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’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.

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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.

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 – 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.

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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.

Cost – Around $20.00 to buy the game new

Board games are a great way to spend time with someone special. They get you away from the hustle and bustle of life and allow for some great times. We recently tried a new game to us called Sequence. Did it live up to our love of Scrabble, or did it get put back on the shelf in a fit of rage, never to be played again? Well, you’ll have to keep reading to find out.

SHE SAID:

I usually can’t stand learning a new board game, even though I love board games. Normally I don’t have the patience to read wordy instructions on game play and score keeping. I just want to play the game. Once in a while I pull it together if numerous people have recommended one, as was the case with Sequence.

Initially, I had sort of passed off Sequence as a boring board game because those who recommended it were of, let’s say, a different generation (love you, Mom!). Boy was I wrong. It’s now one of my top 5 favorite board games (check back for the other 4 as we continue this series).

I find Sequence fun because it’s one of the few board games Brad and I both love. Brad loves Risk and I would rather make firewood out of its contents. I like Monopoly, but Brad would rather live on bread for a year than be subjected to its “drawn out nonsense” (which makes no sense considering Risk takes HOURS, perhaps even DAYS, to complete). End rant.

I personally like Sequence because it can be a two-player game and it has just the right amount of challenge. The board is basically the faces of two decks of cards. To win, you must make a row, or “sequence,” of 5 tokens. Sounds fairly easy, but not so much when the cards in your hand don’t make a nice sequence on the board. It doesn’t take all night to play, like Risk, but also isn’t over as quickly as Dutch Blitz.

Typically, board games are a great way to spend a lazy Sunday afternoon or a rainy day, but they might also work well in the sun. We’ll have to try that out next summer and get back to you. For now, I like how they take you away from your computer and TV screens and force you to converse and spend quality time together. That’s what it’s all about.

HE SAID:

When I was first shown what Sequence looked like I quickly blurted out, “Pffft…Lame!”. But internally I was thinking “Dear God that looks confusing. Quick, make it look like you’re not interested!” You see, me and numbers don’t exactly get along. When I first looked at Sequence I didn’t think about the fact that it was just a bunch of card faces, I just saw a bunch of numbers scattered across the board and panicked.

Luckily this game is great, even for the numerically challenged. The best way I can think to describe it is if Connect Four and Go Fish had a board game baby it would look like Sequence. I’ll leave you with that mental picture for just a second.

There are four things that make Sequence a great game for me:

• The first is that it’s easy to learn. I can’t stand the kind of games where nobody really knows what’s going on, with reading the rules just adding more confusion. The rules aren’t open to interpretation so arguments are kept to a minimum.
• The second great thing about is it works for two people or for larger groups. If you’re playing with six or eight people, you just pair off. The trick is you can’t talk to or see the cards of your partner.
• The third thing is that it’s fairly quick to play. I love dedicating a whole evening to an epic battle for world domination in Risk, but there’s something to be said for being able to sit down for a few minutes to play Sequence and then go do something else. It doesn’t eat up your day like some other games.
• I get a surprising amount of enjoyment out of shouting “SEQUENCIA!!” when I get a sequence.

I think it’s fair to say we both loved this game and can’t wait to play it again. What are some of your favorite board games?

This is the first of hopefully many posts based on a reader’s suggestion. alaModest on Twitter suggested we go to the arcade. We thought that was a great idea so we filled our pockets with tokens, checked our maturity at the door and had some good old fashioned fun.

SHE SAID:

Believe it or not, this was my first arcade experience. In the past, I must admit I scoffed at arcades thinking they were childish and a big waste of money. This may still be true, but I no longer scoff. I now salute the flashing lights and loud noises for providing us with so much fun while we waited for our movie one day.

Since arcades only exist within movie theatres where we live (that we know of), it was a convenient and very entertaining way to pass the time while we waited for our movie to open. I think I might have enjoyed the arcade more than the movie that day. There was something about the carnival type atmosphere that made me feel like a kid again. Had there been cotton candy I probably would have bought some.

I found the shooting games to be the most fun, even though I apparently have really bad aim. The basketball throw was also a fun two player games as we frantically threw half deflated balls into the net. The lack of tokens that are supposed to shoot out at the end of the game tells me we’re also not so good at basketball (surprise, surprise). Regardless, we had a blast.

