In case you haven’t checked your calendar lately, Valentine’s Day is next week. While giving flowers to the woman in your life shouldn’t just be reserved for Valentine’s Day, it’s still a good day to get her some. Even if your lady says she doesn’t want anything for Valentine’s, remember it could just be a secret code that she doesn’t want anything except for flowers.
To help you become husband/boyfriend of the year, ProFlowers.com is giving away five gift certificates to five lucky Art of Manliness readers so they can give the lady in their life a $70 bouquet of flowers. How do you land this prize? Read on.
The Prize
A $70 Proflowers.com gift certificate to 5 lucky winners. The gift certificates can be used on any Proflowers.com flowers and gifts.
If you happen to be the lucky winner, don’t do the stereotypical thing and get your lady red roses. A recent study has shown that 76% of women would prefer something else besides red roses. Don’t know what sort of flowers to get your wife/girlfriend? Then make sure to check out our guide on how to give flowers like a gentleman. It has a short list of flowers and their different meanings.
How to Enter
Leave a comment on this post sharing your best date idea and you’ll be entered into a drawing for the gift card.
Deadline to enter the contest is Saturday, February 7 at 10PM CST. We’ll randomly select five comments and give a gift card to those five lucky individuals. We’re looking forward to reading your ideas.
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Well, I don’t have a significant other, so my lady currently is my mother. And I must say that I love her dearly. Typically we don’t need much to enjoy our time together, so that’s all we really plan – lots of time. We will eat a nice dinner and just laugh about what ever. I really love it.
My best date idea is to take my girlfriend on a trip to a Texas Vineyard. We would drive up to one and take the tour enjoying and sampling many different wines. Finally we would enjoy a picnic, some recently acquired wine, and a beautiful sunset out there in the Texas hill country. After that it’s back to Austin for some concert-going and bar-hopping. Yes sir, it’s great to be in Texas.
A truly romantic date is really just about connecting with the one you love. Ideally, doing something you’ll both enjoy, and that will give you something to talk about is, well, ideal…
One of the best dates I’ve had with my girlfriend—and one that I’d like to repeat—happened when we were staying in the mountains. We spent the day hiking in the mountains and at the end of the day, we went back to our hotel (it was early spring, so the campgrounds hadn’t yet opened for the season), cleaned ourselves up nice and went for a romantic dinner at the local Italian restaurant.
Afterward, we got a bottle of wine and headed back to our hotel room for the night…
The mix of natural beauty and rugged terrain followed by a refined and cultured Italian dinner gave us the best of both worlds and made for a very romantic day.
I’d write my girlfriend seductive letters and give them to people to hand over to her throughout the day. Eventually the letters would led her home to get dressed for a big date and then to a limo which would take her out to a boat. From there we would enjoy a candlelight dinner alone together while cruising along in bay. After that we’d be dropped of for a little while to walk around the beach. All in all, my idea of the perfect date.
I like how it says, “We’ll randomly select five comments and give a gift card to those three lucky individuals.”
Randomly select “five” and give a gift card to those “three” lucky individuals. Hey, it’s free… so who’s counting?
Hee hee… anyway… best date idea…
Go to a park nearby and walk, watch ducks, lay on a blanket and stare at the sky. Eat someplace you’ve never been before. Go to a drive-in movie and make out in the car (remember in the restaurant: if she eats curry, you eat curry). Have fun!
Take her for a flight in a glider…champagne afterwards
One of the best dates I ever went on wasn’t my idea, it was hers. Which is a good sign! On the ends og Las Vegas there’s a park that used to be a divorce ranch, where celebrities used to go to live out Nevada’s 6-week residency requirement for a quicky divorce. We each brought food for a picnic lunch, drank wine from a thermos, fed the peacocks that roam wild, and walked around the fishing ponds where the rich and famous of yesteryear wiled away the end of their Hollywood marriages. Some might say that’s bad karma (and indeed, things didn’t work out with her) but it was a beautiful date!
Geocaching is definitely tons of fun. I’ve always had success with that one, though I have not had an opportunity to do it with my current girlfriend.
But, she absolutely *loves* riding on the motorcycle with me, so some of our best dates have begun with a leisurely ride to anywhere and then being spontaneous wherever we end up. Once spring decides to come back, I am going to surprise her with a day trip to her hometown (’bout 4 hours away) where I will have arranged a nice picnic at her favorite spot in the city.
Great contest!
The best date is one which serves the other person the most. If she likes fish, take her to the aquarium. If she likes to read, take her to a book signing by her favorite author (and buy the book). Just make sure there is plenty of time to talk, because women love it.
