You know when somebody’s birthday comes around that you never know what to get them?

Well I’ve come across a GREAT idea that’s not only fun but doesn’t break the bank (and could actually make the bank – but don’t count on it).

First start off at the dollar store or discount and get a funny card ( it’s hard to find in there sometimes through all the crap that’s left over in there but paying a buck vs paying up to $6) There’s a reason that all the card companies are going out of business these days….

Then write something funny and sentimental (don’t just sign it, when you’re toeing the line of cheap you have to make up for in in other ways like being a little sentimental) .

Last but not least go over to to gas station and buy a handful of lottery tickets. (less then $10  worth, half lotto / half scratchers ) …This is where the thrill part comes in.

Hopefully you’re birthday gift that comes in just under $10 will be a big hit.

The last time we came up with a top 10 list for cheep and free date ideas for winter it was our most popular post. So for spring we decided to do  it again – and not the same list that you you’ve seen everywhere else with things like picnics and going to the movies.

So break out a notepad and get ready to have some frugal fun!!. And if you like this this please share it with others and help us out by supporting our sponsers.

Wii Rock!! Break out that video game console, especially with games like Guitar Hero and Rock Band. These make a great date especially if you’re meeting a new circle of friends.

	Go Ride the Rapids With all the colors that leaves turn in autumn, grab a rake and go outside and make a big pile and then jump away. Yea, you might just have to do the raking twice, but the fun you have will more then be worth it.
	Bring her a bouquet – of freshly picked flowers Go out to a hillside where there’s flowers (not your neighbor’s yard) and go gather up a bunch of wildflowers and bring them to her. Bring a twist tie from either your dry cleaning or a bread bag to keep them all together.
	Find the perfect picnic spot Get a poker game going and invite him or her to play. You’ll get a good change to see their poker face and to see how good they are at bluffing. I’ve been surprised lately on how many women have picked up on the poker craze that has been going around.
	Show you’ve got balls Dust off some of that sports equipment that you have sitting around like a tennis raquet or basketball. Don’t have a tennis raquet? Try your local goodwill store or thrift shop to buy one (or two) for less then ten bucks before going to the local sporting goods store and spending big bucks on a racket. Or you could see if there’s a Play it Again sports store around you (or another sporting equipment reseller).
	iCare about You See if you can wisk your date’s iPod away for a day or two as you make the perfect playlist with songs that describe how you feel about them or songs that mean something special to the both of you (Maybe the first song you got down to on the dance floor)
	Become a Photographic Star There’s few who aren’t a sucker for chocolate. And store bought brownie mix is usually less then $5. Make a list, check it twice (including that you have a pan to cook them in) and go back and ger the oven heated up. Afterwards you can both share the rewards.
	Roll the Dice Board games are a forgotten great cheap and fun date idea. There’s lots of great adult board games (not that kind of adult) out there to have you laughing together and get the ice broken on your date.
	Roast some weenies Make fire pit or fire up some charcoal and get a fire going to roast a pack of hotdogs over an open flame. If you’re crafty enough then you can convert an old broomhandle and an old fork into a roasting spit for a more authentic experience.
	Put your Boots on (and help a cause) The spring seasons alway bring a cry for volunteer work. Show how big your heart is by offering to go do some volunteer work side by side with your date. Offer to sign up to feed the homeless or deliver meals on wheels or pass out t-shirts or drinks at one of the charity runs going on.

When you’re reading through on-line profiles through the various dating sites, they all seem to fall into one of 7 types of online daters.

1. The Pimp

Do you have pictures on your profile that have less then full clothing?

Do those pictures show off either 1) the latest fashion trends or 2) all the hard work that you’ve put in at the gym?

Do you have a sexy email reply alway ready for someone that writes you or just for someone that catches your eye?

This is you!

2. The Control Freak

Do you have a list of things that you don’t want on your profile?

Not sure still what you’re looking for but you DO know exactly what will not work. When you finally decide to go on a date then you’re running down your mental checklist of whether the other person is up to your criteria?

This is you!

3. The Shy Flower

Do you get winks or email messages that are from the type of person that you’d like to meet but you’re not sure if you should reply?

Do you type out a reply only to hit the cancel button?

Do you spend over an hour looking at different profiles only coming to the conclusion that things probably wouldn’t work out anyways?

This is you.

4. The Quirky Kid

Does your profile ramble on about your great collection about (fill in any collectible here)?

