SHE SAID:

Every year around this time when summer is on the horizon, I get the itch to plan a vacation. I absolutely LOVE searching out hotels and attractions and planning a whole trip itinerary, even if I don’t have the money to bring it to fruition. Brad is the complete opposite. The man would be perfectly content to have 5 minutes notice to go anywhere in the world.

That being said, it is nice to take an evening to talk and research any and all the places you’ve ever thought of visiting. You may surprise each other with the places you suggest. Keep the list of locations handy to refer back to in the future when you’re getting the itch to get away.

Since we already went on a little winter escape this year, the vacation funds are a little low. However, to keep the hope alive, we decided to make a vacation box where we could throw loose change and make more significant contributions once in a while. Once summer hits, we’ll open the box and see where our savings can take us. Here’s hoping we make it farther than the next town over. I only wish we had started saving sooner…

HE SAID:

Having a place to throw spare change is nothing new for me. Up until now I have always kept it in an empty jam jar tucked away in the closet of my office. I love the feeling of emptying out the jar full of coins and being pleasantly surprised at how much it all adds up to.

So why mess with a good thing? Well, I personally believe that a husband and wife should not keep secrets from each other unless Christmas or a birthday is involved. Until recently, I thought my wonderful wife felt the same way. Then she revealed to me that she has been secretly dipping into my jam jar fund in order to buy snacks at work. The nerve! From the ashes of my disappointment in her stealing ways came the idea for a new spare change savings system (say that 5 times fast!), one that we both contribute to but neither of us can dip into until vacation time.

We had some fun making a little cover for the shoebox that is now our Vacation Box. We found pictures of four places we’d like to visit, or in one case revisit, both to inspire us to keep adding to the box, but also to keep from stealing from it. But we didn’t stop there, oh no. Once the cover was on the box, I took some masking tape and taped the you-know-what out of it. There were also holes in the bottom of the box, so I taped those up too so no coins could fall out. There is no way anyone is getting at that money without it being very obvious.

Though this isn’t much of a date idea in itself, it was a lot of fun to put together, and to dream up ideas of where we’d love to go someday. It’s a great way to plan for some fun dates in other parts of the world, whether in a different country, or just a few hours from home.

SHE SAID:

Being kind is something I try to be on a regular basis. Sometimes I succeed and sometimes I fail miserably. Kindness, I have found, has many different levels. It’s pretty easy to be polite in society, but it takes a whole new level of skill to actually approach random strangers and offer your kindness in some way.

If someone told me to walk up to a complete stranger and show them some kindness, I would probably run in the opposite direction. It’s not that I wouldn’t want to be friendly; I would just panic with the complexities of it all.

So when Brad suggested we go smother people with kindness I wasn’t completely on board. Would I be holding doors for the elderly all day? Setting up a free car wash? Throwing cash at people? I think he sensed my panic and found the perfect method for accomplishing random kindness, which was getting less random by the minute.

Making supper for our friends was the perfect stepping-stone to stranger kindness. Cooking for people can always be a little scary, but when you find a recipe that’s semi-impressive (basically anything wrapped in bacon) and easy to make, the stress is minimized. It also helps if your friends aren’t picky eaters. Seriously, I think we could have slapped raw potatoes with a side of marmite in front of them and they would have screamed for joy. We have great friends.

I really enjoyed being kind. It seems like such a simple thing, yet we don’t seem to act on it nearly enough. I’m glad we challenged ourselves to go beyond friendly smiles and manners and actually do something for someone.

HE SAID:

A few months ago Susan and I were at the mall doing some shopping. As we were minding our own business walking through a store, the lady in front of us had some money fall out of her purse. She had no idea what happened as she kept walking towards the door to go to her car. Susan ran ahead and stopped her while I picked the money up off the floor to give back to her. What happened next left me completely shocked. As I was picking up the money (it was enough money that it was worth stealing if I was the stealing type), the people passing by were literally exclaiming out loud how amazed they were that I was returning the money. I guess they just assumed most people would steal it. I don’t tell you this story to pat ourselves on the back, but because it absolutely amazed me at how shocked the other people were to see someone simply doing the right thing. It was kind of sad.

That’s why I think the random act of kindness idea is so great. Most people spend so much time “looking out for number one” (we’re all guilty from time to time) that they can forget to just be nice. The wonderful part of it all is that it doesn’t take a lot of planning and effort to be nice to someone.