My best date idea:
With your lady friend, grab water guns, water-balloons, and buckets full of water and stage a drive-by water-gun shooting; wreck havoc upon the community on a warm summer’s day or night. Little children love this. Bring them along.
Personally I feel that doing something together that is creative is the way to go. For example, take her to a walk-in ceramics,glass-blowing, or painting class. Something where you both can make something to remember the time spent together. This followed by a light meal or coffee is great. I think it is good to make it something light though, so you can spend more time getting to know one another instead of just eating.
One of our best dates was to go for dinner and a stroll through Fort Worth’s marvelous downtown. Arm in arm, locked in our own little world amoungst the throng of people, we gazed at the sights and sounds. Though I can’t remember a single thing we talked about, I do remember that we laughed, a lot. We stopped for a gellato, and capped the evening off with a carriage ride. Perfection.
My perfect date for my wife and I would be for us to spend the evening learning a new dance (it is something she has always wanted to do) at a nearby dance school, then it would be off to dinner at St. Elmo’s downtown Indianapolis. After dinner we would walk around the canal in Indy’s downtown and then drive out to our country home and spend a few hours lying under the star soaked sky holding each other.
Basically, so something you both will enjoy.
For example, I think a great date would be to go see a film at the local independent theater (the Kentucky here in Lexington), have lunch at the organic restaurant and check out the fair-trade stuff they sell there (ladies like shopping), and then play in the fountains downtown in the square. Pretty basic, but I think it has real romantic potential.
It was a first date with a girl I’d known for years. We met at a coffee shop, and I brought two pads of post-it notes and two pens. We then headed to a local chain bookstore and wandered around, leaving notes in some of our favourite books to future readers. She was an English major. You get to know someone based on the books they read, and get a good feel for them as a character.
Our best date was when I proposed to my wife.
We went to the dinner theater in a neighboring town to see “Guys & Dolls”. We both were dressed to the nines, and it was a really nice evening.
I was dropping hints all through the evening, holding her hand and saying things like “Hrmmm…that finger sure looks kind of empty there.” and other things to that effect. Alas, the whole show went by and we were leaving the theater and there was no ring on her finger. We were walking out to the parking lot and nearing our car when the conversation turned something like this:
Me:”You know how much I love you?”
Her:”How much?”
M:”So much that I want to ask you a question…(cue dropping to one knee here)…Melissa, will you marry me?”
H:”Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, (repeat a lot)”
M:”Melissa, I need an answer…will you marry me?”
H:”Yes!” (real long kiss and crying here)
Apparently, and I don’t recall this detail, cars were honking at us and some people were cheering at us when all this was going on.
All in all, it was a good date. We have been married for almost 6 months now and couldn’t be happier.
Does your date like to read? My wife does, and for my wife a good date can often involve books. Sometimes we will go out to Barnes and Noble and get a coffee and spend time reading. Some of the more unique dates to Barnes and Noble involved looking through books with baby names, and picking out a name for the baby we were expecting. Other times we’d go to Barnes and Noble and pick up one of the “If” books, which contain hundreds of different scenarios and/or questions that are great for finding our more about your date.
Plan a “movie night” at home, buy some Red Vines licorice, and make some popcorn on the stove top. Melt some butter, and then snuggle under a blanket and enjoy your ladies favorite romantic movie(or your favorite romantic movie if you have one. Mine is “Say Anything”).
You know women like it when a man cooks, and technically making popcorn with hot oil is cooking.
Just an idea.
We have a toddler and an infant, so the best date is the one I can bring home:
I leave my wife with the impression that i will be working a little late and that i am sorry. Instead, I bring home dinner from one of her favorite places before she starts cooking. I also have a DVD, a bottle of wine, and a bit of chocolate from the local store.
The nightly routine occurs and we get the kids to bed a little early. Then I reveal the candy and DVD – later followed by candles in the bedroom.
If I get flowers, I usually choose a flowering plant – because it has a longer life span and we can look at it and remember the day later on.
My best date I ever planned for my wife was for her birthday. I took her to a nice restaurant in downtown Louisville where they prepared a cake for us beforehand and had flowers on the table. When the meal was finished, there was a horse and carriage waiting for us at the door to take us around the town. After that, I took her ice skating.
My perfect date is one that comes after 14 years of marriage and five kids- quiet time alone. When I can get a babysitter, or coax the oldest into it, my wife’s choice is a quite time alone. We’ll ride horses, or go for a long, slow walk, talking and holding hands. Extra points to me if I get her a great cup of coffee and some chocolate. Super bonus points if I can sneak in and do the dishes before the date. Simple, undistracted focus on nothing but each other is what she needs, not elaborate, expensive plans. Sunsets, if I place the orders far enough ahead, usually are the best backdrop! Holding hands and just letting out minds wander to what we really feel.
