Love doesn't make the world go round.
Love is what makes the ride
worthwhile.
Franklin P. Jones
Love is what makes the ride
worthwhile.
Franklin P. Jones
Falling in love is easy; telling someone you love them isn’t always as simple.
You want to make the first time you say, “I love you” to be special and the
millionth time to be just as memorable.
So, how do you do it?
Saying “I love you” doesn’t have to be perfect, but the intention and the
feeling behind it should be. In a word, saying, “I love you” needs to be
genuine.
If you’re stumped for ideas about how to tell your lover that you love them,
here are some hints and tips to get your loving feelings out in the open.
One of the most amazing experiences for a loving couple is the birth of a
child. But when you’re the one that knows before your partner does, it can
be filled with wonderful possibilities to show them how much you love them.
Mary wanted to tell Bob that they were pregnant for the first time in a special
way. They had been trying for a child for years, but nothing ever seemed to
work for them – all of their medical resources were not panning out.
But when Mary found out she was pregnant – without any help from the
doctors – she realized that she hadn’t told Bob just how much she loved him
through all of their hard times. He never complained and he was ready to
adopt in order to be a parent with Mary.
To help share the news, she wrapped up a small box in wrapping paper and
set it out on the counter in their kitchen, where Bob always went when he
came home from work.
In that box, she had put a small heart shaped candy with a note that said, “I
love you Bob and know that you will be the best father a child could ever
have.”
Stunned when he read this, Bob walked back to their bedroom to find Mary
beaming with happiness. She had placed a bow on her stomach with a tag
that read, “To Mary and Bob. Sorry it took me so long to get here.”
Other ideas include:
• Creating a card from the baby to the spouse.
• Buying a piece of baby clothing and wrapping it up.
• Placing a note where your partner will find it.
• Wrapping up the pregnancy text box and placing a note inside that
says, “Positive!
you want to show someone how much you love them, the engagement
becomes all the more important.
Here are some ideas:
• Take a bouquet of flowers and tie the ring around one. Have your
soon-to-be fiancé/fiancée receive the flowers with a card that reads, “I
will always protect you from the thorns • Bring your partner to your favorite nature setting. Pack a picnic and
have the engagement ring sitting in with their favorite foods. Tell
them or write a note that says, “Want to share every meal with me?”
• Write them a note on a sticky piece of paper and then stick it to their
most used credit card.
• Create a collage of pictures of the two of you together and place it
somewhere that your partner will see it – in the middle, write, “Will
you marry me? These memories are great, but I’d like to create
more…”
Popping the question doesn’t have to be limited to the man asking the
woman either – so women can ask that all important question too.
3 – WOULD YOU MARRY ME AGAIN?
Of course, if you’ve already been married for a while, you might be feeling
like you’re losing the spark or that you could be doing more to show your
spouse that you love them.
Here are some ideas for those that have already been married for a while
and want to remind their spouse how much they love them.
• Keep a gratitude journal – Write down all of the things that you love
about your spouse every day for a month or so. When you’ve gotten
to the end of the month, write, “Will you marry me…again?” on the last
page and wrap up the journal to give to your spouse.
• Create a photo slide show of your marriage – With digital pictures and
simple programs, you can even set your life to music.
• Take a picture of the two of you at your wedding and one more recent
picture and place them into a picture frame with two frames. Wrap
this up and present it to your spouse as a reminder of where you
began and where you are now. If you can find a frame with another
place for a picture, write the words, “Here’s to more of us.”
• Recreate your wedding day on a smaller scale – By inviting old
wedding guests and getting the same cake as you had on your special
day, have a renewal of vows for you and your spouse. If you can find
the original minister - all the better. If your spouse doesn’t mind
being surprised, try to keep it a surprise.
Every day, you can celebrate the wedding and the memories that brought
you together.
• Tell your own versions of how you met
• Talk about the first time that you told each other, “I love you.”
• Share your love stories with your family
work take over, responsibilities take over, and our relationships can suffer.
Instead of letting your love go to the back burner, why not take your love on
vacation with you?
• Call ahead to any restaurants that you might go to – Make sure they
have your partner’s favorite dishes and that you can have a special
dessert or other food brought out when you’re there.