HE SAID:

I remember as a kid going down to the mall with my friend and going to the arcade. For some reason I remember it being incredibly dark and scary, but I’m pretty sure I had fun at the time. My most significant arcade memory though, is going to the arcade on the ferry when we travelled to Prince Edward Island. I loved when dad would take us there and show off his crazy pinball skills. It was a great way to pass the time on the boat.

Since then, arcades have sort of faded from my thoughts. When I go to the theatre I don’t even think about the fact that there is a room full of fun games off to the side. I guess it’s part of “growing up”.

We threw “growing up” out the window the day we went to the arcade, and it was awesome. I still enjoy the more interactive games like the racing games where you actually sit down inside a fake car, or in this case a fake motorcycle.

It doesn’t take much to burn through five dollars of tokens when there are two of you playing the games. We each played one game separately (I did the motorcycle racing game and she did a deer/moose hunting game), but everything else was very couple friendly. We even tried one of those games where you control the claw that comes down and picks out a stuffed animal. Unfortunately they only give you one try so we failed miserably at it.

I didn’t get to try every game, both because of being too cheap to buy more tokens, and because there were actual kids playing the games. I was hoping to give the Guitar Hero game a try, as well as the pinball machines tucked away in the corner. Maybe next time.

We are definitely going back to the arcade. We’ll probably check out different theatres around town to see what games each one has. It was a lot of fun to do something I haven’t done since I was a kid. This was a great suggestion and I’m glad we did it. If you have any arcade memories from your childhood we’d love to hear about it. Also, if you have any suggestions about things you’d like to see us try, please feel free to email or message us on Twitter and let us know.

(Click here if you can’t see the video of us at the arcade)

Cost - It’s totally up to you. If you decide to just play the game then it’s free!

If you are looking for a fun little indoor activity on a chilly day, try a book hunt. You go to a local book store with someone, split up, and with a time limit you try to pick out a book that the other person might like. Then you meet up and reveal your choices to one another. We gave it a shot, and although we didn’t stick to our own rules we really enjoyed it.

SHE SAID:

One of my favorite places to shop for gifts is at a bookstore. So when Brad suggested we go on a book hunt for each other I was in.

Chapters is a lot of real estate to cover in a short time frame so I chose the top three sections I thought I might find something he enjoyed. I also tried to think of any recent conversations we had about his latest interests, curiosities, etc. I tend to be a tad indecisive, and coupling that with a time crunch spells disaster, so it’s no wonder I ended up coming back to the meeting spot with more than one book. Three to be exact.

I found the hunt for the books and the big reveal to be very exciting, but no so much the deciding what book to keep. This is why I recommend sticking to only bringing one book back to your partner. Giving yourself more time to hunt for books may help with this. Brad gave me 15 minutes, without a watch, in a store with many shopping distractions, to find an awesome gift. I recommend a good half hour, but don’t take so long that you have to put an announcement over the PA for a lost partner.

Brad’s first picks for me were massive novels, which I would have loved were it July and I had endless hours to read at the beach. However, it’s October and I need magazine type texts to flip through at my leisure.

The second attempt was very successful. Option #1 was a massive book of nothing but lists. Option #2 was a tip book on how to buy yourself more time (was that a hint?) and Option #3 (my favorite!) was a quick decorating book for people on the go. In the end, my frugal and practical side won out and I didn’t end up getting a book that Brad had picked out for me (sorry love bug!) but a book I needed for school. If nothing else, Brad has some great ideas for Christmas….

HE SAID:

After almost three and a half years of marriage we finally put all of our knowledge about each other to the test. We went to Chapters, split up, and took 15 minutes to pick out three books that we thought the other might like.

First of all I should say that we bent the rules quite a bit on this one. I think the idea is to each pick out one book, and no matter what ends up getting picked, you have to buy it. We decided not only to pick out more than one book each, but to do two rounds of picks. We also went in with a budget in mind, but that didn’t last long as I am horrible at looking at prices when I shop for Susan.

