October 26, 2007, Volume 1 Idea 10

Where's Waldo
Men's date night edition


Beginners
Materials needed
• Camera
• Fun place big enough to get lost in, i.e. a place with lots of people or objects.
• Printer
• Photo album with that holds two pictures to a page.
• Blank sheets of paper.

How to:
Stake out a place that you would have fun together, i.e. Arcade, Park, Wal-mart, etc. This is a fun thing Eric and I did together this week. We were at the Wisconsin Dells and I took a picture of Eric all around the water park. He would hide behind something and I'd take his picture. It was so much fun! We laughed and took about a million pictures. Make sure there are lots of things in the picture so it's hard to see your husband.

When you get home, if you have a printer, print out your pictures. Otherwise you can take it to Wal-mart and print them out there. Print out the pictures and make your own Where's "Waldo" book. We call ours Where's E.

Once your pictures are cut out and ready to put in the photo album. Go into Microsoft Word and type things you like about your husband in 4X6 spaces, or whatever size your photo album holds. Cut out the words or sentences you typed out and put them under each pictures.

It will be a fun book for people to come over and look at, instead of boring vacation pictures, and your husband will be honored because everyone will read what you love about him.

"Where's E"
Pictures

Advanced
Materials needed
• Where's Waldo Outfit for your man, red & white stripped shirt and bobble hat, wooden walking stick, and circle glasses.

If he enjoys being silly, don't do it if it makes him uncomfortable, have him put on the Where's Waldo outfit. If you have kids, they'll love finding him in your homemade book.

Find out more about Where's Waldo.

Click Here

October 19, 2007, Volume 1 Idea 9

Love Hurts
Women's date night edition


Beginners
Materials needed
• 2 Racquetball rackets
• Racquetball balls
• Purchase cute work out clothes for her
• Tennis Shoes
• Beef Aujous Sandwiches
• Camera
How to:
Call the gym to reserve a racquetball court. In Cherokee, it costs $5 a piece to go for all day if you don't have a membership. Make sure you get her correct size of shorts and shirts and buy some cute work out clothes for her to feel good in. Pick her up and take her to the gym. Give her the clothes to choose what she'd like to wear. The rules of the game are below. You can reserve the court for an hour.

When you get home, make your sandwiches, and talk about your little competition. Give prizes for best serve, best mean serve, or whatever you can come up with.

Here is a picture of Eric. On the last hit Jamie hit me in the mouth with the racquetball ball.

Click here



Advanced
Materials needed
• Basketball
• Swim suits

Go play "horse" in the basketball area in the gym. You each take turns trying to make a basket. If you make the basket then the other person has to make it from the same place otherwise they get a letter, we used the word DATE. So every time you miss you get a letter and whoever spells DATE first loses.

Get in the hot tub in the gym and spend time finding out about each other's day. And lovingly relive the highlights of your racquetball and horse competition. Tend to any wounds. :)

 

October 12, 2007, Volume 1 Idea 8

Love Pumpkin
Men's date night edition


Beginners
Materials needed
• Music
• 2 Pumpkins
• Permanent marker
• Carving knife or electric drill with a bit to carve the pumpkin
• Outside heater/space heater
• Camera
• 2 Big garbage sacks
• Pan
• Chili
• Blanket
How to:
Get the outside set up for you to make your love pumpkins. Put a garbage sack on a table for your work area, put out the heater to stay warm, lay out the carving knife or electric drill, music for you to listen to while carving and put out the two pumpkins. Note: if he hates touching the guts of the pumpkin (like Eric does) carve it out for him before hand. Otherwise do it all together and maybe have a pumpkin guts fight. :)

While he begins tracing out his pumpkin bring out coffee or hot chocolate or whatever he likes to keep him warm. Explain to him that this is a not a Halloween pumpkin it's a love pumpkin. So some ideas for you and him are to carve a bunch of hearts on the outside of the pumpkin or your initials like J+E or a word that describes something you love about the other person. Use your imaginations. Put the seeds on the pan to cook later for a treat to remind you of your fun date night. After you've made your love pumpkins place them where everyone can see them with the candle lit and bring out the chili. Cuddle in the blanket while you eat chili and talk about your day.

