Spring splurges

Humor us for a minute. Let's say that when you do your taxes by Tuesday (tick, tock), you're getting a healthy refund from Uncle Sam. You're going to need to pamper yourself a little, right? We thought so.

$500-$1,000

It had been a rough week. The ground was blanketed with snow; I was blanketed with a feverish kindergartner. Plus, there were taxes to deal with. So imagine how my husband and I felt recently as we kissed our kids goodnight and headed north on I-95. We're on our way to dinner at the top of the Newburyport lighthouse.

We had first heard about the lighthouse dinner a couple years ago and have had it on our radar since. This seems like a good time to try it, especially with tax refunds on the way. For $350 plus the cost of the meal, it's all ours - at least, for a few hours. (By the way, $275 of that fee goes toward lighthouse preservation, so it's tax deductible.)

Once we've climbed up 55 winding steps and a ladder, we see that the room is, well, a closet, albeit one with a breathtaking view. For nearly a century, a light in this very room guided sailors to safety. When the trap door shuts behind lighthouse keeper Jay Hyland, who has been tirelessly bringing us our meal, we're alone. At first, I'm sorry to say, the silence is slightly unnerving, but soon enough we sink back into the pillows and pour some wine. We talk about ourselves, not the kids. My husband moves to my side of the table.

If you go, bring wine, tunes (there's a CD player), and your main squeeze. Forget high heels and mini skirts and remember: The bathroom is five stories and two doors down.

The lighthouse is open for lunch and dinner this month through December, and it's already booked up for several dates. For more information and reservations, contact the Lighthouse Preservation Society at 800-727-2326.

[BETSY BLOCK]

$1,000 - $1,500

Tempting as it is to blow your windfall on one night of epicurean delight, why not give yourself a gift that keeps on giving? For roughly $1,040 for a family of two (or $1,500 for a family of four), you can buy a month's worth of gourmet dinners from De Cuzine Personal Chef Services (25 Peterborough St., Boston. 617-867-4620. decuzine.com).

Once every two weeks, award-winning cook and De Cuzine co-owner Diego Salgado will plan a menu, buy the groceries, and come to your kitchen to prepare enough dinners to hold you over until his next visit. (Weekly service is also available, starting at around $270.) Sample menu items include steak shiraz with demi-glace, thyme, and champignons; seafood ceviche in a lemon cilantro sauce and plantains; and gouda-and-gruyère-baked macaroni and cheese with bread crumbs.

But as Salgado's wife and De Cuzine co-owner, Michelle Samplin-Salgado, emphasizes, customization is key.

''We're really quite flexible,'' she says. ''We have a South Beach client, kosher clients, Weight Watchers clients, and recently a woman from Greece who wanted only Greek food.''

Salgado can adapt menu items for kid-friendliness or offer a few variations on the same meal (different sauces, for instance) to please different palates within the same household. He also supplies the Tupperware to neatly pack up the meals for storing and offers wine recommendations upon request.

''There's a sheer delight in knowing that there's a meal in your refrigerator that Diego's made,'' says Fran Malino, a professor at Wellesley College who was given the personal chef service as a gift from her daughter. ''And amazingly, when he's finished in the kitchen, it's more spotless than it was when he came.''

[AMI ALBERNAZ]

$1,500-2,000

You know the old saying: ''In this world nothing is certain but death and taxes.'' If I may be so bold, one Boston caveat I would add to Ben Franklin's immortal axiom is: ''death, taxes, and 'Yankees Suck!' signs at Fenway.''

Find out yourself April 20-22, when the dreaded Bronx Bombers come to town for a three-day stand at Fenway Park. Of course, tickets to the game have probably been sold out since Franklin was still kicking around, so you're going to have to pay a little extra to get in. Fortunately, you've got that nice little chunk of change from your tax return.

At gotickets.com (800-775-1617), a pair of tickets three rows behind the dugout will run you $675 each. At Tickets of Boston (128 Harvard Ave., Allston. 617-787-2370), field box seats cost up to about $650 each. Pricey, yes, but it'll get you close enough to Big Papi and the boys to be worth it. (I wonder what Papi's tax return looked like this year.) Now, if you really want to go crazy, stubhub.com (866-788-2482) has a pair of Green Monster tickets on sale for $1,000 each. Pesky tax-return surplus solved instantly! Although that won't leave you much leftover for drinks beforehand or dinner afterward.

But if you've got the extra cash, hit the sleek, stylish (as far as sports bars go, anyway) Game On! (82 Lansdowne St., Boston. 617-351-7001) for pre-game cocktails and snacks and more TVs than you'll ever be able to watch. After the Sox win, head to the bustling bar scene at the decidedly more cosmopolitan Eastern Standard (528 Comm. Ave., Boston. 617-532-9100). Fried calamari ($10), two bone-in rib-eyes ($28), warm bread pudding ($7), and a beautiful Napa cabernet ($70) will go a long way toward spending what's left over after the Sox tickets.

[LUKE O'NEIL]

$2,000-$2,500

You could throw that fat, juicy refund away on dull home improvements or your child's college fund, but let's be realistic. Whatever home project you undertake will simply need repairing in 30 years, and who knows if your moody little tadpole will even be bright enough to make it to college. Save the nasty letters: We're just trying to help you rationalize spending the big bucks on an extravagant hotel package for you and your significant other. Nine Zero, the tony downtown boutique hotel, has a few tempting options to help you burn through that large tax refund, all conveniently priced at $2,500:

The fashionista - Ideal for the Vogue junkie who dreams of winning ''Project Runway,'' this one-night package includes an 80-minute, in-room massage; a bottle of champagne accompanied with a platter of chocolate-covered strawberries; and a chance to collaborate with one of Boston's top fashion designers. Newbury Street-based designer Daniela Corte, known for her sassy little wrap dresses and fun prints, will help you design a dress, and then she'll produce the frock on the spot so you have something stylish to wear home.

A room with a view - A quiet, indulgent weekend for all you heavy hitters, this package offers two in-room massages, a bottle of Cristal, and a jar of caviar. The bubbly comes with a Simon Pearce champagne bucket and a pair of champagne flutes, which you can pack up and take home at the end of your stay.

Cinema sensation - Nine Zero's celebration of Boston's recent Oscar victory features overnight accommodations, passes for two for the Loews Boston Common theater, a basket of gourmet movie snacks, a one-year membership to Netflix, DVDs of recent Oscar-winning films, and a flat-screen TV to take home as a memento of your decadence.

[CHRISTOPHER MUTHER]