Since Susan was a little nervous of approaching a stranger, we simply made as nice a dinner as we know how for some friends. One of our least favourite things to do is to try and think of supper ideas. So, we thought it would be nice to alleviate that decision-making stress for someone else, even if just for one meal. We decided to do as much of the preparation at home as possible so that we wouldn’t dirty up their kitchen. We then brought everything over to their house, set the table, finished cooking the meal, and cleaned up afterwards. The hardest part of the whole thing was knowing how much food to cook for five people since we’re used to cooking for two. It all worked out well in the end though. The meal tasted great and everyone got enough food.

To be honest, it feels weird to do something nice for someone with the right motives, and then tell the whole world about it on the internet. But if it causes you to take part in a random act of kindness, either for a friend or a stranger, it’s worth it. Don’t feel like you have to do what we did either. There is an endless amount of things you can do to make someone’s day a little nicer. You could buy coffee for the person behind you in line at Starbucks, or bring some nice homemade food to a neighbour who might need it, or simply try to be extra nice to the people you interact with throughout the day, whether they deserve it or not. If you’re looking for another date idea that helps someone in need, check out our Charity Date post.

I think you’ll likely see a “Random Act of Kindness Part 2” post around here at some point. This was a good place for us to start, but I’d really like to go out of our way to do something for someone who isn’t a close friend, especially someone in need.

For anyone who is interested in what we cooked for dinner, check out the recipe for incredibly easy to make bacon wrapped pork tenderloin. It was delicious!

Cost – Using items you probably already have in your kitchen, it’s free!

Have you ever had a craving for ice cream while spending an evening at home, only to find your empty freezer staring back at you? Well, if you have a few basic food items in your cupboards, and 10 minutes to spare, you can make homemade ice cream.

SHE SAID:

To me, ice cream is a major food group. I will indulge in its creamy goodness any time of the year, rain or shine, heat or cold. It can be a costly comfort food when you go for the good stuff, so I was really excited when I found out I could make it in a bag for a fraction of the cost.

The process was easy enough, with just 5 items needed from the kitchen. A special note to those of you who have never frozen ice before (I’m looking at you, love bug), it actually takes longer than half an hour. Perhaps our half frozen ice cubes played a factor in the crumbly consistency of our final product. That, or the fact that we used 1% milk instead of whole milk. Either way, the end result was hardly worth the 10 minutes of intense, frigid shaking. Winter gloves are highly recommended.

Though the final product would make Ben and Jerry shudder, I didn’t really care because we didn’t waste a bunch of time and money trying it out. We may even try it again with some whole milk and fully frozen ice cubes.

HE SAID:

There are two major issues that come up for us a lot when we decide to spend an evening at home.

1. The need to do something, but not knowing what to do.

2. The need for snack food…RIGHT NOW!

Making homemade ice cream solves both of those problems at the same time. It gives you something to do without requiring much preparation time, as well as it provides snack food in the end.

Making homemade ice cream should be easy, even for those (like myself) who are a little less savvy in the kitchen. You simply combine milk, sugar, vanilla extract, and any other items you want to add for special flavours (i.e. chocolate chips) into a sealable plastic bag. You then place that bag into a bigger bag filled with ice cubes and salt. Seal the second bag and shake it like a polaroid picture! Wait….is it still cool to use that expression? Seriously, you need to shake it for a good ten minutes. You’ll notice the ice cream starts to harden around the five minute mark.

I was amused but slightly disappointed in how our ice cream turned out. It ended up looking like frozen popcorn. The flavour was surprisingly good, but definitely not up to par with the more expensive stuff you can get at the grocery store. It sort of tasted like a more watered down version of normal vanilla ice cream.

Though I wasn’t totally satisfied with our icy creation, it was a blast. It was fast, easy to make, and very cheap. For those reasons, I can forgive it for not tasting rich and creamy. I’m still impressed though at just how simple it is to make something that closely resembles ice cream. Who knew shaking milk, sugar, and vanilla against some ice cubes would turn into this little treat? It’s SCIENCE!

If you’re at home tonight and are looking for something fun to try, this might be up your alley. Don’t expect the world’s best ice cream to emerge from that plastic bag, but be proud of your cold creation. If you’ve ever made homemade ice cream before, or if you decide to make it after reading this, we’d love to hear about it. Send us an email, or leave a comment and tell us what you think!

