We’re back! It would seem that we disappeared for the month of June, and that is true. June ended up being a rather busy month in our day-to-day lives and to avoid mental (and marital) breakdown we took a break for a few weeks. We’re back now and ready to indulge in fun, summer dates that we can share with you, our faithful readers. Check back often for things to do, places to go and food to enjoy and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter for even more updates. Happy Summer!

SHE SAID:

If you enjoy getting up close and personal with llamas, staring Siberian tigers in the face, and feeding reindeer handfuls of corn, the zoo is for you! Zoos and me don’t have much experience together seeing as there is only one official zoo in our province, but staring death in the face never gets old with me.

Within the first few days of summer vacation, Brad and I were already staring at each other on the couch, wondering what to do as the sun’s rays wasted away outside. The zoo seemed like a nice option since we had an afternoon to kill and a full tank of gas.

We decided to head to Aylesford, NS, home of the Oaklawn Farm Zoo, which is about an hour and twenty minutes from Halifax. This zoo is privately owned and boasts the largest display of big cats and primates in Eastern Canada. I remember going here as a kid and enjoying the monkeys who never failed to put on a good show. This visit was no different.

My least favourite animals to watch are the big cats because they rarely doing anything but hide away at the back of their cages and sleep in the sun. Sometimes I wonder if they’re even alive or real. Apparently they come to life around 7pm when the owners feed them chunks of raw meat.

I must admit I felt a little guilty going to a zoo and seeing animals all caged up for my entertainment. So I did a little research and saw both sides of the debate: one states that wild animals should be left in the wild, the other states that zoos are essential for conservation practices. I’m still working it all out in my mind, but for now a couple good sites to visit are the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums and the Good Zoo Guide. Both provide information on zoos around the world and promote conservation and the highest standards of animal welfare. When in doubt, visit a particular zoo’s website and see if they’re associated with any conservation organizations and what their goals are.

Overall, my zoo visit was fun and leisurely and I would definitely go to another zoo in another town, but not without checking up on their standards first. Though I couldn’t find any organizations Oaklawn Farm Zoo is associated with, they do have a large number of endangered and threatened species. All of their animals seem well cared for and healthy and the grounds are kept very nice, although very sandy – don’t wear flip-flops like I did! Check for zoos in your area and get in touch with your wild side (sorry, couldn’t resist!).

HE SAID:

Although I have been to the Oaklawn Farm Zoo before, it has been a few years since my last visit. The only thing I could distinctly remember about it was what I like to call the “Whooping Monkeys” because, well, they make loud whooping sounds. Since the admission price is very affordable at $7.00 each for adults (or $4.00 for students and seniors), I figured that even if the only cool thing to see was the whooping monkeys, it was worth it.

After a beautiful drive through the country we arrived at the zoo to the familiar sounds of the monkeys. I was immediately transported to feeling like a kid again as my excitement grew. Either we aren’t good at spotting animals, or the first few exhibits were uninhabited. Thankfully that was not an indicator of how the rest of our time at the zoo would go. Honestly, as soon as we saw the Zonkey (a zebra and a donkey in one!) I knew everything would be A-Okay.

My favourite animals at the zoo were the big ones like the lions, tigers, and bears, oh my. It was actually a little nerve wracking to be in the woods and have nothing but a fence between me and a big black bear. I also enjoyed the camel, who was acting suspiciously like our cat Himmery as he rolled over on his back and frolicked in the dust. Of course, the monkeys are a must see. They are quite entertaining as they swing around and share pieces of fruit with each other.

The only minor disappointment was that we didn’t go through the reptile exhibit. After Susan’s experience with the snakes at the museum, we decided it was best to stay away from the snakes and lizards.

Overall I had a great time at the Oaklawn Farm Zoo. The weather was perfect, the crowds weren’t too big, and the animals were a lot of fun to see up close. For $20.00 plus a tank of gas to drive there and back, it was a fairly cheap way to spend a day. If you’re visiting Nova Scotia, you should check it out. If you live in Nova Scotia and have never ventured out to the zoo, this summer is the perfect time to make it happen. For those of you who live elsewhere, check out your local zoo this summer and let us know what you think.

(To see the rest of the pictures we took at the zoo check out our Flickr set)

For The Locals:

Interested in visiting a local zoo? Below are listed zoos and wildlife parks by province.

