Hawaii is green, lush, and filled with tropical flowers. Emulate the Hawaiian landscape by decorating your space with bright colors. Choose tablecloths in bright colors like red or blue or prints such as flowers or tiki masks. Add accents in complementary colors. You could fill vases or bowls with fresh flowers, such as plumeria, hibiscus, or bird of paradise to give your tables a Hawaiian feel. Another idea is to fill small buckets with sand and place shells, flowers, or even tea lights in the sand. You could even hollow out a pineapple and fill it with flowers or tiny paper umbrellas. Not only is bamboo biodegradable and compostable, but it will also help set the stage for your Hawaiian party. Pick up plates, forks, knives, and spoons made from bamboo at a party store, or order them online. Pair them with festive cloth napkins. Tiki torches are reminiscent of Hawaiian beach parties. Grab some from a party supply store or garden store, and firmly stake them around your yard. Depending on where you live, tiki torches may be hard to find. You can substitute them with any kind of outside light such as lanterns. Keep a fire extinguisher handy in case of any accidents. Choose candles in scents like coconut, lime, plumeria, or ocean air. Set them around your space to give off tropical scents and set the mood. Using greenery to decorate your space will be sure to put your guests in a Hawaiian mood. Check your local garden store for greenery to decorate with. Put potted plants around your space, or decorate your table with a grass skirt. You can even line your serving trays with banana or palm leaves. Stock up on inflatable items, from beach balls to palm trees and sharks. These would be perfect for a pool party, but can also be placed around your yard or home. You could use a small inflatable pool as your cooler; simply fill it with ice and add drinks.
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One-sentence summary -- Use bright colors. Make Hawaiian centerpieces. Use bamboo plates and flatware. Put out tiki torches. Set out scented candles. Add greenery. Get inflatable decorations.


Whenever it feels appropriate during the outing, gently touch your date. You can put your hand on theirs at the dinner table or guide them through a doorway with your hand on their back. Find opportunities to get comfortable touching one another, which will remove the pressure of touching intimately for the first time when kissing.  Try to touch more than once before the kiss. Establishing comfort through touch will make a kiss more likely. If your date pulls away from your touch, that may mean they’re not ready for physical contact. A kind smile or laugh lets your date know that you’re interested in what they have to say and find them engaging. It also lets them know you’re having a good time and enjoying their company. Keep your smile genuine, however. You don't have to keep a big, fake smile plastered over your face like a Barbie doll. Eye contact can also build trust and foster affection. It shows your date that you’re not afraid to be vulnerable. You don't have to maintain eye contact for the entire date; it's perfectly to look away. You should definitely keep eye contact while both of you are speaking, however. Give your date your full attention while they are talking by putting away your phone and looking at them. You can also ask follow up questions to what they’re talking about to express your interest.  If your date is talking about her rescue dog, you might say, “I love pets, too. What made you decide to adopt?” You can also show you’re listening through your body language. Lean forward and put your hand under your chin, for example, to show that they really have your focus.
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One-sentence summary -- Break the touch barrier. Build intimacy with your date by smiling as you hang out together. Look at your date to let them know you’re paying attention to them. Pay attention while they are talking.


If you walk into a room and your dog sits, then your job is half done.  Reward your dog when it sits, even if you don’t issue the command to sit.  Give your dog a treat when it sits in front of you. After a few days of rewarding the dog for sitting naturally, begin issuing the “sit” command before giving a treat.  Get on the dog’s level and hold a doggie treat enclosed in your hand a few inches from his nose.  Bring it up and toward him slowly.  Your dog will lower itself back onto its butt.  When its butt hits the floor, reward your dog with a treat. A clicker is a small device which makes a clicking sound when pressed. Click  when your dog sits (when his butt hits the ground). The clicker tells the dog he has completed the behavior you asked for correctly. Reward about five seconds after you clicked. This will allow the dog to make the connection between the click and the reward, but not with the motion of your hand toward the treat or another movement. The dog will quickly learn that the clicker sound means he has completed a behavior correctly, and can expect a reward.  If your dog has already been trained with the clicker to engage in a different behavior, you might confuse the dog if you try to retrain it to sit instead of engage in its original behavior. If the door is open, or about to be opened, getting your dog to remain seated can be a challenge.  Incorporate an open-door phase into your training sessions.  Teach your dog to stay seated as you back away towards the door.  Put your dog far away from (but within eyesight of) the door.  If your dog starts moving after being seated, put your hand up and say sharply “Stop!”  Re-seat your dog in its original spot and repeat the exercise. If your dog has difficulty remaining seated, get a friend to help your dog stay seated while you can open and close the door. When your dog is able to remain seated despite you opening and closing the door, give it a treat (even if it took help to keep him stationary).  Get in the habit of giving your dog a treat each time it is able to remain seated when the door opens. To prevent your dog from running out when you come home, repeat this exercise but enlist aid from a helper who opens the door from the outside.  This way, your dog will know to stay seated when you come in. Practice for 10-15 minutes in at least three different sessions each day for about two weeks.  Different dogs learn at different rates.  Do not be discouraged if your dog seems to be slow to learn how sitting works.  On the other hand, do not be quick to assume that your dog has mastered sitting just because in one session he or she seemed to sit with every command during that session.  Stick with it and stay positive.  Your dog will eventually learn to sit. Like people, dogs can’t stay focused for periods which are excessively long.  If your dog loses interest during the training session, your training may have gone on for too long.  Let your dog go out before you begin the training so that he won’t have to relieve himself during the training.  Do not train your dog in the presence of guests or other distractions. Issue the command to sit every time you or someone in the house opens the door. Give your dog a treat when it sits. Even after training, keep an eye on your dog.  Sometimes the excitement of an open door or a new person can inspire him or her to dash outside.  When entering your home, open the door slowly and come in quickly, staying alert for potential dog movement.
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One-sentence summary --
Look for and reward natural sitting behavior. Begin issuing the “sit” command. Reinforce sitting behavior with a clicker. Train your dog to sit or stay when the door is open. Be patient when training your dog. Keep your dog focused.