How To Make Homemade Ice Cream:

Place 2 trays of ice cubes & 6 tbsp of salt in a large plastic bag

In a smaller bag mix:

1/2 cup of milk

1 1/2 – 2 tbsp of sugar

1/2 tsp of vanilla extract

Place the smaller bag inside the bigger bag, seal it tight and shake well for 10 minutes.

SHE SAID:

I’d be lying if I said I buy only locally grown and organic food, drive my bike to work every day and wear nothing but cotton. I have tried to be the perfect steward of the earth and after a week of super eco-consciousness and smelling like a pole cat (does anyone know of a good aluminum free deodorant?) decided my sanity was worth more than worrying about a piece of trashed paper towel going in the compost. Since then I decided I would simply try my best and take baby steps. So, I carpool, buy organic and local food when I can, and use non-toxic cleaning products (mainly so Himmery doesn’t croak when sipping from the porcelain).

The Earth Hour Date was one of those baby steps towards becoming more “green”. I love how easy it was. I didn’t have to read any labels for weird chemical names or calculate my ecological footprint (although I did anyway and I need 3.3 earths – yikes!). I just had to turn out the lights.

At first it took some getting used to actually using our brains to think of a new form of entertainment. We decided to play Clue, a game I had never played before and ended up winning! Just sayin’.

I tend to love peace and quiet. A lot. It was so nice to eliminate all of the noise in our lives and enjoy a quiet night together. Whether you’re looking to sustain the earth or just your relationship this is the perfect date for both!

HE SAID:

With Earth Hour being on Saturday, March 27th, and Earth Day next month, we thought it was the perfect time to shut off all the lights and have a date by candlelight.

We started by going to a nearby fruit & vegetable shop that specializes in locally grown food and picked out a few items to include in our dinner. I read somewhere that using a barbeque was more eco-friendly than using a stove. I have no idea if that’s actually true or not, but that’s what we did for our electricity free evening at home. Along with our hamburgers (topped with maple mustard from Sugar Moon Farm), I tried something new by putting carrots and green beans wrapped in tin foil on the barbeque. It all turned out great, despite the fact that I’m just learning how to cook foods that don’t have the initials K.D.

After dinner, we lit some candles in the living room as it was beginning to get dark. We then realized that we hadn’t thought ahead very well. We were planning to play cards, or a board game, but neglected to get either one before shutting off the lights. What followed was a dangerous and frantic search through a dark closet, lit candles in hand, for said deck of cards or board game.

Our board game of choice was Clue. I’m sure if I say I’ve never played Clue before, someone will tell me I played it as a child and just forget (I’m looking at you, Mom). So instead I will simply say that it’s been long enough since I last played that I totally forget everything about it. After we read through all the rules and set up the board, we had a very enjoyable evening solving a murder by the flickering light of the candles.

It was really quite easy to have a fun date at home without using any electricity. I do have two tips for those who want to try this out. First, if you plan on making or eating food as part of your evening, it might be a good idea to time it so that you aren’t cooking in the dark. Second, make sure you have any games you want to play, books you want to read, or any other activity ready to go before it gets dark. It will save you some frustration as well as cut down on the chances of accidentally burning down your house.

Regardless of where you come down on the issues surrounding the environment, there’s no denying that it’s a good thing to take care of the earth. If you’re wondering what kind of impact your life is having on the environment, check out the carbon footprint calculator. It might be all the motivation you need to have an eco-friendly date night.

For the locals: Check out Second Nature, a website with lots of great information about improving the way we live and our impact on the environment in Nova Scotia.

Cost – $5.00 – $10.00 depending on what you choose to include in your time capsule.

Creating a time capsule is a great way to reflect on the good things from the past, and prepare for the future. We put together a time capsule for less than $5 by mostly using things around the house. If you’re looking for something to do without spending much money, this might be just what you’re looking for.

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SHE SAID:

From time to time it’s fun to imagine what the future might hold. When I was 16 and tried to think of where my life would be in 10 years I probably couldn’t think of much more than having a university degree and being married. There’s a lot of talk when you’re graduating and going to university about your future, but once you hit your late 20’s there’s not so much of that.