Nova Scotia

Acres of the Golden Pheasant Bird Park

Oaklawn Farm Zoo

Provincial Wildlife Park (Shubenacadie, NS)

Upper Clements Wildlife Park

New Brunswick

Aquarium and Marine Center

Cherry Brook Zoo

Ferme Aqua-Zoo

Lameque Zoo

Magnetic Hill Zoo

Reptile Ocean Inc.

Woolastook Wildlife Park

PEI

Stanley Bridge Marine Aquarium and Manor of Birds

Do Duck Inn Petting Farm

North Cape Interpretive Centre & Aquarium

SHE SAID:

Museums are hit and miss with me, but when we found out the Museum of Natural History was opening up again in Halifax we thought we would check it out. I had never been to a natural history museum before so thought it might be fun, or at least something new to try.

I’m not sure why it didn’t register in my brain when I saw the “Venom” exhibit sign, but I didn’t clue into the fact that there would be snakes, otherwise this date would not exist. I’m not sure words can fully describe the paralyzing anxiety that sweeps over my body at the sight of a snake. The worst part was not knowing what was real or fake until it moved. Perhaps the icing on the cake was the fact that the King Cobra was nowhere to be seen in his cage and perhaps had escaped and was lurking around the stuffed pelican exhibit.

Other than the snake run in, I enjoyed our leisurely stroll through the museum. My favourite part, as always, was looking at the really old artifacts uncovered from Acadian villages and beyond. I’m always amazed with how things survive and love imagining the story behind it all. What was the house like that the key opened the door to?What kinds of meals were prepared in that bowl? What could you buy with that money? What kind of dates did people go on then? Did they even go on dates?

Once we had exhausted all of the exhibits, we made our way to the gift shop where there were all kinds of neat books related to Nova Scotian heritage, eco-friendly living, and so on. Brad almost received a new iPad when I dared him to eat the dried worms for sale, but I wasn’t willing to live up to my end of the bargain.

I wouldn’t say a visit to your local museum is for everyone (unless you live in NYC and have the MET in your backyard), especially not a first date. Since, let’s face it, museums can be boring, I would recommend following it up with something more upbeat like mini golf, bowling or a trip to the fair. Though educational dates may seem boring upon first glance, they can actually help you get to know each others’ interests, and, if nothing else, how far your date’s patience can stretch.

HE SAID:

Until this date, my most recent experience at a museum was at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. Although I could appreciate many of the things I saw, it was far from the highlight of that trip. I suppose it was partly due to the immense size of that museum and the amount of walking that was required. I had already done so much walking on that trip that my feet were screaming for mercy, so I could not fully enjoy what I was seeing. For that reason I went to our local Museum of Natural History with low expectations of having fun.

Once we paid the wonderfully low admission fee of $5.00 each and were greeted by the friendly staff, we saw the first exhibit. This seemed like the first sign of trouble. There were several glass enclosures with various spiders, insects, and lizards to see. The trouble was we couldn’t tell if some of them were fake or real. I’m pretty sure the spiders and a lizard or two were fake. I thought to myself, “Oh great, a museum full of plastic animals. How fun…” Then we entered the Venom exhibit where we came face to face with very real snakes of all shapes and sizes. This is where the museum quickly became a things to do for one. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Susan run away from something so fast. I really enjoyed seeing the snakes, although I was disappointed that I couldn’t find anything in the dark enclosure labelled as King Cobra.

My least favourite part of the museum in New York was walking through room upon room of depictions of animals in their natural habitat, because the animals were all fake. Thankfully our local museum kept those kind of displays to a minimum and showed off much more interactive and educational exhibits.

I think my favourite part of the museum was similar to Susan’s. I loved seeing actual artifacts used by real people hundreds of years ago. The best part was that they told you where in Nova Scotia each piece was found. Growing up I often felt like these sort of things were only found in foreign places, so it was a lot of fun to see it coming from our own back yard. I also enjoyed the rock/fossils section. It brought back memories of how much I loved the Geology portion of my Science classes as a kid.