Advanced
Materials needed
• Find a pumpkin patch and corn maze in area
• Pumpkin pie
• Small prize

Go together to pick out your pumpkins at a pumpkin patch.

Go through a corn maze together.

Serve pumpkin pie for dessert.

Have someone who walks by your house judge your pumpkins. Make sure they know your husband needs to win.:) Award him with a prize.

 

October 5, 2007, Volume 1 Idea 7

Room Service
Women's date night edition


Beginners
Materials needed
• Find a hotel nearby (or far away if you both can get off work or have someone look after the kids).
We've stayed at the Best Western here in Cherokee and King's Point in Storm Lake (our favorite)
• Swim suites
• Love gifts; get her something thoughtful. Ex. Jamie and I have been working out more so I bought her some work out clothes.
• Snack food that doubles as your dinner. I.e. little bagels with meat and cheese, chips and dip, strawberries on the bagels with cream cheese, drinks, etc.
• Small cooler for food.
• Clothes for her to wear either to go home and change before work or work clothes
• PJs
• Magazine for her to read in the tub.
• Camera
How to:
Call around to find out the best rate on a hotel you can get. If you go in the middle of the week you will probably have the hotel to yourself (at least around Cherokee that's true). If you can go before hand to the hotel set up your evening early. Bring her swim suit, clothes, food, and love gifts and hide them in the closet. Call her at work and tell her to meet you at the hotel. Be there ready for a fun night! Go swimming, eat your snacks, run a bath for her to relax and read the magazine you bought her. It's like a mini vacation. You're away from home so you aren't tempted to do anything but relax and have fun.

If you live around Cherokee and you go to King's Point during the week (at least it was this way for us) you will have the water park to yourself. We went down the slides a ton of times, floated in the lazy river, played on the kid’s part, played basketball, and did the rock climbing wall. It was a blast, just the two of us and a bunch of life guards. :) We got a discount because of a club we're in so that made it cheap enough but I know there are some special rates going on right now that make it not terribly expensive.

Advanced
Materials needed
• Toy motorized boat
• Hints to where you are
• Small prizes

Take the toy boats to the pool and race. Whether she wins or loses she gets a prize.

Somehow get her hints to where you are. Either lay it on her desk at work when she's away or have a co-worker do it for you or lay it on the table at home, just make sure she finds it.

On the outside of the envelope put clues. What I did for Jamie is a post-it that said -
Thunder _ _ _ R _/Great _ _ _ _ for Storm Lake. I drew a crown with a finger pointing for King's Point. Go east young Woman on highway 3. And other clues just her and I would know. Put a map of where you'll be in the envelope and seal it. Write on the outside that if she doesn't open the envelope to find you she'll get a prize.

September 28, 2007, Volume 1 Idea 6

Couch Potato Night
Men's date night edition


Beginners
Materials needed
• Magazine he enjoys; there are magazines for every hobby in the world. Magazine for yourself.
• His favorite beverage
• Love gifts; get him something he would never buy for himself but would enjoy. Eric owns a ton of utility
knives, but I found one that replaced the blade without having to use a screw driver.Only $6 @ Menards.
• T.V. show you both enjoy on DVD (Netflix!)
• Frozen pizza and chips or veggies and dip with fruit slices
How to:
Set, by his favorite chair, the magazine and his favorite beverage. When he gets home from work, lead him to his spot. Then go put in the pizza and come back and hang out with your man and read your magazines. When the pizza is done, put in the t.v. show on and bring in the pizza. If it's on DVD, you can watch a few of your favorite episodes, or you can find it on itunes. Smallville just came out, and we watched that. Guys love watching t.v., and from talking to another of my good friend who's married, they see that as quality time together. It's their night, so do what they love!
________________________________________
Many of you have kids, which makes it hard to have a date night if you don’t have family around, and sometimes even if you do. We don’t have kids, so we haven’t had to deal with that yet, but I have a friend who takes turns with her neighbors/friends. She’ll watch their kids one week while they have a date night, and the next week they’ll watch their kids while she goes on a date night with her husband. I’m sure there are other creative ways to get away. If you have one, let us know so we can help others.