I went into this feeling quite confident that I could pick out the perfect book on the first try. Then I got knee deep in choices and realized it was going to be harder than I thought. Do I go for a novel, or more information oriented book? While Susan (of course) took the more logical route of picking from what she thought was my top three favorite sections, I went the more frantic, running up and down the aisles in a panic route. In the first round I decided to pick out some novels. I knew that she doesn’t have the time to read one right now, but I figured it would be nice to have one to look forward to reading when some free time shows up. So in the second round I think I found some better choices for her.

I have to say, I was quite surprised by the books she picked out for me. I was expecting more random choices, books that I had never heard of before. Instead she went pretty safe and picked books I had either looked at before, or books by authors that I enjoy. Don’t get me wrong, I liked the books she picked out, I was just surprised.

We decided in the end not to buy any of the books we picked out for each other for two reasons. The first was because we both threw our original budget out the window. The second was that we decided the fun was in the hunt itself plus the reveal, not in the purchasing.

I had so much fun with this one and I can’t wait to try it again. It’s kind of like Christmas with more instant gratification. With a Christmas gift you often have to wait weeks or days, if not months, before you can see the reaction of the person you bought the gift for. With this you get to see the reaction almost immediately, plus you don’t even have to buy anything to have fun. I really got a kick out of watching Susan’s reactions to the books I picked for her and wanted to keep picking more, but we ran out of time.

So what are you waiting for? Go out to a local book store with someone and try this game. It’s a lot of fun, and the cost is totally up to you.

• Cost - under $10, depending on what you eat and your entertainment.

Nothing can really beat the true picnic experience, sitting out on the grass under the warm sunshine, but when it looks like monsoon season outside, an indoor picnic will do just fine. All that’s needed is a room big enough to spread a blanket out on, a blanket and pillows, your favorite picnic food,  a basket (cheaply obtained from the dollar store) and some form of entertainment (board game, movie, music, etc.).

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SHE SAID:

Since I couldn’t have a traditional picnic, I wanted to laugh in the face of all things wet and cloudy and kick this rainy day’s butt. I wanted to have the best indoor picnic EVER! So, I made my own sun and fluffy, non-rain filled clouds and hung them with fish line and tape above the blanket and pillows Brad set up on our living room floor. I bought a cute little basket from Dollarama that served as our picnic basket and filled it with sandwiches, bananas, and chocolate bars for dessert (also from Dollarama). I also picked up some President’s Choice Italian Soda I recently became obsessed with (the Blood Orange flavour is the best!).

I highly recommend doing something at your picnic, otherwise you’ll just be staring at the same four walls you’ve been staring at for the last 40 rain-filled days. We decided to play Scrabble, but it might also be fun to watch such a fitting old movie as Singing in the Rain. I can beat Brad any day at Word Twist, but Scrabble is another story, most likely because it involves strategy to win.

For those of you whose best Scrabble move has been a three-letter noun, I recommend a strategy I like to use from time to time called the “dignity keeper.” You look in the dictionary to “check” for a word, meanwhile scouring the pages for an actual word to save yourself from falling behind by fifty points. Yes, it’s slightly deceitful, but survival isn’t always pretty.

For the first few rounds I was hanging on and actually managed to get a couple of points ahead of Brad, until I accidentally set him up for a triple word score, and the rest is history.

HE SAID:

Sometimes you have to bite the bullet and do something you’re not convinced will be the most fun thing ever. This was one of those things. I can handle the idea of a regular outdoor picnic, but I wasn’t sure how this indoor picnic idea was going to turn out. I had visions of us sitting in the middle of an empty room, shoving tuna sandwiches into our mouthes in silence as we secretly plotted each others demise. Luckily it didn’t turn out quite that bad.

I enjoyed the fact that it was a simple way to do something new. It didn’t require a lot of preparation in order to have fun. So once the sandwiches were made, we just threw everything into a basket, laid a blanket on the living room floor, pulled out Scrabble from the closet, and we were off to the races.

On a side note, if you plan on making a meal even the teensiest bit more complicated than it has to be, make sure you aren’t so hungry during the preparation that you’re cranky. Lesson learned.

Playing Scrabble was the highlight of the indoor picnic for me. It’s one of my favorite board games, especially when I win…by a lot. We have the official Scrabble dictionary so that we can avoid any arguments over which words are allowed and which ones aren’t.

It may seem like a silly idea, but in the end it turned out to be a memorable experience and I’d say it’s definitely worth trying if you’ve never done it before.