One of our best dates was our last anniversary. One of my co-workers lives in an area that has a private beach (just outside of Myrtle Beach). You can only access the beach with a magnetic access card. So, I went to the local wine store (winestyles), where I have built a relationship with the owner (which might be a better idea than getting to know your florist). I can go in there and tell him I’m having hot dogs and mac n’ cheese, and he’ll find the best wine to go with it for less than $20! I asked him for a good wine to go with a lot of different cheese, and he got me a bottle. He also helped me select a bottle of dessert wine that would go well with my wif’e’s favorite dessert (raspberry pie), a sweet white wine with just a hint of bubbly. I packed everything up in our picnic basket and grabbed my wife. We headed to the beach right at sunset. As the sun was setting, we had a picnic on the private beach with cheese, bread, wine, and dipping sauces. By the time we finished, the sun had set, so I sang some of her favorite songs to her as we danced on the beach. Afterwards, I brought her home, where I had made her raspberry pie. We fiished the evening with dessert, dessert wine, and more dancing! It was easy and required little planning, and yet she won’t forget that night for a long time.
Best date idea: show her something you are passionate about, while keeping in mind that she has to enjoy herself too.
For me that is the outdoors and I have arranged dates for short walks in the woods, shark-tooth hunts along the beach, nights at rustic cabins in state parks, and of course picnics. I was lucky enough to have this work and ended up honeymooning in Rocky Mountain National Park.
Have fun, do something you enjoy that might be different for her, and be mindful of her need for conversation, comfort, and attention while you share a part of yourself.
Ed
During the summer months look online for days there are going to be meteor showers. Then late at night go pick up your date and bring her somewhere where there is little to no light pollution; a beach or park is usually a good place. Make sure to take a look at the weather because you want it to be a clear night. Try and get there before the shower is supposed to star. Bring along a blanket and lay out underneath the stars. It is important to know what area of the sky the shower will be in. Get a book from your local library and learn some of the constellations so while your waiting for the shower to start you can point them out to impress your date.
My goal when dating was to take a girl on the most creative date she had ever been on. most really creative ideas are expensive, however, out of poverty comes creativity. i really wanted to impress one girl so this is what i did.
i picked her up and we drove to the parking lot of the HEB. past the lot is a big field that sits at the corner of a busy intersection. i pulled out 2 chairs and said we were going to people watch. so we sat down and began watching and talking about all the people and cars passing by. after about 15 minutes, one car drove by and threw a bag out the window. i went to pick it up and she told me to “leave that trash alone”. i said, “one mans trash in another nam’s treasure.” and proceded to open the bag. inside was a book she had been wanting to read. i showed it to her and she was cautiously excited. i sat back down and acted as though we had gotten a really cool surprise. about 10 minutes later another car drove by and threw out another bag. this one had sub sandwiches, wrapped tightly in foil, complete with napkins. i said, “look! dinner’s here!!!” we opened the sandwiches and started eating. then came a bag of chips, then another car with a bag that had drinks and plastic cups in it. we were enjoying our meal, and her head was on a swivel wondering what car, from what direction, would throw something else out. next up was a frisbee with a teddy bear attached to it. we were playing frisbee,when another bag came with a half gallon of ice cream and 2 spoons in it! woo-hoo!!! dessert!! we were having a blast, when the police showed up to inform us that we were loitering on public property and escorted us over to his car. great, a ticket is the perfect way to end this date!!! he opened the trunk and proceded to tell us that it was against the law, unless you were playing croquet!!! out comes a croquet set and away he drove. we set it up and played and laughed until sunset. i took her home, where on her bed was a photo album with the pictures of each of the deliveries in it and a rose on top. thank God for friends who are willing to help you out.
Making dinner at home for her is always a good one. Simple, but if you can cook, can work out well.
Our best date ever : the two of us in a 3 room cottage. Some of the most focused, quality, one-on-one time we have ever had.
A bottle of a booze that will get her drunk fast and any room will do. A bed is optional. Oh, Don’t forget to tell her you love (even if you don’t mean it)
I think a lot of the best dates I’ve had have just sort of happened while out on a normal night, dinner in little 5 points (ATL), walk to some shops, etc. However, I’ve had a few good planned ones as well. My wife loves ballet so I surprised her with tickets to Dracula put on by the Atlanta Ballet. It was cool because she loved the whole thing and I was entertained as well (vampires and whatnot). We then wen’t to the Varsity (famous) and chowed down on some chili dogs and onion rings.
We were fancy and we kept it real. all in the same night.