Is this a good date idea? I really think so. It’s small enough that we didn’t have to commit hours of our day to see every display, but diverse enough to keep our interest the whole way through. We went fairly early on a Saturday, which was perfect. The museum began to flood with children just as we were leaving, so if you want to avoid the crowds, go early. I’m happy to report that my expectations were exceeded and I had a good time. Museums aren’t just for kids, so check out your local museum for some educational fun for two.

SHE SAID:

Now that the spring weather is upon us and summer is just around the corner, the season of road trips has begun! Brad would try to convince you that any season is fair game for a road trip, but I do not share in his zeal for navigating unfamiliar, snow covered highways in the dead of night. So call me a bad wife.

There are many ways to go about a road trip:

On a Whim – This is not for the faint of heart! No organization is required. In fact, it’s discouraged. Once inspiration hits, just grab your purse and go! I have never mustered up the courage to try this type, but I know Brad is bursting at the seams to try it with me, as most of his “before Susan” road trips were of this variety.

Day Trip – As the name implies, this road trip takes you as far as you can go in the run of a day. These types are especially good if you don’t have the cash to spend on accommodations or the time to commit to a long haul.

Surprise – Surprise your special someone with a getaway! Disguise it as a trip to the grocery store, mall, or in-laws, but the point is that you keep driving to whatever treat you have in store. Keep in mind that this option only works well if you don’t have to cross any borders.

Destination – This is my favourite type of road trip as it involves planning! If you followed our Winter Escape, you know I love to make lists and check them twice and this type of road trip lends itself quite well to that obsession. Other than picking a particular place to visit, you could base your destination on a concert or festival you’d love to see. We did this a couple of years ago when we went to see John Mayer in Mansfield, MA. And now let me pause and just say if you ever have the opportunity to see John Mayer in concert, go! Say what you will about the man’s personal life, but he knows how to play his guitar and put on a good show. Other than getting engaged, this was by far the best birthday present Brad ever gave me. We didn’t have a ton of cash so we made it a weekend trip with friends and had a really great time.

Roads trips are lovely because they can be as simple or elaborate as you please. Other than our very first road trip (aka our honeymoon) all of our road trip experiences have been positive. Of course, there are moments in any road trip (usually on the way home) when the last 3 hours feel like 3 days and you never want to see the inside of another convenience store washroom ever again. Speaking of creepy gas station washrooms, beware of the one on Rte. 9 in Maine. I have no idea where we were (other than Maine), but I do remember being told to “follow the yellow line” to the washroom. It was literally a line painted on the floor that led from the store into the garage where it weaved around cars and tools until you eventually reached the little closet that contained Maine’s scariest washroom. I only wish I had taken a picture. Don’t let stories like that deter you, though. It’s all part of the fun to look back on.

I would recommend a road trip to anyone at any point in their relationship. They are great for spending quality time with the one you love and give you that sense of adventure we all crave from time to time.

HE SAID:

Some of my fondest memories of good times with good friends are built on road trips. There was the time me and a friend drove to Toronto. We left my parent’s driveway on Friday night, arrived late Saturday afternoon, and began the journey home around noon on Sunday. Then there was the time me and that same friend drove down to Washington, D.C. and back during a massive winter storm. (Side Note – The police do not like it when you pull your car to the side of the road and cook up dinner on a Coleman stove beside the car. Also, crossing the border in the middle of the night to go to Washington, D.C. “for fun” is not a good thing in the eyes of the authorities. Who knew?)

I thought all of that experience would come in handy when we decided to go to Ontario for our honeymoon. As usual, I was just as excited for the drive as I was for the destination. I was so confident that Susan would love the big city of Toronto, and the beautiful scenery of Niagara Falls. If only I knew then what I know now. I had one thing right, she did love Niagara Falls. The rest, not…so…much.

Let’s not dwell on the bad experiences though. Since then we’ve hit the road a few times and have had a lot of fun. We have travelled alone and with friends, both with great success.

I have learned a few tips over the years that might be helpful to you if you are planning a road trip in the near future:

• Before you start the car, decide who will be the navigator and who will be the driver. Since Susan isn’t a big fan of hitting a highway with more than three lanes, I’m usually the driver. Plus, she’s a much better navigator than I will ever be.
• This one is for the fellas. If your girlfriend/wife/friend wants to stop and stretch/eat/shop/whatever the heck else she might want to do, make it happen. On road trips in the past, my friend and I would drive for days, only stopping for fuel or food. Susan does not share the same zeal for non-stop driving. Lesson learned.