Do you talk more about your car then you in your profile?

5. The Rebound Case

Did you make your profile because a one or more friends prompted you that you needed to get back out there?

Do you have references of your ex or past moments on your profile description.

6. The Ticking Time Clock

Do you feel the pressure of every birthday coming on (even the day after you last)?

Do you find the silence of your empty home deafening?

This might just be you then!

7. The Free Rider

Do you look for profiles where the earnings per year is enough for you to stay at home with a full cable package and maybe even full maid service?

Is one of the main things you have to offer more love and affection then anyone else could give (vs helping split the bill or share the rent)?

Do you scan people’s Facebook profiles to see if they’re part of any coupon clipping groups?

Does fun come first and bills come second?

This has got to be you then!

Going dutch is what it’s called. Halfing the check at the restaurant is what it’s all about.

For a guy who’s not done it before, and is interested in a second date just thinking about asking here to split the bill with you can leave you a nervous wreck.
When would  you actually bring up this topic?
Before the date?
Before the dessert?
After the small talk and you’ve found out that both of you have a job?

It definitely can be a touchy subject if you don’t bring it up correctly. It actually could be one of those make or break points in the fragile beginnings of a new relationship.

There used to be an old rule about whoever asked paid. (Which is why I guess the women always waited for the guys to ask them out. ) But this is a different time and a different generation, and children of those that burnt their bras in protest for equal rights are out there just trying to find someone compatiable enough to go through life with not having to worry that they have a bullpen of lawyers in their back pocket like all those 80′s movies talk about.

So if you can find someone who’s open enough to split the check on the first date. Then they might be worth splurging on when the time is right.

There was a recent Citibank survey about this topic where people were asked about their lifestyle changes in the midst of the recession.

When it comes to a date, a majority of respondents (53 percent) say that due to the current economy it is more acceptable to split the check, while 35 percent say it is not more acceptable to do this.

Here’s some more facts from the survey:

• Fully 49 percent of Americans report that economic conditions have made a major (18 percent) or minor crimp (31 percent) in their social life.
• A majority of Americans without a spouse or significant other (55 percent) report that they are paying more attention to a potential mate’s spending and savings habits now than before the recession.
• While 75 percent of Americans said their spouse or partner knows everything about their spending and saving, nearly a quarter (23 percent) responded that they do keep financial secrets from their spouse or partner.
• 41 percent are saving and using coupons more frequently  (Hey we did a whole post about using a coupon while going out on a date back in 2009)

With valentines day coming up you might be looking for that perfect song to download for that special someone or to request on the radio (do people even do that anymore?)

I went out and tried to make a list of all the songs about girls that I could find starting with the ones I knew right off the bat first and then looking up more from there.

Here on this page I’ve only included some of the more common names (especially those of ladies I’ve gone out with and had a mad crush on. )

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z

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A

Alison
“Alison” – Elvis Costello

Amanda
“Amanda” – Boston
“Miss Amanda Rose” -  The Rolling Stones - Between The Buttons

Anna
“Anna Molly” – Incubus

B

Beth
“Beth” – KISS

C

Carol
“Carol” – The Doors (album needed)
“Oh, Carol” – Neil Sedaka

Carrie
“”Carrie” – Europe
“Carrie-Ann” – Styx

Christine
“Christine” – Siouxsie & the Banshees
“Christine Sixteen” – KISS

Cindy
“Cindy” – Johnny Cash
“Cindy,Cindy” – Elvis Presley

D

Darlene
“Darlene” – Led Zepplin

E

Emily
“Emily” – Adam Green
“Emily” – Elton John

F

G

Gloria
“Gloria” – Them
“Gloria” – Laura Branigan

H

Heather
“Heather” – Paul McCartney : (album needed)
“Heather Angel” – Sonic Youth : (album needed)

I

J

Jessica
“Jessica” – Adam Green

Joanna
“Joanna” – Kool & the Gang
“Joanna” – Grey DeLisle

K

Kelly
“The Kellysong” – The Movielife

L

Laura
“Laura” – Billy Joel

M

Monica

N

Nanci | Nancy
“Nanci” – Toad the Wet Sprocket

Nicki | Nikki
“Niki FM” – Hawthorne Heights

O

P

R

S

Sara
“Sara” – Starship
“Sara Smile” – Hall and Oates

Susanne
“Susanne” – Weezer : The Blue Album

T

U

If you didn’t find the name that you were looking for then try looking here.