Creating a time capsule was a great motivational tool to keep us thinking about what we want for our future and how we’re going to get there. Now that I’m 26 and look ahead another 10 years I feel like I know what I want for my family and myself better than when I was 16. I used to have a tendency to think that once I reached 25 that life’s excitement was over and there were no more huge milestones to reach, but now I realize that was crazy talk. When I think ahead 10 years at the thoughts of being 36 I don’t feel as panicked as I used to. Instead, I think of all the things we have to look forward to like trips, children, and other new experiences.

Though the thoughts of creating a time capsule may be appealing, it’s not something you can easily put together in a short time span. If you want to make it good and worth opening in 10 years, you’ll have to put in lots of thought and preparation. It might be useful to spend one afternoon just brainstorming ideas and then another afternoon cold be spent gathering materials and assembling the actual time capsule. You could probably even stretch it into 3 dates if you wanted to put more thought into the appearance of your time capsule than just a cardboard box like ours.

HE SAID:

We recently spent some time purging our basement. It’s an unfinished basement, so we’ve been using it mainly for storage. At first it was just a few items sitting down there in the dark, but over the past few years it has grown a little messier than we like.

In the process of this cleaning spree we came across a lot of things that we put in boxes 3 and a half years ago when we left our separate homes and got married. I found old pictures from my childhood, old school books, awards from piano recitals, etc. It was a lot of fun to look through everything, so I can’t wait to break open our time capsule in ten years and look through it.

We started by adding things about our culture that might make us laugh in ten years like a magazine that showcases how people dress in 2010, some flyers with the current gadgets and gizmos, a list of current gas prices, among other things.

We also added some more personal items. We both made a “Favourites” list of our top 5 movies, tv shows, and musicians that we like right now. I can’t wait to see how my taste in movies and music changes over the course of ten years. We then made up separate ten year plans. We wrote down where we want to be in 2020, what our hopes and dreams are, you get the idea.

One fun item we threw into the time capsule is a USB thumb drive. It wasn’t included because we think it’s cutting edge technology or anything. Instead we filled it with pictures. I threw in screen shots from various websites like CNN, CBC, the current Billboard music charts, movies that are playing at Empire Theatres, as well as pictures of the car we drive and the house we live in. I’m sure those will be fun to look back on in ten years. Here’s hoping I’ll actually be able to use a USB device in ten years.

Once everything was together, we put it all in a cardboard box. We then labelled it and sealed it tight with packing tape. Since we just purged out our basement, we have a nice little empty spot underneath the stairs, so that’s where the box will sit until we move.

Of course if you make your own time capsule it doesn’t have to be set aside for ten years. We simply decided to wait that long to make the impact bigger when we open it. If you do decide to make one, make sure to include things that showcase current technology, trends, and costs of living. Don’t forget to include a few personal items as well. We included a funny pen that Susan bought when she first started teaching, my little Batman and Batmobile toys, and a souvenir from a trip to PEI where we held hands and got them dipped in wax.

I think we did a good mix of things that will make us remember this time period, as well as things that will bring back good personal memories. Making a time capsule can be a lot of fun. Don’t be afraid to take your time with it. Everyone’s time capsule will be different, so don’t feel too pressured to include anything that we did. If you’ve ever put a time capsule together before we’d love to hear about it. If you haven’t, go ahead and give it a try!

Cost – FREE!

Everyone likes to dream about their future, and we’re no different. We love to dream about the kind of house we’ll live in some day. So we decided to put on our grown-up hats and go to some open houses. Though we were anxious at first, we had nothing to lose since the whole afternoon didn’t cost a penny.

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SHE SAID:

When I was a little kid I loved looking at floor plans and attempting to design my dream home with Lego. I relished in the task of laying the foundations of the mansion that I believed would one day be my safe haven. I no longer want a mansion, but I still quite enjoy roaming through the homes of others if for nothing more than simple inspiration.

Before this outing I had been to a few open houses with people actually capable of buying a nice house and loved it. Since we were with other people it was easy to slip off and explore the house while they did the talking.

Heading out on your own is a whole other ball game, which is why I was a bit anxious going into it. What if they looked down their noses at us and hammered us with questions? What if they laughed in our faces? Thankfully none of these things happened.