Best date idea? A chocolate tour of Manhattan in the spring. Select two or three places in advance, figure out the route and bring along a picnic lunch to eat on a sunny day in Central Park. If you’re there and time it well, you can also go to a museum for free. At the very least you can enjoy Central Park in the nice weather and talk.
I like to do something that gets us both being ourselves. For example, miniature golf. We’re are in public, we can make mistakes (which are expected in miniature golf), and just talk. We then see how we react to stress, conversation, and thinking on our feet. It usually turns out to be pretty fun.
Whatever you do has to be personal; something that lets her know you’ve been listening and that she’s on your mind. One year for my wife (then girlfriend), I secretly borrowed all the old home movies her parents had of her, and together with many of myself as a boy, spliced together a back and forth interchange between the two us as kids, wherein a young me was essentially hitting on a young her. I even had a special “bonus reel” of silly stuff that I played back after dinner, drinks, and some quality time in bedroom.
One of the most memorable dates I had with my girlfriend (now wife) was back when we met in college. For our 1 year anniversary, I picked her up and she had no clue where we were going. I brought her to some of the most significant places that meant something to us in our relationship. When we got to each spot, I said a little something about why it was important to us, and gave her a kiss. Some of the places are where we first met, where we had our first kiss, where we held hands for the first time, and where we went on our first date. The best part about this is that it didn’t cost a penny, but was more memorable than any piece of jewelry or gift.
To show a gal a little contrition over weeks of making light fun at her vegetarian lifestyle, I once had her over for champagne dinner and cooked an entirely vegan meal. It was a disaster, but the drinks were good and she appreciated the gesture.
I am currently planning a perfect first date – it will involve going to Church.
During the summer, when fruit is ripe and ready for picking. Take her to a fruit orchard. Bring a blanket and a basket. Go pick some peaches or apples or oranges. Then, lay your blanket somewhere nice and shady and enjoy the fruit of your labor. Have a picnic and enjoy each other’s company
My best date idea is getting a babysitter, letting my wife nap and taking her out to dinner! If I get her a gift certificate for a massage, it’s an out of this world date!
This was a great post, as usual. I have been following the Art of Manliness for some time now, and have been most impressed. For those who live in the Southern states, there are many charming small towns of historic significance. Being from South Carolina, Abbeville comes to mind. With buildings dating back to the war, charm of this small town makes for the perfect romantic getaway. Many towns like this are scattered throughout the south, I would encourage any couple within driving distance to pick a weekend (perhaps next weekend), and visit one of these towns.
My favorite date is making dinner together. This usually doesn’t work so well as a first date, but it’s great if you already have a relationship where you can practice give and take. Plus it’s ten times better when you can have a good conversation too. After dinner I like to go for a walk in the park. Come home to some homemade dessert and it’s a great night.
I am entering this on behalf of my significant other on the off chance that if I won…I am handing him the gift certificate and telling him to use it. I couldn’t be more specific if I hit him in the head with a vase full of flowers. I may not seem like the type…but I love to get flowers! Shamrocker99 at aol dot com
My best date idea… well heres what i did for my first. (It will always be the best to me) Thoughout my sophmore though junior year in highshool I had fallen in love with a wonderful girl that i knew. Over the year we had become great friends and she were together everyday but I still hadn’t told her how I felt about her. We had both been studying japanese in highschool and wre both also planning to go on a trip to Japan that year with our school. So one week before the the trip i confessed my love for her…One week later we had our first date togrther for two weeks away from all the troubles of home solely focused on each other and our wonderful trip abroad.
The best date for me anyway is a long walk in the park with a cup of coffee…you can learn so much from eachother
My best date idea is one I used. I came home Friday early, told my wife to throw a few overnight items together, and we left. An hour away is an old Inn. The weekend we were there, it snowed the whole time. It was magical.
My best date idea:
I will arrive at her house around dinner time, with ingredients for a Spanish dinner (still choosing the exact courses, but: http://spanishfood.about.com/od/chickenrecipes/r/roastchickgarli.htm, http://spanishfood.about.com/od/tapas/r/banderilla.htm, http://spanishfood.about.com/od/tapas/r/pancontomate.htm, http://spanishfood.about.com/od/tapas/r/picadillo.htm, http://spanishfood.about.com/od/tapas/r/pimientosbacala.htm), candles, flowers and Miles Davis’ Sketches of Spain in hand. The chicken calls for white wine, which means we’ll have wine while the meal is prepared. We’ll eat, then I’ll take her to the local symphony for a show (with discounts…. expensive does not always equal manly).
Picnics could be very exciting and recreational. Though we are experiencing a great economic crisis, we should not forget to have leisure time with our kids and family. Picnic is one good way of doing it. Not that expensive but full of fun and excitement.
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