Road trips can be a lot of fun, and since we’ve learned a few lessons about each other, we look forward to hitting the road again soon. If you have any scary, funny, or otherwise entertaining stories about going on the road, let us know in the comments. If you can beat Susan’s “Yellow Lined Bathroom” story, feel free to share it with us.

If you have the itch to travel the world but your bank account won’t allow it, a destination date might be just what the doctor ordered. The idea is simple, everything you do on the date has to relate to a particular country you would like to visit. For our first destination date we chose Italy.

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SHE SAID:

Since creating our vacation box, I’ve been dreaming about ridiculously expensive trips to places like Italy, England, France, and Belarus. Okay, maybe not the last one, but you get the idea. Since my dreams cannot be realized just yet, I thought it might be fun to pretend a bit more and further delude reality by bringing those places home. Say what? Since we can’t go to any of those fancy destinations just yet, we thought we’d have a night devoted to the food and entertainment from one of our top dream destinations.

One of the hardest parts with this whole date was deciding on a destination that had both appealing food and entertainment, in our case, a movie set in Italy. Though we hope our next destination to be England, the food from Italy trumped the Queen’s and we rushed to the bookstore for more Italian food inspiration, which we thought would be an easy task. Not so, my friends, not so. It turns out Italian food is more than just pasta dishes and even those can be quite complicated when venturing beyond your standard spaghetti and meatballs. We eventually did end up finding one tortellini dish we thought we might enjoy and headed to the grocery store, where Brad almost lost the list of required ingredients. Gulp.

One thing this date does require is preparation, but don’t let that discourage you from giving it a try. You can shave off an enormous amount of time by simply ordering in Chinese or going out for sushi. If you can’t seem to find appealing forms of food and entertainment for one country, you could do an “around the world” approach that touches on several different destinations.

After we had stuffed ourselves with 5 varieties of cheese to the point of indigestion we switched to one of our favourite forms of entertainment, the movie. After reading about Only You over at Paula Jane’s ever entertaining and equally informative Best in Romantic Comedies blog, I knew that would be the perfect compliment to the evening and I wasn’t disappointed. I don’t think Brad felt like gouging his eyes out either.

HE SAID:

My favourite date ideas tend to be ones that put a twist on a typical date and are inexpensive. The destination date fits both of those requirements. I loved the idea right from the get go because there are so many possible things to do to have a fun time.

For our first destination date we chose Italy. This was largely because the night was going to revolve around a meal. Although making the meal wasn’t too difficult, choosing which dish to make proved to be a little more work than was expected. In our Indoor Picnic post, we warned against waiting until you are hungry before beginning food preparation on a date. Though we didn’t exactly wait until we were hungry, it took so long for us to decide what to make, get the groceries, and prepare the meal, that we were on the brink of disaster by the time it all came together. If you want to make your destination date easier, you could always order in from your favourite international restaurant, but we enjoy the challenge of making a new dish.

Because the meal took so long, we didn’t spend the time decorating the living room to conjure up thoughts of vacationing in Italy. However, I took a few minutes and made some mini Italian flags to put in our dinner. If you do a destination date though, feel free to decorate your house based on the country you choose.

We chose to do a destination date by having dinner and watching a movie. If that’s not up your alley, feel free to try other activities. You could play a sport that is popular in a certain country, an art form that derived from your destination of choice, or try to find new and interesting music from another part of the world. The point is to bring the culture of that country to your own home for much less money than it would take to travel.

I really enjoyed our destination date. We’ll definitely be doing it again with a different country because there are so many fun options for things to do. If you dream of travelling the world but don’t have the cash to do it, I would definitely recommend you try a destination date. If you try it, let us know how it goes. We’re always interested in hearing about your experiences.

SHE SAID:

There are times in a couple’s relationship when a sweet idea turns sour. This was one of those times and it came out of nowhere. The scene was set for a lovely dessert date to a local waterfront restaurant where we had enjoyed several lovely desserts before.We decided not to risk it and wander somewhere new with a “don’t fix what’s not broken” kind of philosophy.

However, by the end of the date there were definitely things in need of repair, such as our self-esteem.

