First date number 2

This weekend we've had a bit of a life (friends for tea and a night out for me!) so our date night was pushed back to Sunday. We had a Wii night, not just for children it's very good fun for grown ups too. I lost at almost everything, I blame it on a newly healed fractured wrist, being unbalanced (read clutz who falls over too often) and being plied by strong GnTs!

Anyway, despite the losing, it was a fun night and I'm looking forward to next week.  Talking of which:

What next? Thanks to Linnykins for her signpost to galadarling's list of 50 alternative date ideas to try. Some of them were very USAified and so couldn't do in a very English village, some of them would require a full time babysitter (not on hand I'm afraid) and some just wouldn't work (dye each other's hair? I like my house and want Tim to be able to keep paying the mortgage) - so with those stripped out, here is the list I'm planning to work from (TIM - if you're reading feel free to pinch some of these).

1. Wake up at 4am & watch the sunrise together
What could be better than sitting close on a rooftop somewhere, talking & laughing & watching the sun come up? Take a flask of hot coffee for extra points. More of a summer one - currently in for a long wait if getting up at 4am!
2. Go to an art gallery on a Saturday afternoon
You’ll learn a lot about the person you’re standing next to if you go & check out art together. Plus it gives you something so much more stimulating to talk about than the last episode of Lost. (Sorry, Lost fans…) Mmm - childcare issues with this one but I like the idea so it stays!
3. Mix CD trade
Are mix CDs antiquated? Maybe you could just make one another a playlist on your iPod or something… Either way, sharing & discussing music is one of the world’s great, little-known aphrodisiacs. Truth. (Unless all they listen to is Richard Marx. Damn.) AHHH - we used to do this eons ago.
4. Do something neither of you have done before
Pottery class? Swing dancing lessons? Hire a moped & drive out into the country? Who knows, but it’s nice to share an experience that is new to both of you! Research needed for this one - there are not rich pickings locally!
5. Random restaurant date
Flip open the yellow pages to ‘R’ for ‘Restaurants’, close your eyes & pick a place to eat at. You never know how it’ll go — it could be a hidden treasure or a total health hazard, but that’s part of the fun, isn’t it?! Love this one - how exciting!
6. Hot air ballooning
Not the cheapest date idea, I’ll admit, but certain to score you points & to impress your lover-to-be. Maybe if you’re dating an heiress? OK this one blows the 52 weeks budget but always wanted to do it (TIM this one can be your week!)
7. The Sunday New York Times crossword date
Bonus: intellectual stimulation, nerd points & you get to find out how clever they really are, all in one fell swoop. & wouldn’t it be great if you looked at them across the table, sunlight falling across their face, & they smiled at you & you thought, ‘I would like to spend every Sunday this way’? Yes. Yes it would. Well, obviously it would be impossible to get the actual Sunday New York Times but could make it more local - Staffordshire Newsletter crossword date?
8. Take a dog for a walk
They’re adorable &; fun & will give you something to talk about if you get stuck. Plus, people will come up to you & say, “Cute dog”, & you can beam at each other like proud parents. Another good summer one - getting a babysitter for a wet winter dark walk doesn't sound too much fun!
9. Collaborative art date
Get a canvas or even just a big piece of paper, some paint, pencils or pastels, & go nuts. Not sure but might be fun (think Ghost pottery here?)
10. Take cameras & explore an abandoned place
An excellent opportunity to be artsy-fartsy, or if you like to be on the other side of the camera, get them to take photos of you pulling your most beautifulest faces. Abandoned like a messy playroom or back garden?
11. “First date” night
This one works best if it’s not your actual first date. Like, for example, you’ve been together for 3 years & live in the same house. Get dressed separately, meet somewhere strange & a bit awkward, & pretend you don’t know one another. Start from scratch. Ask all those banal questions you’re supposed to ask (“So, what do you do?”). Then at the end of the night, rejoice that you’re in a relationship & not dating any more! Could be fun, could be corny. Frequently done on bad tv shows!
12. The generational date
Pretend you’re an age that you’re not, then act accordingly. A senior citizens date might involve going lawn bowling, making apple sauce & watching The Price Is Right. A teenager date might involve roller-skating, making out in public & drinking vodka in an alley-way. You get the idea. Think this would be very funny - would love to see grumpy husband dressed as a teenager on roller blades!
13. The silent date
In a loud, noisy, overstimulating world, it can be nice to unplug & escape. But it can be nice to do that with your new favourite person, too. Hold hands & read books on a wharf & occasionally look adoringly at one another. Cool. Silence is golden and unheard of in our house!
14. Make cupcakes together
You know you want to. That's the food sorted too!
15. Travel without going anywhere
The premise is simple. Have a normal date but speak with an accent. You both have to do it, by the way, or it doesn’t count. Choose something difficult for extra hilarity points, like Scottish or South African. Och aye! Completely can't do accents but would be very funny!
16. Jump on a trampoline
The hardest part will be finding one, but I have faith in you! A-ha this lady obviously doesn't have kids - one for the summer (but the kids are told one at a time - can I break my own rules?)