Advanced
Materials needed
• A fresh scent like Eucaplytus lotion
• Quiz to give him about the t.v. show after you're done watching it.
• Fun prize

While he's reading his magazine, give him a neck massage with the eucalyptus lotion.

Get some facts about the show you'll be watching and put together a small quiz.

If he gets an A on his quiz, give him the prize. Even if he flunks it, you can give it to him.

September 21, 2007, Volume 1 Idea 5

Blast From the Past
Women's date night edition


Beginners
Materials needed
• Cartoon movie (old school from Wal-mart $1) or cartoon channel on cable
• Coloring books - one girls and one boys
• Crayons, markers, or colored pencils
• Candy - bubble tape or something from when they were a kid
• Mac & Cheese or favorite meal as a kid
How to:
Put the cartoon on in the background as you color in your coloring book. Use the pages you color to tell a story about each other - a first date, anniversary, or a fairy tale about the two of you. Surprise your spouse with the childhood treat to munch on while you color. Ideas for the coloring book...you can use comic strip type bubbles to make the characters on your page tell the story.

Advanced
Materials needed
• Find out your spouses favorite coloring book from childhood and purchase that one
• Make a chocolate milk shake with two straws to share

Do an activity book or a Highlights magazine.

September 14, 2007, Volume 1 Idea 4

Race to Date Night
Men's date night edition


Beginners
Materials needed
• 2 model cars (make sure you check to see if you need modeling glue or if it just snaps together)
• Racing movie
• Favorite food.
•
How to:
Put newspapers on the table and have the model cars ready to assemble. Put on Nascar racing in the background or some rock 'n roll from his high school era. Talk about both your days as you put together the cars. Then eat dinner and watch the racing movie.
Many of you have kids which makes it hard to have a date night if you don’t have family around and sometimes even if you do. We don’t have kids so we haven’t had to deal with that yet but I have a friend who takes turns with her neighbors/friends. She’ll watch their kids one week while they have a date night and the next week they’ll watch their kids while she goes on a date night with her husband. I’m sure there are other creative ways to get away. If you have one let us know so we can help others.
Advanced
Materials needed
• trophies or checkered flags
• Nascar race on d.v.d.
• Coveralls

Find out if there was a car he owned or has dreamed of owning and buy that car model.

Dressed in mechanics coveralls, like you work in a pit crew.

Record a Nascar race and play that in the background as you put together your cars.

Decorate the table with trophies or checkered flags.

Any friends that have a "muscle" car? Ask if you could take your hubby for a spin.
Evolution of the stock car: Part I
February 6, 2002 11:12 PM EST (0412 GMT) http://www.nascar.com/2002/kyn/history/evolution/02/06/stockcar
Throughout the 53-year history of NASCAR, its race cars have been transformed from road-going, lumbering true "stock" cars into the sleek, technologically advanced machines that we see today on ultra-modern speedways. In tracing the evolution of the cars that we know today as the Winston Cup Series, it's necessary to go back to the beginnings of NASCAR and its "Strictly Stock Division."


It all started with races on the famed Daytona beach/road course in the late 1940's.
When NASCAR was formed in 1948, there was a definite shortage of new cars in the post-war era. The feeling was that race fans wouldn't stand for new cars being beat up on a race track while they were driving a rattletrap pre-war automobile, so "Modified" cars were the early staple of NASCAR racing.

However, in 1949, NASCAR president Bill France Sr. re-visited the idea of racing the cars that people actually drove on the street -- late model family sedans. Since no other racing organization had seized the idea, France figured it might take root and create added interest.
The success of the modern Winston Cup Series proves he was correct. From the racers' perspective, putting a race car together was not a high-dollar deal. If a brand-new Buick sold for about $4,000, due to the lack of modification that could be done to it, the car could be raced for very little more of an investment.

