1. Make dinner plans ahead of time, and ask for needed accommodation.
Book your reservations at least two weeks prior to your date, and make sure to tell the person who takes your reservation if you will need accommodation due to a disability. Whether it’s a corner booth to give your service dog plenty of room under the table, or seating near the front so as to avoid difficulties maneuvering a wheelchair through holiday crowds, ask for it and ask early.
2. Beat the crowds by thinking outside the box.
The new French bistro everyone is talking about might be the easy choice for a date, but it’s also likely to be packed with diners. Get away from the crowds for a quiet, intimate date by using city guide websites and online reviews to seek out a little-known gem outside the hippest part of town. Sites that may be of use include Yelp, Citysearch and Epinions.
3. For a romantic holiday massage for two, check the credentials.
Most businesses offering massages have couples' massages, but before you book an appointment, see what training and education is required of employees. Certified massage therapists who attended an accredited institution are likely better prepared to accommodate physical disabilities and associated traits like spasticity and the startle reflex. If you have difficulty finding someone who is experienced and/or educated in providing massage to persons with disabilities, you may need to discuss in detail your needs and expectations.
4. Learn something new together.
Learning a skill or taking up a new hobby together makes for a great date! There are learning opportunities to be found at every ability level. You could take a class in gourmet cooking, wine appreciation, pottery, horseback riding, adaptive skiing, tennis, dance, or almost anything your heart desires. Many instructors offer special couples’ lessons.
5. Appreciate the outdoors.
Contrast the fanciness of a dinner with the subtle beauty of nature by visiting a park or wildlife preserve. You can call your local parks department to ensure that no repairs or modifications are being done that would interfere with your mobility. If the weather is cold, scope out a local café ahead of time for hot chocolate for two!
6. Volunteer your time together.
Nothing feels better than making a difference to someone else. Volunteerism is accessible to everyone. You could volunteer to walk dogs at an animal shelter, read to children in a hospital, sing at an elder care facility, teach sign language to an elementary school class, deliver meals through a program like Project Angel Heart, mentor a child, or even donate blood together. You can even volunteer without leaving your home by writing letters to military personnel deployed overseas with Any Soldier.
7. Make a one-day scrapbook.
Pick up a scrapbook, some colored paper, stickers, stamps, glue, and a couple of disposable cameras or plenty of film before your date, and set out to fill the whole thing in one day. Photograph each other and favorite things about your house, yard, pets, neighborhood, and town. Bring the film to a one hour developer in time to get pictures before they close, and spend the evening scrapbooking together.
8. All dressed up with no place to go... and loving it!
If jockeying with herds of couples and watching public displays of affection don’t appeal to you, but a gourmet meal does, turn your home into a fine restaurant for the evening. Prepare as much of your meal as you can the night before so all you need to do is put a few things in the oven, and get dressed up in your best eveningwear. Light some candles, get out the guest silverware and the nicest tablecloth, open a bottle of wine, and serve your date a great dinner. Don’t forget dessert!
9. Get in touch with your inner teenager.
Remember the first dates of your life? Maybe you went to the drive-in, arcade, or bowling alley. Chances are, your significant other has a special memory of a teenage date. Find out what it is, and recreate it- complete with the food and music that would have been popular at the time. If you and your date like to attract a few stares, go all out with clothing and hairstyles from your teenage years, too! Whether it’s ‘90s grunge or disco from the ‘70s, take a step back in time and you’ll find yourselves giggling and making out in the car like teenagers.
10. Create art together.
A homemade card is a sweet gesture, but how about buying a pair of canvases and two sets of paints, and spending the afternoon painting things that represent your relationship? No fair peeking until both of you have finished painting! If painting isn’t your thing, try writing poetry or short stories for each other, planting seeds in a window box, or making iPod playlists or mix CDs for each other and playing them later while sharing a bottle of wine.
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