It was a bit awkward at times, but I don’t think it had anything to do with us specifically. It’s just the nature of the situation. You arrive at someone’s house and there’s someone else there trying to sell you something that you know you’re not necessarily interested in buying but have to act like you are. I find that nerve wracking, so I usually dart from the main entrance and leave Brad to bold face lie to all of the realtors.

All awkwardness aside, it was a fun thing to do on a Sunday afternoon. We managed to see 5 houses in the run of 2 hours. I quite enjoyed seeing what’s out there in various price ranges for different areas. It really gave us a feel for what type of space we want in the future to suit our needs and what style house we like. Some homes were in dire need of upgrading while others showed beautifully and even inspired décor and paint ideas – I think I see home reno projects in our future for March Break!

HE SAID:

This past Sunday was the perfect day to get out of the house as it was one of the first spring-like days here in Nova Scotia. As we headed out the door, Susan began to panic. She was frantically telling me that I had to do the talking, and obsessing over how we both look way too young to be home buyers. I assured her that everything would be fine.

We walked into the first house and the awkwardness began. We were the only ones looking through the house, so it was just us and the real estate agent. Oh boy… As we began walking through the house, I felt as though she could hear every word we were saying. It was like being in a library where no one is saying a word, just silently going about their business. That was us. After looking through the house, we bolted as quickly as possible to avoid any personal questions.

As it turned out, we were the only ones looking through almost every house we went to. However, we really got a good feel for how each real estate agent does things. One guy gave out cookies, while one lady was super friendly and fun to talk to. As we saw more houses we got more and more comfortable talking to the agents and answering their questions.

Despite the anxiety from having to bluff my way through a few conversations, I had a lot of fun going through open houses. We got a much better sense of what you get for certain price ranges, as well as a better feel for what we do and don’t want in a home. It’s a totally different experience than looking through pictures of houses on MLS, which we do all the time. At each open house we got a sheet with all the information about the house. So when we got home we had fun as we each ordered them from favourite to least favourite. We had quite similar reactions to the houses, which hopefully means it won’t be too hard to agree on what we want in a house when the time comes for us to buy a house.

Before we left the house, Susan looked up the addresses to several open houses online. I fully intended to randomly drive around the neighbourhood until I saw an open house sign. So depending on your spontaneity level, you can try either one of those methods.

I really enjoyed going to open houses. It was tough to work up the confidence at first, but after a few tries we started to get the hang of it. If you’re looking for something fun to do on a Sunday afternoon, give open houses a try. For some added fun, dress up nicely, go through some super expensive homes, and pretend you can actually afford it. You’ll have fun, dream a little, and best of all spend nothing.

With visions of Sheldon from Big Bang Theory dancing through our heads, we visited our local comic book stores for the first time. Though we aren’t comic book collectors by any means, we did find plenty of things to enjoy at both Strange Adventures and Quantum Frontier. The question is, does going to a comic book store make for a fun afternoon for two?

HE SAID:

My first experience at a comic book store happened when we were in New York a few years ago. I had nightmares of large, bespectacled, balding men in black trench coats quietly flipping the pages of comic books as they judged me from afar for not belonging in their store. In fact, the only comic books I ever read growing up were of the Archie variety, so I didn’t have high hopes for that particular outing.

While my expectations were low, my actual experience was quite fun. Not only did they have the expected comic books, but their shelves were also lined with lots of different TV and movie related products. They had everything from miniature Lego-like figures of the cast of 24, to a “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” toy.

Also, there were no large, bespectacled, balding men in black trench coats judging me from afar. They were judging me from about a foot and a half away…. I kid, I kid!

So when Susan suggested we check out our local comic book store (yes, you read that right), I was actually pretty excited. We knew of two comic book stores in the Halifax area, Strange Adventures and Quantum Frontier, so we checked them both out.

First up was Strange Adventures. Though it feels somewhat cave-like, it is overflowing with geeky goodness. From action figures, to t-shirts, to graphic novels, you name it and they have it. I was especially excited by their board game selection. There were a few I had played before (like Carcassonne and Risk) but many that I had never heard of.

Next we went to Quantum Frontier. It has a completely different feel than Strange Adventures. It is much more open, and bright – a more typical business space. It felt like they had less product to browse than Strange Adventures, but that could have simply been a result of the layout of the room.