In some instances, rental cars were actually used as race cars by point-chasing drivers who had no locked-in "ride" for an event. Cars were typically either driven to the track or "flat-towed" behind pick-ups and family sedans.

Other than tweaking and tuning of the engine, nothing could be done to these early Strictly Stock cars. The window glass front, back and sides was intact. Ropes and aircraft harnesses were used as seat belts. Roll bars -- which were mandated in 1952 -- were neither required nor often installed.

One thing the strictly stock designation encouraged was a great diversity of manufacturers on the track. The first official Strictly Stock Division race had nine makes come to the line, including Buick, Cadillac, Chrysler, Ford, Hudson, Kaiser, Lincoln, Mercury and Oldsmobile.

Some of the biggest problems were tire; wheel and suspension failures brought on by stresses that were atypical of normal road use. These concerns brought about novel solutions such as one detailed by two-time Grand National (forerunner of Winston Cup) champion Tim Flock, who described a trap door in the floorboard of his race car that he could open with a chain to check right front tire wear.

"When the white cord was showing, we had about one or two laps left before the tire would blow," said Flock of the 'early-warning system.'

Due to the rough-surfaced dirt tracks that were predominant in the early days of the sport, the only modification that was allowed was a reinforcing steel plate on the right front wheel to prevent lug nuts from pulling through the rims on conventional wheels.

Otherwise, racing stock cars in the early days of the sport was very much a seat of the pants endeavor. But it was one that spawned innumerable legends of drivers who created them, literally, with their own hands, feet and indomitable wills and courage.

 

September 7, 2007, Volume 1 Idea 3

In the Middle of No Where with Your Sweetheart
Ladies date night edition

Many of you have kids which makes it hard to have a date night if you don’t have family around and sometimes even if you do. We don’t have kids so we haven’t had to deal with that yet but I have a friend who takes turns with her neighbors/friends. She’ll watch their kids one week while they have a date night and the next week they’ll watch their kids while she goes on a date night with her husband. I’m sure there are other creative ways to get away. If you have one let us know so we can help others.

Beginners
Materials needed
• Her favorite magazine
• 2 Camping chairs
• Favorite camping activity, i.e. Frisbee, football, bean bags, etc.
• Camping food; hot dogs, s'mores, instant mac and cheese, salad
• Spouse’s favorite snack
• Prizes, i.e. nice ladies razor like Gillette Intuition, small potted flowering plant, flip
flops, hair scrunches, anything she’s been wanting or is just a fun gift she’d never
buy for herself
• A place to camp (it could even be your back yard)
• Blow up mattress (to save your backs)
• 2 Sleeping bags
• 2 pillows
• A change of clothes for her in the morning and comfy p.j.’s for the night
• Towels for the shower
• Toiletries she may need, i.e. contacts, contact solution, tooth brush, face wash,
shampoo
• Tennis shoes
• Sweatshirt for the cool night
• Campfire wood if it’s not provided
• Bug spray
• Flashlight
• Games, i.e. cards, yahtzee, dice, whatever is her favorite
• Travel alarm clock (or your cell phone)
How to:
For locals of Cherokee Eric found this fantastic lodge for $50 (less than most hotel rooms) for one night at Silver Sioux. It has one big room with a round fire place in the middle, a new kitchen, and bathroom with a shower. If you want to go cheaper tenting is $15 for electric and $5 for non-electric. Others that are not in the area but live in Iowa you can go here to find a cabin or camping area. And if you don't live in Iowa google county parks in ____(whatever state you're in).

Men, you’ll need to find some time before your date night to set up your camp site. If you’re tenting; set up your tent, blow up the mattress, set out the camp chairs, and put out the firewood, potted flowering plant, and magazine. If you use a cabin do everything except put up the tent.

As soon as she gets home from work tell her to change her clothes for the outdoors. Get her in the car and drive her to your night away from the world. Let her sit in the camp chair and read the magazine you bought for her while you get dinner ready. Then have dinner together and after dinner go for a stroll. By this time it may be dark so you could star gaze or if the sun is setting watch it go down together.

