Presenting dates for a YEAR!

With Father's Day coming up, I wanted to share a couple of ideas for gifts that you could give your husband if you want to give him something a little creative and memorable.  (They are both alike, and yet have there own unique qualities, so check them both out) This first idea, I did year ago, on Valentines Day, when I enrolled my husband in "The Date of the Month Club".  It was his favorite gift -to this day- and filled with many memories for the both of us.  I found this idea on the Love Actually blog and switched a few things around and made my own homemade version.  Below is a picture from Love Actually that shows you can purchase your own personal digital version from them, to take out a lot more work on your part.  It's only $20 bucks to buy the personalized version, but then you have to print out everything still.

The idea is to enroll your husband in the Date of the Month Club, which means he will receive:

*One creative date (set up by you) per month for a year

*Two vacation getaways within the year (homemade or real getaway destinations-whatever your budget allows)

*Coupon tickets to use anytime throughout the year (examples: breakfast in bed, massages, make his favorite dessert)

*A bag of Hershey kisses, redeemable for the real thing!

So you would choose 12 date options for the year (making sure that at least half are things your spouse likes to do) and then a separate paper with all the months in the year, and he gets to pick which date he wants for each month.  Also come up with coupons your husband will enjoy using.  This is a great way to ensure that you have dates (bonus for you) and gets your husband excited and anticipating dates.  Plus he'll just feel so loved that you put all this effort and thought into him!

Personally, some of things I did in my homemade Date of the Month Kit for my husband were the following:

*Presented the kit in a photo book, and put our picture on the front of it

*Slipped a congratulations letter in the photo slots about how he had been enrolled in the club and explained what to do and what was included in it.(above)

*Some dates I chose were: Pizzeria night, Bowling Date, Game Night, Chinese Date, Tickets to entertainment at the college campus, Spa Night, Chef's delight, Golf Day, Wild West Night, Envelope Date, Trip to the Theater.  Many of these dates can be found on the Love Actually Blog, and others are just things we like to do.

*I included the Hershey kisses, which I enjoyed eating when they were redeemed.

*I included 16 coupons like the examples above.

*I didn't include vacation getaways this time.

*In the rest of the photo book I would put pictures of us on all our dates so that we could always remember the fun time we had.  Sometimes I'd put ticket stubs or invitations that I made for him too.

I just found another awesome idea like this on The Dating Divas blog, in which they were featuring one of their readers who came up this idea of "The Passport to Love" (picture below). They have great printables if you go to their link, and detailed instructions on how to put this gift together.  

The idea is the same, to provide one date a month for the next year, but this time, "traveling" to different locations around the world.  Her ideas for making each location in your own home are amazing and sound fun, and easy! Check it out, it's worth it!  I'm going to have to use this idea sometime soon!  Hope you enjoyed these gifts ideas!

Happy loving, 

Rachelle

Elegance in White.~Date

For Elegance in White, it's all about the mood.  You will be sharing delicious white treats in a breathtaking white atmosphere.  This date is one that you can do at home when the kids are in bed, if you don't have much time, or if you want to tack it on at the end of another date when you get home.  This also might be good for your anniversary, as white can reflect memories of your wedding. 

Preparations/decor:  The idea is to set up a location in your house before hand with white luxurious sourroundings.  Some ideas include: white candles (putting them on mirror candleholders creates a very romantic effect), white rose petals, sheer white curtains, white table cloth, white canopy (if your location is the bedroom), white flowers, pillows, ribbon, and/or gather any white decor you already have in the house as well!  If you go to the dollar store or Walmart and look in the wedding section you'll find these and other great white decor ideas for cheap.  Black and white photos of you and your spouse would be beautiful too!  Below is a vision picture of what you could create that I found on pinterest.  If you follow me on pinterest, I've collected some more beautiful decor ideas for this date there.

(original link for this picture here )

Preparations/food:  Then, you'll want to prepare or buy white lavish food such as cheesecake, white chocolate, white truffles, white cake (re-inventing your wedding cake), white chocolate covered oreos, sugar cookies, lemon bars with powder sugar on top, powdered doughnuts, and/or double berry cheesecake ice cream (Albertson's brand) for the date.  If you really love white chocolate and have a chocolate fountain, you could get an assortment of food to dip into the flowing chocolate too.  Also, I recomend getting sparkling cider or another variety that they have (I used sparkling cranberry), and serving it in glass champagne glasses for your beverage.
Make sure you have on white attire as well.

(Ignore the bites already taken out of the cheesecake!)

Yummy Recipes:
Oreo Truffles (except using white chocolate coating)
Mini Cheesecakes
Creamy Lemon Bars

Be sure to download one of these special invitation options: invite#1, invite#2, invite#3  Once you download the font will change to a pretty cursive.  For some reason these invites didn't keep the original cursive font when I uploaded them.
 (Click on file, click download original, enter in specific info, print)

Set all these things up prior to the date so when the time comes, you can savor and enjoy Elegance in White with your loved one for a complete luxurious experience!

Happy loving,
Rachelle