It’s that time of year again, when daters show their affection for each other in lavish displays of gifts and goodies.

We’re half-way through January and the red heart displays are out all over the various stores however if you look past the main pre-packed displays and shop at one or two places, then you can put together your own gift package for much less.

Now if you’re past the first or second date with the girl you’re seeing then a valentines day showering of love is a must. The worst part is that retailers know it and are ready for you to open up your wallet.

This is not the time for some hand made trinket however, you’re not a 3rd grader bringing home a paper heart to mom.

If she has been hinting at flowers…

• If there’s an Aldi’s near you, go there a few days beforehand, they usually have roses and they’re priced under $5.00 most of the time
  (You might have to get more then one if you’re going for a dozen roses)
• Costco has roses for under $20 (the last time I bought a bouquet of roses from Costco about a month and a half ago the price was $18.99)

Making the perfect gift

So if you’ve decided to be a little more creative then just flowers (or you’re thinking that the flowers might be all gone by the time you make it to the store on valentines day). Every valentines day gift  that I’ve been a part of seems to have 4 crucial elements:

1. Jewelry
2. Flowers
3. Candy
4. Stuffed animals
5. Balloons

If  you’re thinking the same thing then maybe you should make a gift basket / love basket using some of our tips below:

Jewelry

In order to plan this off right, this takes some hunting and planning – but there are lots of internet deals that will get you a pretty decent piece of sparkle to give without breaking the bank.

Jewelry Deal of the Day

Diamond Shark Deal of the Day

Balloons

I was surprised to find such a vast collection of valentines stuff already out for sale at one of the local dollar stores including foil helium balloons for just one dollar each.

Now compare that to the grocery store or the florist that sell each balloon for up to $6 bucks each (and the valentines day balloons around valentines usually start at $10) and you can have a whole floating bunch of balloons for the price of just one or two.

When I went to Dollar Tree I saw a ton of helium balloons for a dollar each, they were even taking pre-orders to be ready for valentines day pickup (this way your balloons weren’t flat by the time you pulled them out). They also had air filled aluminum smaller heart balloons that said I love you on a plastic stick for only a dollar as well.

Stuffed Animals

Girls love stuffed animals – period. You usually see them sitting on the hope chest of their room.

I found a few cute teddy bears at the Dollar Tree that would be about $5 anywhere else.

Target in the display right at their front had a few stuffed animals holding hearts for $2.50 each as well as big plush fuzzy hearts for the same $2.50.

Target also had cute little wild animals with little red hearts stitched on their chest for only a dollar.

Candy

Putting it all together

Now that you’ve gathered you’re stuff, you have to make some kind of presentation of it.

When I was at one of the dollar stores I picked up a valentines day gift bag for a buck and some foil shreds / stuffing for another buck.

With the bag and the red foil shreds and the card sticking out and the bear along with the balloons and one of the pieces of jewelry I ordered and I’ve made the perfect valentines present. Plus I still came in with just under a dollar to spare.

Let’s face it, going out to each is just a part of the dating game. And if you’re not a coupon person then there’s still ways to save without anyone knowing (it just might take a little planning before hand).

If you know your favorite restaurants and they’re part of big chains that offer gift cards then there’s ways to save up to 20% in buying unwanted gift cards.

Now if you want to compound these savings then you’ll want to think about lunch dates instead of dinner dates. I’ve seen certain restaurants where the appetizer jump a dollar to three dollars each after the lunch hours (usually ending around 4pm but you have to check with each restaurant individually).

As another note – if you received gift cards for the holidays that you you know you won’t use then Gift card exchanges can be the perfect place to change those for cash or amazon credit.

I’ve actually used this service and it took 8 days from the date I bought the card and it saved me 7%. Then I tacked on a coupon and took another 20% off making my date a little lighter on my wallet.

I’d love to hear if you’ve had good or bad experiences.

Relationships these days seem to always have some role being played by text messages. The question comes down to are text messages helping or hurting the relationship?

Men & women also use (and interpret) text messaging differently.

According to different researchers, men seem to find text messaging a way to go slowy into a relationship without having to commit totally emotionally – therefore leaving the pain of rejection to a mere sting.

