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.

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.

________________________________________________________________________________

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.

If you’re looking for a nice evening at home but are bored with the usual routine, why not try an Art Date? You can go all out and buy all the supplies you need to become the next Picasso, or keep it simple and free by using what you already have around the house.

______________________________________________________________________________________

HE SAID:

I’ve been looking forward to this Art Date for quite a while. Sometimes Susan’s art supplies call my name when I pass by her office. I have successfully resisted the urge to make an absolute mess on the canvas, but I was more than happy to finally try my hand at this painting business.

Before we got out the paint brushes we discussed whether to paint a picture together, or to do two separate paintings. I could not see any possible way that painting on the same canvas together would end well, so we opted to do two small paintings. There’s only room for one in this guy’s creative vision! I kid, I kid.

Since this was my first time painting with proper supplies on a proper canvas, I wanted to do something relatively simple so I wouldn’t get frustrated. I found this image of a Goomba from Super Mario Bros. on my iPhone and used that as a starting point. I’m sure this is considered cheating, but before any paint hit the canvas I drew the outline of the Goomba in pencil. I think that really helped me end up with a decent looking painting. If you’re not that great at painting something right the first time without making mistakes, you might want to try this method.

Once the image was drawn onto the canvas I began painting. I think Susan got a kick out of my lack of technique. I was pretty much just bashing the canvas with a brush full of paint and hoping for the best. After getting a few pointers from my loving wife, my painting started to take shape. I was especially impressed with myself when it came to the mouth of the Goomba. I have to admit it happened by accident, but the way the different shades of brown came together made the mouth look quite realistic, without me just drawing a black line for the mouth.

The problem with using real painting supplies is that it takes forever for the paint to dry, so we weren’t able to finish our paintings in one sitting. I’m really looking forward to our next Art Date when we have the chance to finish our works of art. The pictures you see are just the first stage, so we’ll be sure to post pictures of the final products.

Our Art Date was great fun, and I can’t wait to do it again. Even after buying a few supplies, it was cheaper than most evenings out of the house. I think Susan enjoyed teaching me about painting, and I enjoyed trying something new.

Be sure to properly dispose of any hazardous materials, including old rags that you might have used while painting. You wouldn’t want your house going up in flames for the sake of a fantastic painting of a video game character.

SHE SAID:

A couple of years ago my cute husband bought me everything I needed to try my hand at oil painting after a qualified friend offered to give me lessons. After dishing out more than a Sir Robert Borden (that’s the Canadian equivalent of a Benjamin Franklin, thank you) on arts supplies, plus a really nice easel, I painted for a summer and then it went by the wayside. I do enjoy painting, but I rarely can commit the time it takes for a proper painting session.

Recently we had the time to sit down and unleash our inner Picassos and ended up having a really nice evening. I was a bit concerned that Brad might get frustrated and tear a knife through his canvas, but he ended up painting a really impressive Goomba from Super Mario. I opted for a silhouette painting of Himmery, our mad feline.

To enjoy your own evening of fine art, you’ll need clothes you don’t mind getting paint on, newspapers to spread out, canvases, brushes, something to mix your paint on, such as a plastic cover or old meat tray, and of course, paint. If you decide to paint with oil paints, you will also need a painting medium and a little dish to put that in. We used linseed oil mixed with Taltine (an odorless paint thinner). Be warned that oil paint takes longer to dry, a good week in most cases.

If you’re not up for dishing out a ton of money, you could simply try sketching portraits of one another with charcoal or pencil on sketchbook paper and then frame them with an inexpensive dollar store frame.

If your significant other is art hesitant or not overly creative, it is imperative that you brainstorm idea together instead of just winging it. Brad did a quick search beforehand and I attribute his success to that wholeheartedly. Since we painted with oil paints we couldn’t complete our masterpieces in one session but as soon as they’re perfected we’ll be sure to post them in all their glory.

For the locals: If you want to check out an art gallery but don’t know where to start, here are a few links to help you on your way:

• Art Gallery of Nova Scotia
• Argyle Fine Art
• Page & Strange

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.

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.

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.

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.

___________________________________________________________________________

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.

Cost – If you stick to the budget strictly, it shouldn’t cost more than $10, but we spent about $12.

