner.

I know exactly how you feel, I feel like I spend way to much time in front of the TV. 

But I do other things also.  One night a week my DH and I bowl on a league.  Usually once a week we will go to dinner and maybe spend an hour or two at the local Indian casino. We also go watch our grandkids when they are in sports.  I spent an hour in the cold yesterday watching a soccer game. 

And not that it's healthy or anything, but I spend a lot of time playing poker or other card games (spades, hearts, etc.) on-line.  Of course usually the TV is on, but it's more of a background thing then.  My husband also enjoys the on-line games, and we sit next to each other with our laptops and we talk about the hands/cards while we are playing.  Geeky but true!

Original Post by 5togo:

Growing up, my parents always watched tv at night and considered it what you do after dinner to spend time together.  My husband and I have fallen into the same pattern.  A little tv is fine, but I've been feeling like it's getting excessive and I'd like to do more active things.  Not to mention the fact that sitting on the couch all night watching tv also leads to indiscriminate snacking.  So, any suggestions? 

Reading books, book-reading is one of the best pastimes.  Another thing you could do is read alternative news bloggers and websites.  Hope this tip helps :-)

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 2nd gi-jane on Scrabble...that and other card/boardgames can be fun...my hubby and I also like to play Uno, Trivial Pursuit, and Life.

Also Chess or Checkers......there's tons of games you can choose from

I'll second (third) the boardgames recommendation.  In addition to the old-and-good ones (Scrabble, Checkers, Chess, etc.), there are a lot of really great new games coming out these days - way better than Monopoly and such.  Though, if you like Monopoly, that works too.    Board games are about the only way I can prevent various members of my family from disappearing off to play on their computers in isolation all evening.

Apples to Zinias (sp?) is a really fun board game that we play (usually on Fridays with other people).

We are big into reading. Well, I read and usually he does soduko. We talk sometimes while we're doing our own thing. It's just kind of like companionable silence and we cuddle while we're reading/puzzling. I also kind of like sewing to unwind. Not "real" sewing but minor mending projects. So sometimes I'll do that after the kid goes to bed, while he does something else and we'll talk/spend time together that way. Sometimes we do other sewing projects that the kiddo does with me (like making a pillow for grandma's dog).

Walks outside I love too. But weather can be prohibitive this time of year depending on wher eyou are.

This is a really brilliant question! I have been struggling with this problem too. We used to play tennis but I lost that when I hurt my shoulder.

We looked up classes at the local community center and are trying Akido (starts tomorrow!). The rest of the weeknights are filled with prime time tv, reading, and joint web surfing (fmylife.com, peopleofwalmart.com, failblog.org etc- things that make us laugh).

I would suggest seeing if your community has anything your interested in- book clubs, physical or non-phys classes like akido and photography. My theory is that anything that is stimulates your mind and/or body is worth the time and effort.

Original Post by 5togo:

Growing up, my parents always watched tv at night and considered it what you do after dinner to spend time together.  My husband and I have fallen into the same pattern.  A little tv is fine, but I've been feeling like it's getting excessive and I'd like to do more active things.  Not to mention the fact that sitting on the couch all night watching tv also leads to indiscriminate snacking.  So, any suggestions? 

Hey i forgot, why don't you get into political forums.  The financial-oligarchies of this country are destroying it and the country needs more worried people, into political activism in order to save it. 

Another thing you can do is to watch soap operas at night, you can record soap-operas in the day and watch them at night.  The good thing about soap-operas is that they follow a sequence and take you into another world, so that can kill boredom at night. Another benefit about soap-operas is that most of their stars are in pretty good shape which can be like a role motivation model for your exercising and diet program

I hope these tips help, take care ;-)

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I don't watch TV often but the husband watches a few nights a week.  We take the kids for bicycle rides, go to parks, garden and play with the animals.  We donate time too.  We used to volunteer at our local fire and rescue.  I was an EMT and he was an ambulance driver.  At that time, there were only two people on each run, so we were a team when we were on-call.  We have built dog houses out of wood with flip-top or hinged roofs for the local animal shelter.  We always seem to find something to do.

Take a writing class or sign-up for a swimming or exercise class.

Crochet! Or knitting!

crossword puzzles!! for  a game I recommend Taboo...it's fun to see how people create associations to get the word said.  You can do it with your SO just for fun...see how many you can make him guess and see how good you are at guessing from him.

I have a list for you... I just got tv and have never been all that into it... I was without a tv for about a year...

How about a good ol' fashioned long conversation?

Read a book or write a book...

Night classes

Phone or visit a friend

Walk around the block - amazingly, I always find something new even though I've walked around the neighborhood many many times

During summer - I go night swimming sometimes

Simple stretches on the rug and its sooo sexy and feels great when my hubby helps me stretch even further

Stretching in pairs leads to sex

Luckily I have a gym right downstairs in my building so sometimes I would end up there

Sometimes I would prep healthy meals for the next day

If dinner ends early and I think "Is the mall still open?" it is likely I will end up with a new pair of shoes by 9pm LOL

I invite mom over for scrabble sometimes

Rearrange my closet

Go dancing, even if its just throughout my own house

Crunches and other little workouts

Clean out the fridge. throw away the junk

Take a long and relaxing bath

Motorcycle ride or hiking on the weekends (not so much at night)

Clean the house (although this is at the bottom of the list for a reason)...

Several people have mentioned "reading" but have you thought of taking turns reading to each other?  Bet you haven't done that since childhood, but it is fun to read to someone and fun to listen as well.

Also you can do cooking together of something healthy and freezible (such as a bean style soup).  Cooking together is fun, and as a bonus you have something healthy and tasty in the freezer to use for dinner on a subsequent night, and all you'll have to do is micro it. 

Have you considered getting a Wii for exercise options?  Then you can still use your tv, but be more active.

I vote for more 'bedroom-related' activities.  That said, other activities could include taking a dance lessons.  It would get you and the spouse out of the house for the evening, you would learn to Salsa, Tango or whatever and you would get great exercise.

I'm not anti-TV like most people.  Having said that, we typically watch sports or smart TV.  But on Tuesdays our 4-year-old has swimming, Wednesday is football and Thursday is gymnastics.  That gets us out and about.  We also gather around the Wii and play balance games or aerobics.  We like the Wii because it gets you up and moving instead of just planting your butt on the couch and playing video games.

I do dishes and then go to bed.

Although I usually have the TV (or radio) going most of the day, I rarely watch it.  I like it for the noise.  LOL!!

Usually in the evenings I am busy cleaning up the kitchen after dinner, finishing up laundry and other odd-ball chores around the house.  I will tend to my animals - feeding, watering, cleaning out kennels & stalls, etc. 

In the spring & summer I try and stay outside until it's too dark working in my yard, flower beds, garden.  When the weather starts turning cooler and the days are getting shorter, I can be found working around in my garage.  I like to refinish & repair antique furniture and some pieces take several months to complete.

I hate being idle and just sitting around - unless I am sick or it's just too darn cold to be anywhere else but the sofa with a warm blanket and a good movie. 

My boyfriend and I have the same routine together too...though we don't live together LOL...he and I eat dinner together (lately we have been propping up in front of the tv for some reason LOL) and then we clean up...then you're right, its back to the television...some nights I will go off and take a nice warm bath and try to relax and he plays his video game....

Another thing you guys can do (not sure of your age, if you have children, etc) but we will sometimes play a game too...we enjoy playing bored games so we will bust out with Scrabble or something every now and then...

Hope this helps. Also, now that its getting colder, if you are worried about the snacking thing, curl up with a nice cup of hot tea....not only does it help settle the stomach after dinner, it helps relax ya too...