By Toni Coleman
Dating during the holiday season can be a special treat. Of course, in
order to fully experience this you may need to re-order some priorities
and make time for yourself and your own personal needs. Don’t give into
the temptation to put your social life on hold until after the New
Year. Manage those work projects and family demands in a way that
leaves you open to try some of the romantic and fun-filled activities
that are available at this time of year.
The following 10 date ideas should help put you in the mood and may even inspire you to come up with a few on your own.
1.Have a “progressive” dinner together. Go to one place for your
appetizer, another (romantic and intimate) place for your dinner; and
then have dessert and coffee (nightcap), in a quiet spot with a
beautiful view of holiday lights or other holiday views. Even better,
go by limo, so you have all your time to focus on each other and don’t
have to worry about all the driving.
2. Take a holiday tour of historic homes in your area. Many areas of
the country have these. Often they are done in the evening by
candlelight. Afterwards, you can go for a walk and view the surrounding
neighborhood lights and decorations. Finish with coffee in a quiet
bistro.
3. Get dressed up and attend a holiday concert or play. You can spend a
lot or very little on this kind of date, depending where you go for the
entertainment. A nice little before or after meal fills out the evening.
4. Go and get hot chocolate with your date; then go look at Christmas
lights or displays available in your area. Many places have dazzling
displays that light up the night.
5. Go ice skating together. Find a nice place, not too crowded. This
brings out the playful side and encourages a lot of interaction with
each other. Hold hands, show off, race- be kids again!
6. Attend a religious service together. This could be accomplished by
going to a place of worship that one (or both) of you belong to; or you
could go to a non-denominational service. An evening service, followed
by a supper in an intimate restaurant could fill you with a sense of
well-being and peacefulness.
7. Throw a small holiday get-together with a few other couples (or
friends). Plan an activity such as trimming the tree or lighting the
menorah. Be sure to serve festive food and drink. A bonus would be to
have a secret Santa gift exchange. This would be where each person
brings a gift ($10.00 or less). Everyone picks a number. Person with
number one begins with first selection. Go through all the numbers and
open each gift in front of the group. Exchanging is fine and provides
some extra fun. Lots of laughs and very interactive.
8. Choose your or his/her place, stay home, rent old holiday classics,
light the fire and cook a simple but festive meal together. Play
holiday music while you cook. Then watch (a few if you like) holiday
favorites together. Or, you can bake Christmas cookies or other holiday
treats together while listening to music and enjoying the fire.
9. Work at a soup kitchen one day (meal) together. Sharing the
experience of giving is a wonderful way to get to know someone and
deepen a relationship. It is also a great way to get into the true
holiday spirit. After the clean up, go for a walk followed by coffee or
a nightcap.
10. Go to a planetarium (if one is nearby). Enjoy the spectacular
winter sky together. There is usually a guided “show” that you can
experience as you sit closely, (perhaps hand in hand?). Try to pick out
constellations together as you walk back to your car. It is always nice
to have an intimate meal afterwards.
See if you can add some ideas of your own to this list. Then put aside
several evenings over the next few weeks and awaken those feelings of
peace, joy and goodwill for others.
Happy Holidays!
Toni Coleman is a licensed therapist and relationship coach in private
practice in McLean, Virginia. She specializes in working with singles
that want to create lasting, intimate relationships. Toni has over 20
years of post-masters experience in relationship counseling and
coaching with singles and couples. She is the founder and President of
LifeChange Coaching and Consum-mate Relationship Coaching. She
developed and teaches the Creating Lasting Relationships Training, a
tele-workshop designed to help singles to define, implement and fulfill
their life and relationship goals. She has also written numerous email
classes for singles on all aspects of meeting, dating and relating. She
is the author of the email newsletter, The Art of Intimacy, which goes
out to thousands of subscribers monthly.
http://www.consum-mate.com
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