If you’re looking for a great way to test your knowledge on someone, try the five dollar shopping spree. The idea is simple, within a certain time limit you each have to find a gift for the other for five dollars or less. It forces some creative thinking and really does test how well you  know each other.

__________________________________________________________________________

SHE SAID:

I usually don’t do well buying presents under pressure. Normally, I end up breaking into a sweaty panic and buying something really strange like tube socks. This is why I start Christmas shopping in October. Since the budget was so low for this task, though, that didn’t happen. Since we were only spending $5, the expectation of a great gift was low and the focus was on something more fun and out of the ordinary.

Brad can’t stand the thoughts of Walmart on a Saturday (or any day) so we went to Winner’s Home Sense at our local mall. We figured Winners would be great since you can get nice things at discount prices. It worked out well for Brad, but no so much for me.

At the outset we decided to limit ourselves to 30 minutes. After roaming around Home Sense for 15 minutes and finding nothing more than a decorative twitter-like bird, I began to panic. Luckily we were at a mall, so I fled from Winners and began my mad trek for something Brad would enjoy that was under $5.

As I turned the corner from Winners, EB Games appeared like a ray of light. I saw the “Used Games” bin by the door and knew this was the place I would find a suitable gift for Brad. More panic seized me as I became overwhelmed by the huge selection of games to sort through in less than 10 minutes. Fortunately, there weren’t a lot of games for $5 and I was able to narrow it down to 3: a table tennis game, a Superman game, and a game called Blacksite: Area 51. I knew all of the games were probably rejects and wondered if the cashier would laugh at my choice when I got to the counter, but figured the one with aliens and fighting would be the least pathetic. Thankfully there was no laughing, at least not in front of my face. The question was, would Brad laugh in my face?

I trotted back to our meeting spot and we revealed our presents once back in the car. I was really proud that I thought of going to a video game store and was beaming with pride. I handed over the bag that contained my present and Brad immediately began laughing. I had managed to buy a video game that he had never even heard of. Go figure.

I really enjoyed this game of sorts. I like how it forces you to get creative and really think about the other person’s interests. I also like how it proves that you don’t have to spend much money to have a good time. It’s the thought that counts.

HE SAID:

When we were setting the rules for our five dollar shopping spree, we had trouble agreeing on where we should shop. Susan thought we should limit it to one store, and I thought it would be good to have the option to roam the whole mall. We decided to stick to one store, but would allow for other options in case of emergency. In a surprising turn of events, I ended up being the one who stayed in one store, while Susan needed backup.

Before we stepped foot in a store, we laid down a few ground rules. Spending five dollars each was to be more of a guideline. If we spent six or seven it wouldn’t be the end of the world. The other thing we did was set a time limit and a meeting place. We were to meet at the bench outside of Winners in thirty minutes.

I was very surprised at how many fun things I found around the five dollar price point that I thought Susan would enjoy. I was expecting to struggle to find even one thing. In the end I had to decide between two options. One was a decorated clipboard with a note pad attached, the other was a compact notepad with a tiny pen included that she could keep in her purse. Susan loves making lists. In fact, I think she sometimes makes lists of the lists she has to make. So I knew that she would enjoy either one of these cheap finds. Since I could only choose one, I went for convenience and portability and bought the smaller (and closer to five dollars) notepad.

As we approached the reveal of our gifts, I was fairly confident Susan would like what I bought. The only thing left to do was to make sure I reacted appropriately to whatever she bought me.

I failed in this task.

I had a funny feeling she would at least look in EB Games for my gift. I did not think she would actually find a semi-current video game for five dollars. At first glance, I thought I had never heard of the game she bought me, but the more I thought about it the more it seemed familiar. Unfortunately, I got a bad case of the giggles when I saw what she purchased. It wasn’t so much that I thought the game was going to be terrible (while it’s not great, it’s actually surprisingly not terrible) it was the mental picture of her rummaging through stacks of heavily discounted games, frantically trying to think of the best choice. It struck me funny. In hindsight I probably should have kept the laughter to myself. Thankfully I redeemed my reaction to her gift by giving her a gift she really liked.

I think this is a fantastic thing to do. It’s a great way to get out of the house and have fun without spending a lot of money. Though you do have to split up to do the shopping, coming together to unveil the gifts makes up for it. I would totally recommend anyone try this out. Set your own rules as far as budget, time limit, and locations are concerned and have some fun.

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.