• Try to arrange for the same room as a previous vacation – But when
you arrive at the room, pretend like you don’t notice. If your partner
doesn’t notice, then point out the room and tell him/her that you just
wanted to remind them that you loved them – then and now.
• Do two things that you would never do on your own, but your partner
would love to do – For example, if your partner likes to line dance, go
line dancing. If your partner wants to learn how to scuba dive, then
go do that. By showing that you support every part of them, you’re
telling them that you love them again and again.
• Have a basket of your favorite lotions and massage oils sent ahead to
your hotel room to help liven up your romantic evenings – When the
basket is there when you arrive, it shows that you’ve thought ahead to
your time together.
Being apart is hard for any relationship – new or old – but taking the time to
connect with your partner will help you feel closer rather than further apart.
There are times when you will be separated from your partner – a business
trip, a family emergency, etc. In those times of separation, it can help to
show your partner that you really care about them.• Call them each night – Simply talking to your partner each night or
once a day will help you stay connected and show that they’re the
most important person in your life.
• Send them small trinkets – Small, unexpected things from your trip
will show your partner that you were thinking of them.
• Come home when you say that you will – When your partner misses
you as much as you miss them, be sure that they always know when
you’re going to be home and if there are any changes in that plan.
• Be happy to talk with them – Even if you’re tired and jet lagged, be
sure that you smile when you talk to your partner on the phone. This
will sound like heaven to their ears.
Adding to your family is an exciting time – no matter how it happens.
When you’ve decided to adopt a child, you might have already been
struggling with fertility issues that have been tough on your relationship –
what better time to show your partner that you love them?
Here are some ways:
• Give your partner a photo album or a photo frame to start collecting
pictures of your new family.
• Purchase a book that you can fill in to create a family history of this
new family that is coming together.
• Make a date to travel to your child’s country of origin on the same day
each year.
• Talk about your plans to adopt and write out the story that brought
you into the decision to adopt. You can give this to your child when
they get older.
John and Julie have a special date each year that their daughter was
adopted. They spend the day with their daughter at her favorite place – the
park. And while this sounds like it would be more of a date for the daughter,
it’s a celebration for the entire family unit.
7 – WHEN YOU’RE WITH THEIR FAMILY
Sometimes dealing with different families can be a stressful time for you as a
couple, so having a way to show that you love your partner can help to
alleviate the pressure you may be feeling.
When Tom and Bonnie go to their prospective in-laws, they generally do
several things that show each other that they love the other – without
anyone knowing.
Sometimes, keeping these little signs secret makes them all the more
special:
• They squeeze each other’s hands three times in a row – one squeeze
each for I – Love – You.
• They try to talk about their partner as often as possible to showcase
their special news or abilities.
• They try to be close to their partner as much as they can during the
evening or outing.
• Talk with their family to show that you care about where they come
from as well as who they are today.
When you’re with your family, you want to show each other that you’re in it
together – even if it’s not the highlight of your week.
8 – WHEN YOU’RE AT A RESTAURANT
Going to a restaurant may mean that you’re out celebrating a special
occasion or some other anniversary date, but even if you’re just hitting the
same steak house that you go to every week, you can still make it special for
the two of you.
A great way to continuously show that you love your partner is to make
regular dates with them. Perhaps you can choose a particular restaurant
that you both love and then go there one night a week. That can be your
special night that no other plans can interrupt.
Other ways to make a restaurant trip a loving experience:
• Have each partner choose the restaurant on alternating weeks if you
have differing tastes in food.• Make sure that you dress up for your partner in nice clothing – or just
look nicer than you do normally during the week.
• Sit next to your partner or across from your partner to be able to look
directly at them the entire evening.
• Don’t look at anyone else but your partner.
• Hold their hand or hands.
No matter what you classify as a special date, there are plenty of other ways
that you can make it even more loving and special for your partner.
Tim and Megan like to start their evening off with a walk on the beach or just
a walk out in nature before the sun goes down. This helps them unwind from
their days at work and can allow them to calm down and really focus on each
other as partners.
When you rush home from work to go out on a date, you may not be
creating the best mood.
They go for their walk and then head to their favorite restaurant, holding
hands as often as they can. Tim likes to feed Megan one bite from her meal
and she returns the favor right at the beginning. They don’t want to feed
each other the entire, night, but that one bite shows that they are willing to
help each other have a lovely time.