It all started with the waitress. She obviously didn’t approve of us skipping the appies and entrées and going straight for the sweet stuff. She even went so far as to mention that they usually “put people in the bar” who are just getting dessert. My heart dropped to the floor and was repeatedly slapped around as she ignored our table and brought us a less than stellar fondue. I mean, come on, a fondue without strawberries? I’m usually pretty good at not letting a rude person or even a disappointing meal ruin my evening, but when you’re talking dessert you’re messing with a dangerous thing.

Even though the horrible service put a damper on our date, I would still try this date idea again simply because I love any good excuse to enjoy my two favourite things in life – my husband and sugar. We’ll have to break the mould and try somewhere new because something is broken and needs a good fixin’. If you have any suggestions for good dessert spots, let us know!

HE SAID:

Sometimes the ol’ wallet shakes it’s head in disapproval when we head to a local restaurant for a fine dining date night. So we thought a Dessert Date might be a fun and cheaper alternative. We were right about it being cheaper, but the fun was debatable. Since this is not a review of the restaurant we chose, I won’t go into detail except to say it wasn’t our most rage-free evening out.

I actually love the idea of having a home cooked dinner and then hitting the town for a nice dessert because you get to experience the best of both worlds. I don’t get buyer’s remorse when the bill comes, and I don’t get eater’s remorse from stuffing my face with a huge meal.

Here are a few tips that will hopefully keep you from the less than stellar evening we had:

1) Plan to get to your restaurant of choice a bit later in the evening. That way the dinner rush is mostly over and you won’t be surrounded by chaos as you try to unwind.

2) Tell the person seating you that you are there for dessert. This will help you avoid any awkward lectures when your server finds out you’re not spending the big bucks, and therefore should have been seated elsewhere.

3) If your restaurant of choice has a view, request a window seat. If not, try to get a table around the perimeter of the room. There’s nothing worse than feeling like you’re being watched by everyone because your table is in the middle of the room.

Even though it wasn’t the perfect date night, we still made the best of it. Coffee and dessert is the perfect way to end the day (actually, it’s perfect for ANY time of day). So if you’re looking for a cheaper alternative to eating out, try having the main course at home and hitting the town for dessert.

– Speaking of desserts, we have a very special treat coming soon. That’s right, our next giveaway is just around the corner! We’ll let you know more details soon. –

Cost – Ranges from FREE to $50 depending if you rent, buy, or go to the library.

If you’re short on money, time, or both, watching your favourite TV shows on DVD can be a fun way to spend time with another person. Since the initial purchase price may seem steep, you can always rent a disc at a time from Netflix, Zip, or Blockbuster.

HE SAID:

I remember when TV shows first started being released on DVD. I could not understand why someone would buy such a thing. Then I was introduced to a little show called 24 and everything changed. We burned through the first four seasons of 24 embarrassingly quickly so that we could be caught up when the fifth season aired that year.

Since then, we have acquired a healthy collection of our favourite shows on DVD. We have the first five seasons of 24, every season so far of The Office, a few seasons of How I Met Your Mother, Big Bang Theory, and our current work in progress — the cherry on top of our TV collection sunday — the entire series of Full House.

There are two major benefits to owning your favourite TV shows. The first is that I find most shows much more enjoyable simply because of the lack of commercials. Especially for a show like 24 where the suspense and action are what make it exciting, the commercials can really let the air out of a fun episode. The other benefit is that the episodes are short. Even shows that are an hour long when they air with commercials are only about 45 minutes without them. So if you are a busy person and rarely have time to sit down and watch a two hour movie, a (roughly) 22 minute episode of your favourite show is much more manageable.

If you don’t like the idea of having to buy a season of a TV show, you can always rent instead. We use a service called Zip. So far we have only rented movies from them, but they have the option to rent TV shows. The best part is you can keep each disc as long as you want so there is no rush to speed through the shows, plus if you end up not loving the show, you won’t feel like you wasted $40 on something you’ll never watch again.

The key to TV dates is to make sure they don’t replace activities where we interact with each other a little more. It’s true that we watch our favourite shows while eating dinner instead of sitting at the table, but that will change when kids come along. We make sure to spend enough quality time together that it isn’t a replacement for that quality time. We have a lot of fun going through shows and finding favourite episodes to watch again later.