Here are a few simple tips if you’d like to pull off a successful indoor picnic:

1. Don’t wait until you are hungry to start getting things together for you picnic

2. Have a board game, movie, or some other fun thing to do while you eat

3. Don’t worry about everything being perfect, just have fun and enjoy the process

4. If you have a room with a carpeted floor, for the love of all things good and holy, use it!

Day trips are a fun thing to do when you can’t go anywhere too far away, but you want to feel like a tourist nonetheless. You get to escape your own town and return home to your own bed at the end of the day. What could be better? On this particular day we went to Mahone Bay, which is about an hour from Halifax.

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SHE SAID

I love visiting little towns. I love the people, I love the atmosphere, and most of all the unique shops! Mahone Bay is one such town that I keep coming back to for its charming, old fashioned feel. Its cute little shops are filled with everything from antiques to candy. On this particular day we didn’t get to all of the shops, but we did happen upon some great finds.

Find #1 – The Eclectic Garage

Don’t judge this one by its appearance. Though it may look like a run down, converted garage, guess what? It is! If you like antiques and unique gift ideas, you’ll love this place. It is jammed packed full of antique bottles, vinyl records, books, dishes, furniture, and it doesn’t stop there. You’ll also find modern gift items dispersed throughout. Though I didn’t buy any antiques this trip, I did find an antique-ish sign I hung in my kitchen. Check out our Flickr album for more finds.

Find #2 – Jo-Ann’s Deli Market & Bake Shop

Though there are quite a few nice places to dine in Mahone Bay, Jo-Ann’s offers quite a unique experience. Not only can you get fresh, made to order sandwiches and seafood lunches, there is a vast array of fresh baked goods to indulge in afterward that are made daily. If you’re looking for something cooler, you can visit the “I.C.U.”, aka Ice Cream Unit, and choose from one of their 16 flavors (and they have waffle cones!). If that’s not enough, you can buy local produce, a large section being organic, and they also have the largest selection of imported cheeses on the South Shore!

Find #3 – Candy Cravings
My sweet tooth was well fed after this stop. This shop is packed full of old-fashioned and modern candy alike. I was a wide-eyed little kid again gazing at the walls full of sugary delights. Once I got a grip, I ended up buying a “tickle stick” (not sure of the name’s origins), which is a wooden skewer full of gummy candies. We also stopped by their fudge station and picked up some chocolate peanut butter fudge. Yum!

I can’t wait to visit this town again. Maybe I can convince Brad to go to the Great Scarecrow Festival and Antique Fair in October!

HE SAID:

Over the past few years I’ve really grown to like the idea of taking day trips. Not only is it a cheap way to enjoy the nice summer and fall weather, but I’ve also gotten to see some smaller towns around Nova Scotia that I wouldn’t have otherwise.

Let’s be honest. I’m a city boy who married a country girl. So as much as I do enjoy a day trip to a small town, you won’t see me singing in the streets in pure joy like Susan. She really lights up when she’s in a town where people consider driving the speed limit to be too fast, where everyone knows everyone, and there are more trees than people.

Having said that, I can appreciate what a great place we live in. The drive to Mahone Bay is full of beautiful scenery. We even came across a parade along the way and stopped to take a look.

On the day we went to Mahone Bay the temperature was pretty high. So, naturally, certain unnamed members of our group decided it would be a good idea to walk to some of the antique shops we planned to visit. While the exercise was nice, I’m pretty sure I almost died of heat stroke. I kept reminding her that the further we walked, the further the walk back to the car would be.

Thankfully the walk was worth it as we came across some really great shops. One of my favorite spots in Mahone Bay is Candy Cravings. I don’t like it for the same reasons as Susan though. She likes the candy, but I like all the little toys and trinkets you can get. It’s sort of like a more tame version of Freak Lunchbox. There’s superhero lunch boxes, funny action figures, and lots more. I was also really excited to find what was labelled “drawer knobs” at an antique shop that used the same stick figures as we have in our logo. They don’t really serve any purpose, but I couldn’t pass them up.

Day trips are a great way to get out of the house without draining the bank account. It’s also an opportunity to check out the areas around where you live. If you enjoy fun drives and exploring new towns then you should give it a try.

Let us know some of your favorite day trip spots in the comments!