Other ideas include:
• Pulling the chair out for the woman at the table.
• Calling ahead to have the food ready for the dinner.
• Checking on any entertainment ahead of time to see if there’s
something your date might like to enjoy – and then not telling them to
make it a surprise.
• Get dressed up.
If you’re a couple that’s moving in together, you will have hundreds of other
things on your mind besides your partner. And since the same can be said of
your partner too, maybe you can fit in a few special ‘I love you’ moments
that they will cherish in this task-filled time.
• In boxes that you know your partner will open, place large signs that
say ‘I love you’ on them.
• Write a love note to your partner and place it in the visor of their car
so they can find it before they drive to the new home.
• Create a welcome home banner for your new place – and put it there
before your partner arrives.
When Jenna and Richard moved, they were nervous about whether they
were going to survive as a couple. But all of Richard’s doubts vanished,
when he found a note from Jenna in his wallet the day that they moved.
otherwise. But they are great opportunities to help your partner feel loved in
the spirit of whatever occasion has arrived.
It seems clichéd, but Valentine’s Day is still one of the best days to spread
your love. While some people aren’t big fans of this day or the newly popular
Sweetest Day, you can still use this as an excuse to show your partner how
much you care.It doesn’t have to be a big or consist of giving jewelry to your partner – all it
needs is for you to give from your heart.
• Make a list of all the reasons why you love the person that you’re with.
Try to come up with obscure things like the idea that you love the way
they brush their teeth or comb their hair. The more specific you are,
the more touching it will be.
• Create a small book of mementos of things that you’ve done together
– movie tickets, receipts, menus, etc.
• Give the gift of time – Create a small card that entitles the recipient to
a certain amount of time with you.
• Do something that makes fun of the holiday – If you’re not big fans of
this day; try to do something that’s really ridiculous and the opposite
of the day. Maybe you can head out to dinner on another night to
celebrate or do something more active like putt putt golf. Just being
together is the point – it doesn’t have to include pink or hearts.
While we’re all going to grow up, that doesn’t mean that we can’t use some
childhood activities to help us have fun while we do it.
If your partner is a particular fan of Easter, why not take this time to create a
basket for them that shows how much you love them? Here are some ideas
for his and her baskets:
For Him: Add his favorite liquor or beverage, some tickets to a sporting event
or concert, a book, a CD, a video game, etc. Make this a ‘guys night in’
basket that’s filled with things he can enjoy when you’re not together as
much as when you are together.
For Her: Look for girly things that she might like. This may include beauty
products, spa products, gift certificates for stores or salons, etc. For not-sogirly
girls, you can add some of the same things as go in the guy’s basket –
concert tickets, CDs, books, etc.
What you want to do is hide the basket in your house or apartment to create
a fun scavenger hunt for where it might be.
You can also create an adult twist on Easter egg hunts by hiding eggs and
placing small notes in them for your partner to find. When they’ve found all the notes, they will be able to spell something out or learn the location of
their basket.
Other ideas include:
• Dying eggs together
• Splurging on your favorite Easter candy
• Watching an Easter parade or egg hunt
• Helping younger cousins, nieces or nephews celebrate the day
Birthdays are a celebration of the time when your partner came into the
world and eventually into your life.
There are plenty of ways to celebrate their birth in a loving and joyful way:
• Send them a card in the mail with birthday wishes – Everyone likes to
get mail. If you can, try to conceal that it’s from you until they open
it.
• Send them a small token for their birthday at their place of work – You
could also send the birthday card here or send flowers. Try to keep it
small and discreet if your partner isn’t a big fan of getting a lot of
attention.
• Make sure to create some sort of plan for the day or close to the day –
Whether you decide to go out for dinner or simply stay inside with the
phones off, it doesn’t really matter. Setting aside the time to be with
your partner on their birthday is what matters. Make sure that you’re
showing them that you’re sincerely thankful that they came into the
world.
• Always remember the day
• Create a special birthday cake for them that has their picture on it –
and make sure it’s their favorite flavor.
For Justin and Martha, they go to their prospective places of birth near their
actual birthdays and then eat at local restaurants and look at where they
grew up to see how it’s changed in the past year.