I really enjoyed looking through the display cases of action figures, the geeky t-shirts, and all the other products at both stores. It helped that Susan seemed genuinely interested in it all. I had fun telling her who the different super heroes were, what the symbols on the clothing stood for, etc.

Is going to a comic book store the best date idea ever? Maybe not. If you don’t know Star Wars from Star Trek, or Carcassonne from Settlers of Catan, it might not be up your alley. Then again, sometimes it’s fun to try something you wouldn’t normally do. We enjoyed ourselves, but it didn’t take long for us to go through both stores. So if you decide to check out your local comic book store you should probably include other plans in your day.

In conclusion, I have a quick piece of advice for the guys who are reading this blog post:

Do not, I repeat DO NOT surprise the special lady in your life with an afternoon at a comic book store. Make sure she is on board 100% before you step through that door. If you do not heed my advice your outing will surely go down in flames.

SHE SAID:

I’m not a die hard comic book collector and I probably couldn’t name more than 10 comic book series, but I do appreciate the art. I was only ever into Archie as a kid and would often beg my mother to buy me the Double Digests on display in the grocery line.

When I suggested going for a little outing to our local comic book stores, it was mostly because they do tend to have cool little figurines and unique gifts you can buy for your comic book loving friends. Since Brad’s birthday is coming up in April I thought I would go to get any possible birthday gift ideas.

Out of the two stores we went to in Halifax (Strange Adventures on Sackville Street and Quantum Frontier on Robie Street) Strange Adventures definitely had more selection, but I liked the layout of Quantum Frontier better because it seemed more organized and less cramped. Both places have good selections of t-shirts, figurines and, of course, comic books.

If you’re indifferent to comic books it might be worth it to plan to go somewhere afterwards that you enjoy to balance out the fun. On the other hand, if you’re both really into comics, you could create your own story using your own photos and one of the multiple comic creator software programs, such as Comic Life, and give it as a gift. Comic Life offers a 30 day free trial, can be used on a PC or a Mac and is super easy to use.

Finally, if you’re still leery of stepping foot inside a comic book store, if you wait until May 1st, you can take part in Free Comic Book Day. You check out all the fun products and maybe even get something for free.

What do you think, are we crazy for going to a comic book store as a thing to do for two? Or do you think it could be a fun way to spend a Saturday afternoon? Let us know in the comments.

This is date number six in our 12 Dates of Christmas series. Everybody has that thing that makes it “feel” like Christmas, whether it be Christmas goodies, Christmas movies, or being around friends and family. For us that thing is taking a drive around town and looking at all the houses decorated with lights for the holidays. This year we did it a little earlier than usual, but it might be worth doing twice.

SHE SAID:

Going for a drive to see Christmas lights was one of my favourite things to do when I was a kid. There was a subdivision the next community over from ours that used to have a Christmas lights competition that never let us down. We would all pile in the car and judge the houses and my dad would patiently drive as we screamed at him to slow down for certain houses.

There was one house in particular in Fall River that we always used to go to that was elaborately decorated with various cartoon characters and mountains of sparking lights. You could get out of your car and go into the “gingerbread house” (shed) to sign the guest book. Brad’s family used to take him there as well so we may very well have brushed shoulders as kids as we gazed upon the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Mickey Mouse displays.

So far this year I have yet to be really impressed by anyone’s Christmas lights. In fact, I’m a little disappointed. I don’t think the problem is in the neighbourhoods we’ve picked or the time of night we go. I think the disappointment lies in the lights themselves. I think the switch over to LED Christmas lights is more pronounced now and there’s no ignoring the hideous blue glow anymore.

I get that LED lights burn less electricity and they’ll somehow stop the ocean waters from rising, but couldn’t the global warming geniuses have come up with something that has a bit of a warmer glow? There, I said it. Call me environmentally irresponsible, but I will never own or adorn anything with LED Christmas lights. If the dim bluish glow isn’t enough to whip you into a depression, the manner in which they bug your eyes out surely will.

That being said, there are a few homes that still hang the so called “old fashioned” lights up and even though half the paint is chipping off the lights they’re still my favourite houses to visit.

Even though the lighting fashions have changed, I still enjoy grabbing a cup of hot cocoa (the peppermint hot chocolate with whipped topping from Second Cup is the best!), putting on some Christmas tunes in the car and driving lazily around town to see the sparkling lights.

