While there's nothing wrong with getting all fixed up for special nights out with your s/o, for most of us in the dating phase of life, it isn't always practical. And that's ok. As high schoolers, collage kids, and just-starting-outers, sometimes the price tag that comes along with dating seems intimidating-- whether we're the ones paying for the dates or the one spending obscene amounts of money on clothes and makeup.

Maybe it's the teen movies talking, but dating seems to have a pretty high price tag. Thankfully, some of the most fun (and best memories) you could ever have is while you're rich in love and poor in money.

There are some conversations you can only have while you're eating Chinese food out of your car. There's something about eating with plastic utensils that brings two people together. It's raw and it's real. It's so amazing just how much you can learn about someone when you see them in their everyday environment.

While we may tend to ignore a new partner's flaws to focus on how prefect we think they are, seeing them do every day activities helps you to view them as a real person. Go get groceries together and watch how they treat the lady at the checkout. Eat take-out in your car and find out if they're able to laugh it off when they spill soy sauce all over themselves.

The best way to become best friends with your partner is to live life next to them. So don't over fixate on if you're every waking moment together is *magical*, just find out if the two of you are capable of having everyday fun. Laughter doesn't cost a dime!

Low maintenance dating gives you a higher quality picture of the person that your with. It helps us to realize what's important in life- and what's important in life isn't always Instigramable. The focus of dating can't be one upping our ex, or trying to prove our self through what we can give.

The beauty of dating in a life stage where we are able to focus on the person. Not the things. Giving expensive gifts isn't bad, but how much more meaningful is it to give your time? In this we-haven't-quite-made-it-yet stage of life, the gifts we give may not always be sparkly, but they're genuine.

Special dates are awesome. Getting dressed up and treated like a princess? It's awesome. But those special occasions would cease to be special if they were an everyday occurrence, and our perception of a person can get clouded when we don't see enough of them without the smoke and lights. So maybe we don't need to worry the price tag so much. Maybe we should just make memories.