When your partner is the mother of your children, you have a great
opportunity to show her how much you love her on Mother’s Day. While not
everyone recognizes this day, it’s the perfect opportunity to celebrate your
glowing mom.
• Have your children create something for their mom that they choose
or make with their own hands. While you might want to show them
what to do, it’s best to let their imaginations run wild. They’re
certainly going to come up with something better than you might.
• Take the children away from the house if mom needs a break for
Mother’s Day. Take the kids to their grandparent’s house, if mom
would like that or send mom on a spa day to help her celebrate
herself.
• Write your favorite mom a list of all the things that you appreciate
when it comes to her parenting. Try to talk about specific times when
she’s done something for one of your children. This gives her an idea
of how much you love her and really appreciate the things that she
does.
• Recognize your partner as a loving mom every day, not just on this
one day of the year.
Being a mother can be tough work, and by showing her how much you
appreciate her role, you’re showing your genuine love for your partner.
On the other hand, being a father can be just as challenging and in need of a
good pat on the back from time to time.
If your partner is the best father there is, why not take Father’s Day to help
celebrate their successes as a parent?
Here are some ways that you can celebrate your love for your partner on this
day:
• Give your partner a coupon that allows him one day to do whatever he
wants to do. You might call it being a ‘King for a Day.’ He can make
all of the decisions for food that day, activities, and anything else he
chooses. • Create a large picture with the kids for dad. It can have pictures of
the kids or simply just designs that they have made for their dad.
Sign it with love from everyone.
• Have your kids write down all of the things they love about daddy and
give it to your partner.
• Just as with mom, be sure to celebrate the ‘daddy’ in your marriage as
being the best dad every day of the year.
Celebrating anniversaries is the perfect time for showing your love to your
partner. With the time that you have spent together, why not celebrate the
fact that you’ve been together as long as you have (and it can be months or
years)?
David and Katie like to spend their yearly anniversaries traveling somewhere
new. For their one year anniversary, they headed to a nearby town and
spent one night in a hotel. For their second anniversary, they went a little
farther away and spent two nights in a hotel. And you can guess what
happened after they were together for longer periods of time.
You can do something similar, or perhaps you can create a list of places that
you’d like to visit and then plan for certain anniversaries when you will go.
For example, the fifth anniversary can be Hawaii while the tenth might be
France.
Come up with a list of destinations with your partner to show that you love
them and plan on spending a lot of time with them in the future.
Other ideas for anniversaries:
• Go back to where you met or got married and take a new picture.
• Head to your first date spot.
• Try on your wedding outfits again and take a new picture.
While it sounds odd to think of Halloween as a couples’ holiday, you can have
a lot of fun during this holiday. What other time of year can you pretend to
be someone completely different than who you normally are?
Here are some great ways to add some loving feelings to your next
Halloween:
• Dress as a pair – Think about dressing in costumes that go together.
There are plenty of options at your local costume shop, but you can
also choose things like Raggedy Andy and Raggedy Ann. You might
want to go as Yin and Yang, etc.
• Share your candy with each other – Go out and get your favorite
candies. Then share them with each other. Show the other what
kinds of candies you liked as a kid and then taste the ones that the
like.
• If your partner wants to go to a Halloween party and you don’t, go
with them anyways. Nothing shows how much you love someone
better than supporting their wishes to do something that you don’t
like. It’s only one night, after all.
If you celebrate Thanksgiving, it’s a great time to say, “I love you” to your
partner.
• Write them a thank you letter that talks about all the things they do or
they are that you are truly grateful for.
• Cook thanksgiving dinner together – Doing anything as a team is the
ultimate way to tell someone that you love them and will stick by their
side no matter what.
• Find the recipe of your partner’s favorite Thanksgiving dish and make
it for them as a surprise. Call up their mom or their grandmother for
the special recipe that they always talk about, but aren’t able to eat
very often.
When you’re at the dinner table with your partner, be sure to let them know
that you’re thankful for them and their love more than anything else. Make a
toast to them and to their health – and thank them for everything that is to
19 – CHRISTMAS/HANUKAH
It doesn’t matter which holiday you celebrate, you can still show your partner
that you love and appreciate them on Christmas or Hanukah.
