Date Night! 💞🌼 {My Picks for February's @yourtop3 Contest}

With the whirlwind month of January already past, February is in full swing. The new month means a new round of the @yourtop3 contest! This round we're trying to get everyone to spread the good vibes (yes, maybe even some mushy ones) with their top date night ideas. Even if you don't buy in to the commercialization of Valentine's Day, it is never a bad time to share some ideas on how you enjoy spending quality time with your loved ones. 💞

This topic is a little bit different from some of the other ones we've hit in previous months, but it is always fun to challenge the Steem world to think outside the box and have a prompt that allows for some creativity. Though we do reserve the right to go back to silly movies or other pop culture next month. Perhaps one of these days we'll even hit up those desserts I teased you with @riverflows. A reminder of what we shared in the contest post: your dates can be romantic or fun, with a significant other or family and friends.

As usual, myself and the other panel members are not eligible for the prizes or polling, but we always try to get in a post ourselves to spur on ideas for the topic and to contribute our post payouts to the prize pool. I find it fun to step outside of my usual food-related posts to share some personal reflections each month. I hope you all feel the same way!

Growing up I remember Valentine's being a big thing because here in the US it was the norm to bring little cards and candy for all of your classmates to share on the day. They weren't anything fancy (thank goodness for my mother we grew up before Pinterest), but it was always fun to mark the occasion. As I started getting old enough to actually date, my opinion shifted and it felt more like pressure from the romantic side of things than just a fun day to show everyone a little extra kindness. I never "dated" much in high school or college, and just the thought of going out with a boy I might be attracted to was a bit terrifying. I think for the most part I felt much more comfortable in group dates with other friends around. Quite honestly, I kept myself so busy through college I didn't have time to hardly see my friends let alone take time to build a relationship.

Though @dksart and I have been together for almost a decade, it is rare that we go out on a date in the traditional sense. We're just not the going out type of peeps. If someone else plans an event, we are totally down to join, but for the most part we are both pretty happy hanging out at home. He humors me by going along for weekly farmers market visits or spectating at my races, and we'll watch a few movies a week cozied up on the couch together. I consider it a success if I don't fall asleep halfway through the movie. Every now and then we'll step outside the usual routine for a special...

Dinner...In

This one shouldn't come as too much of a surprise for those who know me or read my blog. As much as it is a nice treat to go out on occasion, trying to figure out what to wear and get ready for a night out stresses me out. For my ideal date I would much rather enjoy a meal at home. I actually get just as much pleasure out of cooking for my loved ones as I do having them cook for me, but I think for the perfect date it would be a joint effort. Yeah, yeah, I know I cook all the time, however we don't always have the chance to sit down together and eat a meal at the same time. For special occasions I'll try to really think about what he enjoys eating or make an effort to cook something a little bit more involved than usual. He's also stepped outside the box and made me some surprise delicious vegan desserts! The first time @dksart and I spent alone time together was at his house where I brought a side dish and he grilled. A simple meal to enjoy while we started getting to know each other better. The key to making it the most enjoyable for me is having him do the dishes. I love to cook, but much prefer to pass off the dish duty to someone else!

A Day at a Park

I don't think I'm alone with really enjoying an active date outside! Some of my top moments spent with @dksart or my friends include being outside either hiking or checking out a park. It doesn't even have to be anything special or far away. We went up to Blue Ridge, Georgia for a weekend getaway a little over a year ago, and a short hike to a beautiful viewpoint on the Appalachian trail and my first visit to Amicalola Falls was the perfect way to enjoy the trip. My favorite vacation ever was our trip out to Oregon a while back for many of the same reasons. So many amazing spots to explore! I have many more on my list to check out, so I suppose we better get to planning...

I suppose going to a U-Pick farm could also fall under this list. Lord knows I've dragged @dksart plenty of times to come pick fruit with me when the beautiful berries and peaches are in season. I'm pretty lucky to have a partner so willing to come along with me to do things I find enjoyable, but I don't think we would have lasted so long if he didn't like getting outside, too.

Concert

This one is definitely more under the category of a friend date. All throughout college I used to go to see live music with my friends on a regular basis. I had a few really close friends who loved all of the same bands that I did, and I have so many great memories of those nights--sweating our butts off in tiny venues or singing our hearts out to our favorite songs. Nothing makes me more nostalgic than going through old concert tickets from those days. @dksart is a good sport and will go with me to any shows I want to see, but he might just be getting tired of me dragging him to every single Jimmy Eat World show.

Now that I am thinking about it, probably one of the top concert experiences was with my dad. I took him to see Primus for the first time for his 50th birthday. It was just the two of us, but we had the best night. The show was absolutely amazing, and it spurred over a decade of seeing them come play any time they stopped through Atlanta. Pops is getting a little long in the tooth to have the patience for late night concerts these days, but I think I will have a hard time ever topping that birthday gift again. Maybe I can look forward to a new round of concert-going experiences in about 10 years when my niece is old enough to start coming with me. 😉

I am sure as with every other month I'll think of a few other things after I hit the post button! I can't wait to see some of the other picks from your entries this round, as well. Who can't use some more date night (day) ideas, right? 😉💚

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