Painting can get a little messy. If you're working in an area where wet paint may be an issue, set up protections before starting. You can place painter's tape over areas you wish to protect. Set a plastic tarp on the ground to protect flooring. Painter's tape works very well when you're painting near a wall, for instance. You may have a pine wall or trim. Lay strips of tape around the pine for protection. Painter's tape and tarp are available online and at most hardware stores. These locations also have anything else you may need to paint pine. There are several hazards to be aware of during the painting process. If you're wearing a dust mask, you can protect yourself from wood dust, paint chips, and paint fumes. If possible, work outdoors or in an otherwise ventilated area. Open up nearby doors and windows. Keep other people and pets out of the area until you're done working. If you're working with a piece of pine that has been painted in the past, check it over for loose paint chips or cracks. Then, hold the edge of the knife roughly parallel to the wood. Push down with a gentle but firm amount of pressure as you move the knife across it. You do not have to remove any paint that isn't cracked or loose. Work in different directions to get the knife underneath the paint. It can be difficult to remove and often requires a couple of attempts. Be careful when scraping paint. You could gouge the wood if you push too hard against it. Damaged spots have to be filled in with something solid, such as a paintable wood filler. To apply it, pick some of it up with the tip of a putty knife. Press it as deep as you can into the damaged portion of the wood. Keep spreading more filler until the repaired spot is slightly higher than the surrounding wood. The filler will get worn down while you're sanding, so make sure you add a little more of it than you think you need. If you don't use enough, it won't blend in well with the rest of the wood. You can also use some other types of paintable filler. For example, mix resin for a stronger way to fill holes more than 18in (0.32cm) deep. It is made by mixing equal parts resin and hardener. To make sanding easier, make use of an electric sander. It can be a very slow process if you do it by hand, especially on larger projects. Work along the grain, or in the direction of the visible wood fibers you can see on each pine board. You can sand by hand if you don't have an electric sander. Get sandpaper or a sanding block. Press it against the wood with firm but consistent pressure. Always sand in the direction of the grain. If you go against the grain, you will end up tearing the wood fibers, creating very noticeable scratches. Move the tack cloth along the grain, starting at the top of the wood. Since it is sticky, it will pick up all the loose sawdust and other debris. Rub down the entire piece of pine and then check it for anything you missed. If you don't have a tack cloth, scrub the wood with a microfiber cloth lightly dampened in lukewarm water. Use an electric sander again to make the process much quicker. Go back over the entire piece of pine, following along the grain. Make sure you have sanded the entire area you wish to paint. Sanding roughs up the wood so paint adheres to it better. You can sand the wood by hand if you wish. You may need to in order to treat spaces that are hard to reach with an electric sander. Sandpaper grits above 120 are finer and can also be used. Lower-grit sandpaper is coarser and could damage the finish at this point. Since you sanded the wood a second time, it will have more sawdust on it. Take care of it so it doesn't affect the finish later. Make sure the wood looks completely clean before attempting to paint it. Any debris left on the wood could prevent the paint from adhering correctly, so take plenty of time to clean it. Try to paint it as soon as possible before more dust has a chance to settle on it. If you can't paint the wood right away, store it, then wipe it clean again right before painting it.

Summary: Protect areas around the pine with a tarp and painter's tape. Put on a dust mask before working on the pine. Use a putty knife to remove loose paint if the pine has any. Apply a wood filler to any holes or cracks in the wood. Use 100-grit sandpaper to rough up the surface of the pine. Wipe the pine clean with a tack cloth. Sand the wood a second time with 120-grit sandpaper to smooth out the wood. Clean off any remaining dust with a tack cloth.

Try just grabbing his hand and holding it. He is your boyfriend, after all, so he shouldn't mind holding hands with you again. Maybe he hasn't even thought about it lately, so it's up to you to initiate. This is a thing to try when just the two of you are alone. You don't want to embarrass him in front of his friends. You can try to make it seem lighthearted by laughing as you grab his hand. But don't force him to do anything he doesn't want to do. You can also brush or bump your hand near his to try to initiate hand holding. It's normal to be nervous about holding hands again. But if you are still willing to make the first move, try grabbing his hand to take him somewhere. Take his hand and pull him along with you. You can say something like, "Come on. I want to show you something." Or you could say, "I want to go over there. Let's go." You could even plan with your friend to help make it easier. For example, have your friend stand a little ways away from you and your boyfriend. Have your friend yell for you to come over to where he or she is. Then you can grab your boyfriend's hand and say "Come on!" Then take him over to see your friend. Try giving your boyfriend a high five that goes really slowly. Then when your hands are touching in the high five, leave your hand there for a second and then slowly interlock your fingers with his and pull your hands down. This is a cute, playful way to start holding hands with your boyfriend again. Another cute way to initiate hand holding with your boyfriend again is by pretending like you want to compare how big his hands are compared to yours. This way, you'll have to put your hands close together and touching. Then just interlock your fingers and start holding hands with him. Try saying something like, "Your hands are so much bigger than mine! Let's compare." And then hold your hand up for him to do the same.
Summary: Just go for it. Lead him by the hand. Give a lingering high five. Compare hand sizes.