In the Jones’ household, Marla is Jewish and Robert is Christian. Instead of
fighting over who gets to celebrate their holiday, they show their love for
each other by performing their own rituals for the season and participate in
their partner’s ideas for the holiday.
For example, Marla cooks the traditional meal for each night of Hanukah and
lights the candles. Robert decorates a Christmas tree and plays Christmas
carols. Sometimes, they will even go to church or temple together, if they
want to do more for the season.
Other ways you can celebrate your partner during this season:
• Volunteer together to help those in need.
• Surprise them with a special gift. Try to notice what they talk about
wanting over the rest of the year. But make sure it’s something they
would never buy for themselves. They will be touched that you
remembered. Some couples like to keep small lists of what their
partner might like.
• Give the gift of time. Though your families might be wrestling over
who can spend time with you, you need to reserve your own time to
share with your partner.
As you enter a new year, it’s a good idea to celebrate your love for each
other as the calendar turns once again.
You can be really creative with this time of year, and showing your love for
your partner is a great way to start the year anyways, isn’t it?
• Make a list with your partner or by yourself of the things that you want
to do with your partner in the New Year. And then stick to these
‘resolutions.’
• Ask your partner if there is one thing that they would change about
you if they could – and then try to change it. • Make sure to kiss your partner at midnight. If you’re separated on the
evening, try to call your partner at that time to wish them a Happy
New Year.
FOR THE FIRST TIME
Love is a canvas furnished by Nature and embroidered by imagination.
Voltaire
Saying, “I love you” for the first time is a nerve-wracking and joyous
experience all at the same time. So, if you’re a little unsteady and don’t
know quite how to plan this special moment, here are some ideas.
Realizing that you love someone is a big step in any relationship. What you
might not realize is that it doesn’t always happen over a certain period of
time – some people know they love each other in days, while others take
months and years.
However, this is a special moment that you want to really get right in order
to make it a memorable time for both of you.
• Create a special time when you can both be together and be
uninterrupted. If you tell your partner that you have something
important to talk to them about, that will keep them excited for what
is about to happen.
• Look them in the eyes when you say it.
• Say it whenever it feels right. Sometimes, saying, “I love you” without
planning it or waiting for the ‘right’ time is better than something more
complicated.
• Don’t expect them to say it back to you – in fact, let them know that
they don’t have to repeat it. When you let someone know that you
just simply love them and can’t bear to keep it to yourself any longer,
but you don’t expect anything in return, it can be the sweetest
moment of your relationship.
Falling in love after being married once before is something that takes time.
You might be hesitant to start something new because you’re afraid that you
may have the same problems or end up losing another person that you love.
When Trina got divorced from her first husband, she thought that she was
going to live alone for the rest of her life. But when she met Finn, she
thought that he might be the next ‘right one’ for her.
So, she realized one day that she loved him and turned to him to say, “What
would you say if I told you I loved you?” This caught him off guard, but it
was so casual that he smiled and told her that he loved her too.
You can be as simple as Trina was, or you can try one of these ideas:
• Create a romantic setting at home – This creates a unique place for
you to say, “I love you” on your own home turf. It will make your
more comfortable and help you to show your feelings more easily.
• You want to say “I love you” in person.
• Trace the letters on their back and have them guess what you’re
writing. They might not be able to guess, but that’s not the point.
You have to then tell them what you wrote.
With the moving part behind you, you can find even more ways to welcome
your partner into the new home with your love and gratitude for them. Here
are some simple ways to show your love to your partner:
• Arrange their bedroom or their office so that they can use it
immediately. This will show them that you support their activities and
their comfort.
• Give them the bigger half of the closet – if that’s something they like
and want.
• Go to a store to pick out decorations that you both enjoy. When Jen moved in with Bill, she knew that his collection of movie posters
was something that he really felt strongly about. So, when they finished
moving the boxes into their new home, she told him that he could start
making the house feel like a home by putting up his treasured movie posters.
While love is love, there are certainly a number of ways to show it to
someone. When you’re a man that wants to say, “I love you” to a woman,
you might want to remember that women enjoy the romantic side of love;
the timeless nature of love.
In knowing this, you should consider trying to be as romantic as you can in
order to show her and tell her that you love her.
Here are some creatively unique ideas:
• Find out the song that she considers ‘yours’ and play it the next time
you are together.