When it gets dark, get in your tent and use the flashlight to play the games that you brought. But whatever you play whether you win or she wins she gets a prize. And then snuggle in for the night.

Advanced
Materials needed
• 2 Bikes
• GPS
• Small cooler with some fruit or whatever kind
of snacks she likes

Instead of taking her to the spot you’re going to be for the night get the coordinates from a GPS and put a note in her car at work or wherever she is during the day that says the coordinates of where you’ll be along with the GPS (you’ll need to give her a little bit of a hint of the area you’ll be in) and the small cooler with snacks for the way there.

When you’re setting up your camping area bring your bikes. The Silver Sioux has an excellent biking trail. When she finds you (put a major hint under her seat for her to use if she can’t find you with the GPS) go on a bike ride. Make sure you’re not at the camp sight so she’ll be surprised later when it’s all set up. Go for a bike ride and then end up at your camp site.

A heads up…I love surprises so this works great for me but many people (including Eric) need to know if they’re going to be gone for the night. So if she’s one of those people let her know. If she has to work the next day, like I did on this date night, don’t camp to far away from home and maybe bring some work clothes so she can go straight to work if she wants.

Have fun!

How to make S'mores Correctly by
http://guildmistress.wordpress.com/2007/08/27/how-to-make-smores-correctly

Near your fire, place a rock that’s got a relatively flat surface on it somewhere, and face the flatish surface up, but tilted a bit toward the fire. Ideallly, the rock should be just a little less than 12″ from the fire itself. Pretty close, but not in the fire.

Next, you need a good long marshmallow roasting fork.

Place your chocolate on one half of a graham cracker. One square if you like the flavor of the marshmallow and cracker, three or four if you don’t care what else is on it, this is CHOCOLATE we’re talkin’ about, here. They say the hot marshmallow melts your chocolate. Don’t believe a word of that riff-raff. Carefully (and quickly) place your cracker with chocolate onto your hot rock near the fire. If it’s the correct distance from the flames/coals, then your chocolate should be melted, but your cracker not burned, about the same time as you’re finished roasting your marshmallow.

Roast that marshmallow! I prefer them golden brown and delicious, others like to roast them for a minute, then make them catch on fire, blow them out, then they’re done. Carbon quantities aside, it’s gooey marshmallowy goodness, either way.

Tap the top of your chocolate gently with a roasting fork to test for meltedness. If the chocolate is soft, rescue your graham cracker, using a roasting fork to help you, if you can’t stand the heat (pff!) and get it up and into your hand, or onto a napkin. Smoosh your big puffy marshmallow on the top of it, and then (optionally!) place another cracker on top of that.

I say ‘optionally‘ because, really, if you try to eat it that way, physics dictate that it will googe everywhere. If you eat it ‘open faced’ with only your bottom graham, you’ll have less sugary-goo-fallout. (You want it all in your face, don’t you?)

#1 thing to remember: Melt that chocolate! It’s just not a great S’more, else.

S'mores History


A heads up…I love surprises so this works great for me but many people (including Eric) need to know if they’re going to be gone for the night. So if she’s one of those people let her know. If she has to work the next day, like I did on this date night, don’t camp to far away from home and maybe bring some work clothes so she can go straight to work if she wants.

Have fun!

August 31, 2007, Volume 1, Idea 2
Note to men...take lots of pictures, keep ticket stubs, or any small items to be used for a future scrap booking date night for your woman.

Shooting Gallery
A date night guys edition.

Beginners
Materials needed
2 Cardboard boxes
Multiple Pieces of Paper - big enough to cover the top opening of your box
Target, bought or hand drawn
1 (2 optional, if you want your own) Soft air pistol; a.k.a. spring-loaded gun that shoots plastic pellets
(available at Wal-mart or K-mart, even Bomgaars, usually under $20)
Prizes (box of movie candy, small plastic model car kit, hand tool, good pen, beef jerky, etc.)
Guy 'shoot 'em up' movie (whatever your man is into, i.e. westerns or action; just make sure it has guns
and remember this is for your man so you don't have to like it but he will love watching it with you)
Philly cheese steak sandwich, prepared in advance. Recipe below.
How to:
The fun part about this night...it can be inside or out. After you've gathered your supplies you will need to make the shooting gallery targets. The cardboard box needs to be open on top, fold the flaps in. Draw or tape your paper target to the opening of the box. This way when the bb goes through the paper the box will stop it. It will keep you from vacuuming millions of bb's for years to come.