Arguments are easier to get into

There’s no tone or real rhythm with a text message – and sometimes through no fault of yours there can be a delay of messages or double messages which appear hours or a day later. This can cause

Are you ignoring me?

When you receive a text message, and then send a reply back, but don’t get a reply back, what are you to think? All the sudden your mind starts to take over with all the possibilites that could be going on…they’re messaging someone else, they don’t know how to answer, they don’t want to answer and defer the question. You’re not there and can’t look into their eyes and see if they’re looking around or doing something shady.

A trail for snooping

Most people are curious by nature, and an unlocked cellphone can led to the temptation of wanting to go through not only past messages from each other, but any and all messages from all people send in the full memory of the phone. Phones that have only flash memory have to be deleted on a regular basis. Smart phones (or the ones that can take a memory card) have much more memory storage these days and can hold months and or years worth of text messages – for better or for worse.

Compare this to oral conversations where you may remember bits and pieces of certain conversations  but not every word from every conversation that you’ve ever had since you’ve started dating.

Don’t you want to SEE me?

Although text messaging allows for contact on almost a constant basis, it can’t be used as a substitute of physical face to face time together.

Have you noticed lately that some of the free online dating sites are now offering paid upgrades to show that you’re serious? Well I’m going to call a spade a spade, they’re calling it being a “featured” member. I read in an article or two that the creator of Plenty of Fish, Marcus, was getting upset that he was loosing out on money because he was offering his site for free but every other dating site had some kind of pay for play option. Also that he had one of the biggest user bases. So all the sudden out of nowhere there started to be these yellow dots appearing on people’s profiles.

What they said in the Forums

If you read in the forums, most of the people (actually women) who got this upgraded status in the beginning as “Featured” members, it was given to them for free.  Some didn’t even want it when they gave it to them.

Sometimes I wonder if paying for a free dating website makes you look a little more on the  desperate side then that I’m serious about getting an on-line date. It’s like the scarlet letter of online dating that you have to pay to stand out because you’re not getting enough contact already.

The first step of online dating is definitely a numbers game – whether you’re a guy or a girl.

If you’re a guy then it’s how many emails and or winks are you going to have to send out before you get contact back, and then out of those that contact you back how many can respond in a way where you want to actually meet in person to take them out on a date?

If you’re a girl – then it’s usually the opposite – it’s how many crappy / horney emails do you have to dig through before you find someone decent (and hot) enough  to respond back to, because let’s face it – Shakespeare could write you back but if the picture he posted looked like he’s in line to be on the next season of The Biggest Loser or something similarly scary – it’s going right into trash.

One website took a different approach

One website took note of this and built something totally different (see our writeup / review of herway.com)

Now there are plenty of good pay sites for online dating out there. As the old saying goes – you get what you pay for AND nothing in life is free.
(That’s why we’re not called the Free Dater, rather the Frugal Dater)

On that same note, there’s some pay sites that are just a pure waste of money, and all they do is seem to bleed your credit or debit card dry. Then right as your membership is about to expire or it’s time for renewal, that’s when you get a new match or email sent your way. Awful convenient (for them and their billing dept). If you don’t keep your subscription going then you just have to wonder if that’s the one you let get away.

If you’re looking for something specifically however, like someone with the same religious background for instance, then on of the specialty sites might be a better bet.

Also the median income of the paid subscriber base seems to be much higher then those of the free sites. (After all you don’t need any kind of income stream for a bill that’s zero per month)

The Bottom Line

The bottom line seems to be this – test out your profile skills on some of the free online dating sites if you’re just getting your toes wet (or if you’re needing to make the choice between going on dates or paying for the utilities).  We have a list of the truly free dating sites along with reviews available here.

Then if you feel you have a great profile pic and text to attract the right person and need a better pool of fish move to the right type of pay site, but don’t just upgrade on a free site to get more exposure.

Sometimes it’s the gifts that cost nothing (and come from the heart) that can mean a whole lot more when trying to build a relationship then something semi-expensive that you ran out and got at the last minute.

We found one of those things for you, a pet safety pack from the ASPCA. It’s mainly a sticker to place on your window, however it tells emergancy workers that there are more then just people to save in case of fire or natural disaster.

I’ve known plenty of women that I’ve dated whom their animals were their children, and by extending a token of love to them such as this one can pay big rewards later.

Here’s the official link to get the free kit

As with most of the free items we find I would expect 2-6 weeks for delivery.

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