• Create a whole day in which she gets to plan what you’ll do together –
no matter what she chooses, be happy and supportive of the choices.
• Take her dancing – line dancing, square dancing, etc. Any kind of
dancing that she likes, take her out for a class or a night of that kind
of dancing.
• Create a gift basket of things that she might like – if she’s a traveling
salesperson, for example, show her that you love her by giving her
things she can use on her long flights – i.e. audio books
By taking the time to come up with something that really shows her that you
love her, she’ll be able to think back on that special memory whenever she
needs an extra boost.
Showing a guy that you love him isn’t always a difficult thing to do. Many
guys like simple things and to just spend time together with you, but if you
want to do something really special, you will want to think outside of the
‘normal’ things and start thinking about what makes your relationship
something that you treasure. Susie wanted to tell her new boyfriend that she loved him, but she didn’t
want to make it a big deal because Craig was a pretty laid back and casual
guy. So, she did the following things:
• Made a list of the dates they’d been on – where they’d been and
anything special that might have happened.
• She then asked Craig out for an evening that started in the middle of
the afternoon with a trip to the place where they had their first date.
• Then they went to the next date place, and so on.
• By the end of the ‘tour’ of their past dates, she took him somewhere
new that he’d always wanted to go to – and then she told him that she
loved him – no mater how many more places they went to.
If you’ve been in a relationship that’s suddenly ended and you decided to get
back together to try again, you might feel oddly about sharing feelings that
you’ve already had with this person. You might feel like you were repeating
yourself or that they might already know how you feel.
But since you’re starting over, why not take this opportunity to do things the
‘right’ way this time?
Here are some creative ways to make this new relationship’s “I love you”
moment into something new:
• Create a simple story on a piece of nice paper that talks about the
previous relationship and what you loved about it.
• Talk about anything that you might have done wrong in the past
relationship as well as the plans that you have to avoid these kinds of
problems in the future.
• Promise them that you will always treat them better than you did
before and that you love them more now because you’re both working
on something special.
• Take a picture of the two of you when you make this new statement of
love – and hang it somewhere that you can both see it. Put a small
note on it or on the back of it that says, “When the love began again.”
While saying “I love you” is generally a private time, for some people, it’s
something that you want to shout to the world, so why not do that?
You can tell your partner that you love them and want everyone to know that
you love them – by telling them in public in front of a lot of people.
Here are some fun ways to do that:
• You could shout it to everyone that’s around you.
• Have it announced over a public address system.
• Pass a note to them if you’re in a crowd.
• Dedicate a song to them when you’re out on a date.
• Bring a small sign with you that says, “I love you” and show it to them
throughout the night.
Jeremy decided that his fiancée Christa needed to hear that he loved her in a
more dramatic way, but didn’t want to embarrass her either. One night
when they were out with their parents at dinner, he had someone tell his
fiancée that there was a call for her on their phone.
When she got up to answer it, it was Jeremy on the other line telling her that
he loved her very much. Though she blushed, it was something she would
never forget.
Making it to your first anniversary (whether it’s one month, one week, or one
year) is a milestone that you should certainly celebrate with your partner.
You might want to show them just how much you care by doing something to
commemorate the evening.
For example, you could:
• Find a picture from the first year of your relationship and have it
professionally matted and framed for your partner. Have the photo
finish store change it to a black and white portrait for an even bolder
effect. • Recreate your first kiss, if you can remember that details. Go to the
place where you first kissed, remind your partner of that time, and
then kiss again.
• Choose a small trinket to give your partner that they can carry around
or hang or store at home. Each year, give them another to show that
your relationship is getting longer and longer. For example, you might
want to give a collector of stamps or figurines one more to add to their
collection for each year that you are together.
With ten years under your relationship ‘belt,’ you might want to do
something a little more adventurous and dramatic for your anniversary.
Tina and George were high school sweethearts that dated for five years
before actually getting married. When they had hit their ten year
anniversary, they wanted to do something wild to celebrate how long they
had been together.
They thought about going on a cruise or heading to a fancy restaurant, but
that really wasn’t their style and they didn’t want to spend a lot of money on
one day. Tina wanted to surprise George with something that would be
special, but not too expensive. So, she called up the bakery that handled
their wedding cake and asked if one layer of that cake could be made for
their special day.