For a fun challenge, see how quickly you can get through a season of your favourite show. Something I’ve always wanted to do is watch an entire season of 24 in one day, since the premise of the show is that it spans a 24 hour period.

Buying or renting your favourite shows is a great option for anyone who wants to save money. Instead of paying a big monthly fee for cable or satellite, get the shows you really love on DVD.

SHE SAID:

As a kid, I never understood why all of the new episodes of my favourite TV shows were on during the school year when homework always competed with free time. On the other hand, reruns dominated the screen when I had copious amounts of time to waste in front of the boob tube during summer break. Thanks to the magic of DVD’s that problem no longer exists.

Now, instead of trying to follow all of our favourite TV shows as they change time slots and compete with day-to-day life, it’s not as big a deal when we miss one. If it’s a show we both love, we just buy the complete season and watch it at our leisure, as quickly or as slowly as we like.

When we bought our first season of The Office to watch over the summer, I wondered if we would ever watch it again. I thought perhaps we had just wasted some money. I was so wrong. Not only did we watch it again, but we now watch an episode every night with our supper. Yes, we eat supper in front of the TV. No, our relationship is not doomed because of it.

I ended up liking this idea so much that I went out on a limb and bought a random TV show for Brad for Christmas last year called Mad Men. We finished the first season in a month and its second season is a good contender for our summer picks.

I really love scouting out new and old TV shows to watch throughout the summer when the airwaves become a little stagnant. It’s a fun little tradition we have going that takes away the summer TV blahs.

We’re always looking for a new series to start watching, so now it’s your turn to tell us what your favourite shows are to watch on DVD. What’s the fastest you’ve ever gone through a whole season? Let us know in the comments!

–UPDATE —

So, we made a glaring oversight when we posted this date idea today. While browsing our local library tonight we happened across the second season of Mad Men on DVD. Of course, how could we have forgotten about the library?? So if you want to save money, don’t rent or buy your favourite show, head to the library and see what’s available.

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.

Welcome to our very first Movie Monday. The idea behind it is simple. We want to help you with those movie date nights where you feel overwhelmed by all the choices out there. At least once a month we’ll recommend a movie that we think fits the bill for an enjoyable evening at home. As always, let us know what you think of Movie Monday, and of the movies we recommend. Enjoy!

SHE SAID:

Spanglish is one of the few movies that I can watch once a month and never grow sick of. I love the plot, the characters, the actors, and the ending. It’s not an easy movie to classify because while it’s funny, it’s not a comedy and while it has dramatic moments, it’s definitely not an intense movie. It’s simply a breath of fresh air.

Some may be drawn to it for Adam Sandler, but be warned, it is not your typical Adam Sandler movie. I don’t think that’s a bad thing, though. I personally think this is Adam Sandler’s best movie. It was refreshing to see him in a more low key role where he doesn’t dominate the screen.

I think the thing I love most about Spanglish is its message. It provides quite the perspective on modern America and the busy lives we lead. It forces you to re-examine your priorities and urges you to hold close those you love.

This is the perfect movie to watch on a lazy Sunday afternoon with the curtains drawn and a fondue at your side. Oh, and your husband too!

HE SAID:

At first glance, Spanglish didn’t seem like the type of movie I would enjoy. If you were to pass by the DVD at your local movie store, you might tag it as a cookie cutter romantic comedy. Thankfully that assumption is quite far from the truth.

Spanglish is about a woman named Flor who comes from Mexico to America with her daughter in hopes of a better life. She ends up being a housekeeper for a very well off family. The movie centres around her struggle to adapt to living in America without abandoning her own cultural upbringing and values.

Some of my favourite movies are simply about normal people in slightly abnormal situations. So I think the best compliment I can give Spanglish is that everything in the movie seemed real. I was pulled in by the characters, even the one I didn’t like, and was made to believe in what was going on.

I only have one complaint about this movie. Tea Leoni’s character is like fingernails on a chalkboard throughout the whole movie to me. She is over the top, obnoxious, and irritating, which is a stark contrast to Adam Sandler’s calm, cool, and collected character. In the end I think that balance between the two characters helps make the movie special, but if the rest of the movie wasn’t so good, her character would have the potential to ruin it for me.