HE SAID:

A few years ago my family and I went to Florida for Christmas. We all had visions of basking in the hot sun on Christmas day while all our friends and relatives froze back home. Instead we got rain, rain, and more rain. We made the best of it though and it is now a Christmas I will never forget.

One of the best memories of that trip was from Christmas Eve. Our tradition when we’re home is to jump in the car on Christmas Eve and go look at all the homes that have been decorated. It’s sort of like the final thing that makes it “feel” like Christmas. We didn’t want to lose the tradition just because we were in Florida that year, so we jumped in the car and drove around looking at Christmas lights. We were staying at my grandmother’s place where there are a lot of seniors in the area. Let’s just say they put us Canadians to shame when it comes to lights. They go all out.

We actually tried this date twice since the first time didn’t really work out. We thought it would be fun to drive to a really nice part of town where all the super rich people live. My assumption was since they have all kinds of money, they would go all out with the festive decorations. Not so my friends, not so. Maybe in these tough economic times they thought they would be rubbing their wealth in the faces of the rest of us if they got carried away, I don’t know. If that is the reason, I think it’s a poor one since their huge mansions do a nice enough job of exhibiting their wealth. Regardless, there was hardly a light to be seen.

Our second attempt was a little closer to home and it was much nicer. It’s fun to see the new trends every year that people try out. A few years ago everybody bought those reindeer made of lights, and another year it was the icicle lights hanging from every surface on the houses. This year it seemed like a lot of people used the same company, Christmas Decor, where you buy the decorations and you pay them to do all the work. It’s easy to tell which houses used them because the roof lines were all perfectly outlined in white lights.

Although it wasn’t Christmas Eve, I still had a lot of fun looking at Christmas lights this year. I actually saw a neighborhood I had no idea existed, even though I lived five minutes away for most of my life. It’s a great way to explore the town you live in, get in the Christmas spirit, and spend time with someone you love. Truth be told, we enjoy it so much we’ll probably do it again on Christmas Eve.

This is date number three of the 12 Dates of Christmas. Decorating the Christmas tree is a great tradition. It brings everyone together to have fun and remember years gone by. It also brings on uncontrollable rage and tears of frustration when two people from very different tree decorating backgrounds try to come together to create their own masterpiece.

SHE SAID:

One thing that really gets my goat about Christmas is all of the false images associated with most traditions. Everywhere are images of perfect families happily decorating perfect Christmas trees and drinking perfect hot cocoa while sitting by perfect fires. For once I wish someone would show the flipside of things – cranky families decorating crooked trees and burning their tongues on hot cocoa while sitting next to their TV’s “Faux Fire.” Maybe then I wouldn’t feel so frustrated when my attempts at a perfect tree don’t work out.

I know creating the perfect tree is an impossible task, but my childhood compels me to try. When I was growing up, my parents always seemed to effortlessly create the perfect Christmas tree. My dad would spend at least two nights running rows of lights in and around every branch to create the perfectly balanced glow of lights, while my mom would patiently string silver beads expertly from branch to branch, creating perfectly spaced loops. By the time we were done, the ornaments all hung freely and an angel sat perfectly erect at the top.

Things weren’t quite the same for Brad growing up, so it’s no wonder that when we first decorated a tree together there were a few misunderstandings.

It happens to us every year. Every year I get excited about dragging out all of the ornaments and putting up the tree, and every year, at some point, I get cranky at the tree and want to set a match to it.

The rage usually begins to present itself during the lights stage. Nothing makes my inner Christmas tree burn more than unevenly distributed lights. Next are the beads. Beads are usually what do me in, so this year we skipped them, and I don’t think I will ever bead a tree again!

Though I had to re-hang a few ornaments behind Brad’s back that weren’t hanging freely, I think I did really well this year at just relaxing and enjoying the time spent together.

HE SAID:

Decorating the Christmas tree was always a fun time in my house growing up. We’d put some Christmas music on really loud and talk about all our favorite ornaments as we took them out of their boxes. There wasn’t a whole lot of attention to detail. We just kind of put the ornaments wherever felt right (although mom probably fixed things up a little after we were done and gone to bed).

I still enjoy decorating the tree, however I’ve learned that not everyone shares my feelings about not needing perfection. To me it’s the fun of remembering the old decorations that have been around for years, and about spending time with family. If the lights are a little bare in some spots, who cares, just mask it with extra bulbs!

