While every rom-com and girl gang movie shows the glamor of late nights out on the town, I’m here to convince you of the just as awesome “Day Date!” I, my husband, and our two housemates all have flexible, work-from-home jobs and my three kids are now in school or preschool at least some portion of the week, which makes weekdays a great time for us to hang out, sans kids. 

Let’s start with food. All of those brunch places that are packed on weekend mornings are open “just for us” on weekdays! My husband and I enjoyed breakfast at the new Brunch at 2071 LPGA in Daytona and had it nearly to ourselves one Friday morning and have taken morning strolls to Midtown Cafe on Mary McLeod Bethune Boulevard for their breakfast platters. Even fancy restaurants and steakhouses, like Rose Villa in Ormond (43 W Granada Blvd.), have similar menus, but smaller portions and prices during the lunch hour. 

Factory tours are another fun daytime activity that also includes, wait for it, food! Angell & Phelps Chocolates in Downtown Daytona (154 Beach St.) has a self-paced walk through the various stages of treat making and there are free samples at the end. The Yaupon Brothers tea factory in Edgewater (504 Pullman Rd.) has a guided tour through their facilities with samples and a cafe at the end. Dunes Brewing in Port Orange (59 Dunlawton Ave.) will be starting tours soon and Copper Bottom Craft Distillery in Holly Hill (998 N. Beach St.) is still on my list of to-dos! 

Perhaps my favorite day date idea for significant others and friends is to go consignment or thrift store shopping for a specific theme and then go out in your new finds. For my birthday, for example, my housemates and I went shopping for tea party hats and accessories at Threads Vintage Emporium in Holly Hill and then went next door to Sweet Tea Cafe (1126 Riverside Dr.) to have an actual tea party! Or pick out a new outfit from Daytona Vintage on Beach Street in Daytona Beach and then have a photo shoot with murals around downtown or drive over to Studio 85 Daytona selfie studio in the Volusia Mall for indoor backgrounds! 

I understand that a weekday date is not feasible with everyone’s work schedule, but if it is, then I declare that we take back our time to have fun during the daylight hours, too!