Spanglish covers a lot of ground. It’s funny, heart warming, and tear inducing at various times. Though it runs longer than your typical hour and a half movie (131 min.) it is worth taking the time to watch. So next time you’re looking for a movie to enjoy at home with that special someone (or even by yourself), check out Spanglish.

Sugar Moon Farm is a hidden gem in Nova Scotia where maple syrup is made. They teach you about the process of making their product, as well as provide plenty of memorable experiences. Though you may not have a maple syrup producer near where you live, you might be surprised to find something similar.

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SHE SAID:

There’s nothing I love more than grabbing a cup of tea and heading out for the day to a new little town or attraction to explore. On this particular day we decided to head to the sugar bush of Sugar Moon Farm near Earltown, NS to see what goes into making this sugary delight and why it costs so much.

Though this sugar maple farm is nestled a bit off the beaten track, I think it is worth the trek. We went during one of the busiest times of year on March Break, which in hindsight I think I would have chosen a less chaotic time. Nevertheless, the staff was very friendly despite the hoards of sticky fingered children running about the lodge.

My favourite thing at Sugar Moon farm would have to be the sugar on snow experience. For $1 a line of syrup is poured onto fresh white snow that you can roll around a popsicle stick to create your own maple lollipop.

While we were enjoying our maple suckers we went on the free tour of the facilities and learned a lot about how the trees are tapped, how the sap is collected, and how it’s processed. One interesting fact we learned was that a 1L jug has to be filled 40 times with pure sap to get enough sugar for one litre of syrup! Though tours don’t usually excite me, this one definitely showed me how labour intensive this process can be and why perhaps it costs so much.

After the tour we had the option of taking the 20 minute hike into the sugar bush, but after about 5 minutes of tripping and colliding into one another in the deep snow we headed back to the lodge and bought some maple products instead. I think it would have been neat to see the original lodge where the syrup was produced back when they used buckets to collect all of the sap, but we were not well equipped for the deep snow and undefined monster of a path. Maybe once all of the snow clears we’ll visit again and hike the 6 km Rogart Mountain trail that I hear contains 6 geocaches. If you’re more adventurous than us, you can rent snowshoes and do the same thing.

If you’re not that into tours and hiking but are looking for a unique dining experience, Sugar Moon Farm has Chef Nights throughout the year that showcase chefs from around the Maritimes that serve up delectable dishes with a maple twist.

HE SAID:

To be honest, I was a bit skeptical when Susan said she wanted to go to Sugar Moon Farm. I couldn’t picture in my head how it would all pan out. However, I laid aside my scepticism as we drove the 90 minutes to see how maple syrup is made.

As soon as we got out of the car we were greeted with the sweet smell of maple. I knew from that point on that it was going to be a good day. We immediately saw where they do the sugar on snow experience. Though the maple lollipop was a little too sweet for my taste, it was surprisingly fun to do. It definitely made me feel like a kid. I was playing with my food, and snow at the same time!

The tour was my favourite part of our time at Sugar Moon Farm. It was interesting, educational, and weird. Those things always go well together. The weirdness mostly came from the other people in our group who were asking some strange questions. I was particularly impressed by the guy who operates the evaporator. He reminded me of the guy who does the Survivor Man show on TV. He chops all the wood that is used to fuel the machinery himself (and it’s A LOT of wood), he lives on the mountain and told us all about how the property is self sustaining.

I would be remiss if I did not tell you about the toilets at Sugar Moon Farm. Oh my goodness. Apparently it’s some kind of composting toilet. The important thing to know is that it looks like the bottomless pit when you open it up. I seriously wondered if a wild animal might jump up and wound me, or I might accidentally fall in. That’s all I’ll say about that.

Some other fun things you can do at Sugar Moon Farm include pancake breakfasts, tasting pure sap from a tree (it looks just like water), and walking on snowshoes. Though we didn’t get a chance to do everything they offer, we still had a really fun time. Other than the gas money to drive there, we only spent a dollar each for our maple lollipops, and a few dollars for a treat from the gift shop. So it was a great afternoon of fun for very little money.

Of course, if you don’t live in Nova Scotia you won’t be going to Sugar Moon Farm right away. However, if you take the time to look you might find something similar where you live. If you do live in Nova Scotia, I would definitely recommend you take an afternoon and check this place out. You’ll have fun and you might learn something new along the way.