If you draw your target make sure there are point values for each ring drawn. Set targets in your 'gallery', 10 to 20 feet away from where you will shoot. If the box is to complicated aluminum cans work well set at different distances or in pyramids.

Have a friendly competition for prizes; shooting your target or cans, keeping track of scores. Take turns shooting 10 shots a piece. You can do different rounds and award different prizes.

Your man will not only love the competition but that you bought him a toy gun.

After the competition winds down stop to eat. Make sure he knows this is what a sniper would eat on the run at a street vendor in New York City. I know I have a wild imagination. You could serve with the Philly sandwich chips and his favorite beverage. After dinner surprise your man with the 'shoot 'em up' movie.

Please don't shoot the neighbors cat, any unsuspecting squirrels or spouse, per Jamie. :)


Intermediate
You'll want to get everything above plus...
- The straw with little umbrellas for the drinks
(you can find them at Wal-mart)
- Put on some beach wear
- Tiki torches
Advanced
Great your hubby at the door in army fatigues or any hunting camo you can find from his closet.

Camouflage face paint.

Wear yellow shooting glasses - can be found in hunting section of Wal-mart which can also be given to him at the end of the night as a present.

Your shooting gallery can be elaborately stocked with bottled, cans, stuffed animals, plastic army men, and plastic military tanks; really anything you can buy at the dollar store that can be shot at.

Clip a target on a rope pulley (you could use a clothesline or two trees with two pulleys). Then after he shoots he can pull it towards him to see how good of a shot he is (like in the movies). Clip on a new target and slide the rope back until target reaches its original position.

Fix a target to a remote control car; (which could be used as a present for him at the end of the night) you could use a balloon or piece of cardboard as the target.

Along with the Philly Sandwich get him chips in a vendor sized bag and fountain drink in a to-go cup.

 

August 24, 2007 Volume 1, Idea 1
Beach Night Minus the Beach

Beginners
Eric and I LOVE the beach so this ranks among the top date nights.
What you need: -A bag of silicone sand (here in Cherokee you can get it at Cherokee lumber or probably any
Bomgaars)
-Some sort of container(we used a plastic storage tote from Wal-mart)big enough to set your
feet in.
- 2 lawn chairs or really any comfortable chair
- You and your spouses favorite iced beverage
- Hawaiian music or anything tropical

- A favorite magazine or book

- A small end table or cooler or anything to set your beverages on

- Favorite snack

Put the sand in the container, set out your drinks on the end table, lay out the magazines and/or books, put the snacks in a sealable container so bugs, or if you have any pets, won't get them, put on the music, and ask your spouse to come outside for some "beach" time.



If this is a special night for your man make sure you get him a plastic shovel or toy dump truck to play with in the sand. If this is a special night for your wife bring her tropical flowers.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Intermediate
You'll want to get everything above plus...
- The straw with little umbrellas for the drinks
(you can find them at Wal-mart)
- Put on some beach wear
- Tiki torches
Advanced
Everything in the other two categories plus...
- A video of the ocean (another Wal-mart find)
- A laptop or portable d.v.d. player you can
bring outside
- Small kiddy pool
- Beach ball from the dollar store

You can either buy enough sand to put in the kiddy pool so you can both put your feet in (and play footsie :) ) or put the plastic container with the sand in it in the of the pool and water all around.

Play "beach volleyball" with the beach ball.

Play the video of the ocean on the portable device for the sounds of the ocean.

If this is a special night for your man make sure you get a remote control boat he can play with in the pool. If this is a special night for your woman bury a seashell that she has to find with her feet in the sand and if she finds it she gets a surprise; example tropical plant, shoulder rub, cute flip flops, manicure, etc.