In our society, for many and complicated reasons, it is the male of the loving couple who is expected to make the romantic gesture. The guy does the first date request, the move-in plea, and the marriage proposal, and along the way is expected to provide the day to day touches like flowers, cards, love letters, and so on.
But there is no good reason the romantic arrow can’t go the other way – the girlfriend who does something romantic for her partner is rare, but it will be appreciated that much more because it doesn’t happen very often.
Here’s a planned romantic evening that any man will appreciate, because in addition to romance, it involves a blindfold, a body of water, music and food – what else could a guy ask for? Except maybe – fairy lights!
The Setting
If you are planning a picnic by the water, the most important choice to make is where to have your picnic. You should look for a place that is relatively secluded so you feel that you have some privacy for the evening. You also want a scenic spot with a view of the water and a comfortable, level place to spread your picnic blanket.
Hopefully you have a favorite spot already in mind, but if you don’t, you’ll need to visit some local possibilities – parks, forest preserves, and popular recreational sites.
The Stuff
To pull off this special evening you’re going to need some supplies. A comfortable blanket that you don’t mind tossing on the ground is a necessity – maybe you already have one in the trunk of your car for those impromptu moments when you need something to throw on the grass.
You’ll need to have a good-sized cooler, or a small cooler and a picnic basket for your beverages and food. Most importantly, you need to get a couple of strings of fairy lights. These are small LED lights that are strung on very thin wires and operate on batteries – ideal for the lakeside romantic rendezvous.
These come in lots of colors and sizes, so you might as well spend some time and get fairy lights that you’ll reuse – the right color and size for your needs. Finally, you’ll need a blindfold. If you have asleep mask, it will serve the purpose, but an opaque scarf you can’t see through or an old bandana will work just as well.
The Music
As the planner for this special date under the stars, you’ll also have to have a small (or big, if you want volume) boombox and an assortment of CDs. If you have a boombox with an auxiliary input you can bring your mp3 player and plug it in. Try to have some music that blends in with your environment and enhances the ambiance without drawing too much attention.
The Food
A picnic without food is no fun, but this is a romantic evening, so don’t make the focus completely on the food. On the other hand, you know what they say about the way to a man’s heart. So plan some easy to eat finger foods that he loves, and some of your favorite beverages, alcoholic or not, depending on where your romantic date is taking place.
The Whole Package
Now that you have everything you need packed into your vehicle, and you’ve told your boyfriend you have a special evening in mind, it’s time to put your plan into action. Get your guy in the car, and blindfold him. Drive to the special place you’ve picked out, and park.
Tell him to stay seated until you come to get him, and absolutely no peeking allowed. Then set up your blanket, food and drink, music, and the all-important fairy lights. If you’ve timed it just right, by the time you walk him over to the picnic spot and take off his blindfold, the lights will be twinkling in the twilight, and your romantic night will have just begun.