Our first two Christmas’s together we opted for a real tree. We liked going out into the cold and choosing the right tree, then bringing it home and having the smell drift through the whole house. The problem is that the second year our tree was crooked and thin and didn’t even have a smell. So after cleaning up 10 lbs. of needles, we finally caved and went fake. We found a really nice fake tree though that looks quite full.

Every year we try to buy a new tree ornament. Our first year together we got one with two penguins on it that says “Our 1st Christmas”, then the year after that we got one in New York. This year, we (or more specifically I) chose an ornament at the craft fair made to look like the Grinch. This is now one of my favorites and I think when we have kids they’ll get a kick out of it too.

Of course no task in the Murray household would be complete without being entertained by our cat Himmery. He was very curious about every decoration we brought out. His favorite new hiding spot is right underneath the tree in the back corner where he likes to sit and gnaw at the low branches. I think he secretly hopes to choke on a plastic needle so he can rid himself of this mortal coil. He somehow found a way to perch himself on the back of our couch and watch us decorate. I’m sure if he could speak English he would have been judging us harshly. That’s just how he rolls.

We had a great time decorating the tree this year. I think we’re both learning to bring our very different tree decorating backgrounds together in a way that isn’t quite as stress inducing as previous years. What are some of your favorite tree decorating traditions? Do you have any favorite old ornaments that you love seeing every year?

Cost – Free!

The annual Holiday Parade of Lights is the official start of the holiday season in Halifax. Every year thousands of people gather along the city streets to watch the floats go by. It’s a great chance to get outside and spend some time with each other.

SHE SAID:

Every year I plan on attending our local Holiday Parade of Lights and every year I swear I’ll never go again. This year I think I mean it. The parade this year was just plain weird. There were massive five-minute breaks in between floats and at least half the floats had nothing to do with the holidays. At some points it felt more like a Mardi Gras parade than Christmas parade.

That’s not to say every Christmas parade is a waste of time. If you don’t mind bundling up, fighting traffic and heading out into crowds of people, parades are for you. If you haven’t been to a parade since you believed in Santa Claus and want to give it another try, mind the following tips:

• Leave early enough so that you can park and walk before they close the streets off. We arrived 30 minutes before the parade started and that was cutting it close. To eliminate traffic stress, leave an hour and a half before the parade starts.
• Bring a chair and/or blanket. Cold sidewalk + lack of movement = parade anger.
• Bring or buy a hot drink to avoid the aforementioned parade anger.
• Plan to go out for appetizers or dessert afterward to avoid sitting in traffic as everyone tries to head home.

HE SAID:

When I was younger, I may or may not have watched a show called MAD TV (…don’t judge me!). On said show, there was a sketch called “Lowered Expectations” about a dating service for people who are REALLY having trouble finding love. I don’t remember if the sketches were actually funny or not, but the jingle has planted itself firmly inside my brain, only showing itself when I’m in a situation that calls for, you guessed it, lowered expectations.

A few years ago we had the opportunity to go to Disney during the holidays. One of the highlights of that trip was the parade/fireworks show in the Magic Kingdom. It was one of the most well done events I have ever seen. It oozed so much happiness and Christmas cheer that even the Grinch would have loved it.

When I go to a parade now I try to push aside those memories because there’s just no way our city will be able to put on such a spectacle. That said, I had fun at this year’s Holiday Parade of Lights. I dressed in so many layers I could barely move, got freezing cold regardless, grumbled about the huge empty spots in the parade, but I’ll probably bundle up and do the exact same thing next year.

I love seeing the huge crowds lining the streets as they await a glimpse of Santa. I love the floats with live bands playing Christmas songs. I love the kids in the parade who get distracted and fall behind their group. Most of all, I love hanging out with Susan and the friends we go along with. That’s really what it’s all about.

The best part of the night was when the parade was finished and we tried to get out of the parking garage. It was like we were in a demented disaster movie. We were shuffling along up a creepy staircase packed with people trying to escape impending doom, I mean, get to their cars. After realizing that none of the cars had moved an inch in a half hour, we ditched the car and went out for nachos.

Local holiday parades may not have the glitz and glamour of Disney, but they are still worth it. They bring everyone together, even just for a little while, and they kick off the Christmas season. I’ll definitely be going again next year.