That night when they sat down to a quiet dinner at home, wine and soft
music, she told him that she had done something to remind him of their
wedding day. As she walked out, she was wearing her veil and carrying the
wedding cake. She whispered, “Would you marry me again?”
And George said, “Of course,” and they danced to their favorite wedding
songs.
Few people seem to be celebrating their fiftieth anniversary anymore; though
they should be celebrating. Spending half of a century with someone is a
major milestone in your life and should be treated as such.
For this anniversary, it might be a good time to bring the family together in
order to celebrate. But that doesn’t mean that you have to rent a hall or do
anything that’s expensive or time consuming. Here are some simple ideas:
• Have a child handle the invitations or the invites to the party.
• Have the party at someone’s house from the family – someone with a
place large enough for everyone that can attend.
• Let it be a potluck occasion where everyone brings something to
share.
• Have one large glass of wine before the meal begins, passing it from
you to your spouse, each taking a sip. Then you can pass it around to
the rest of the family to take a sip too.
You can say something like, “While I’ve been lucky to spend my life with this
beautiful man/woman, we want to thank everyone else for supporting us and
loving us as the family we are today.”
Look into your spouse’s eyes and thank them for the years that you’ve spent
together. You might want to share stores with the family and various other
nostalgia to show everyone just how much you care about each other.
IN BAD TIMES
If you have it [Love], you don't need to have anything else, and if you don't
have it, it doesn't matter much what else you have.
Sir James M. Barrie
Every relationship goes through times that aren’t exactly what we want them
to be. Things can happen to us and within the relationship that can alter the
way that we interact with each other. But in order to make it through these
times, we need to remind our partners and our spouses about how much we
love them. And that when the bad times pass, we’ll still be there for them.
Relationships change – that much is certain. Your partner has their own
relationships with friends outside of your romantic relationship that can be
just as important to them.
When something does wrong or they have the unfortunate experience of a
friend dying or leaving them alone, you can step in to help ease their pain. Some of the best ways to show someone that you love them during this time
include:
• Always being available to listen to them – They will need a
sympathetic ear at this time. By letting them experience whatever
emotions they need to experience, you show them that you love them
no matter what life throws at the two of you.
• Ask what you can do – Often, there may not be anything you can do,
but letting your partner know that you’re willing to help is a relief to
them.
Tyler was friends with Doug for thirteen years when they had a bitter falling
out over a business matter. They would scream at each other until finally
they just couldn’t stand to be the same room together.
Staci tried to help Tyler know that while the rest of his world was falling
apart, she still loved him no matter what.
While this sounds simple, it really helped Tyler through this time: she simply
let him react in whatever way seemed necessary. She didn’t say anything
about any cleaning that needed to be done in their house. She encouraged
him to get out of the house and exercise if he wanted to. She tried to allow
him the space to grieve for that friendship and offered an honest opinion
whenever he asked her opinion.
In doing so, she showed him that she loved him even when things got ugly.
While no one wants to think of their parents in terms of their eventual death,
the truth is that parents do die. And while we might think that we’re
completely independent, losing them can be a difficult time. If we haven’t
seen our parents in a while or we weren’t on good terms with them, this
makes the process all the more difficult.
When you’re the partner of a person who has lost their parents, there are
many ways that you can show them that you love them and support them
through this tough time:
• Handle any funeral arrangements that you can.
• Make the calls to the rest of the family about the death, if there are a
lot of people to tell. • Offer a shoulder to cry on, if they need it. If your partner just wants
to be distracted, offer to help them with that too. Whatever they
need, give them the support they want.
• Talk to your partner about their parent and what made them so
special. Share your own memories if you have some to share.
• Hang a picture of the parent and your partner in a visible place to let
them remember their parent whenever they need to.
• Go to the hospital, the gravesite, etc. with your partner. Being there
is all they really need to know that you love them and are staying by
them through the death.
Losing a job is a tough time for anyone, even if you were anticipating it. In
order to help your partner through this time, you need to show them that
you love them no matter what has occurred.
Here are some ideas for supporting your partner at this time:
• Distract them from the problem – When your partner thinks about
what has happened, they can begin to feel even worse about the
situation. Try to talk them out to your favorite restaurant or bar in
order to get them away from the troubles in their head.
• Help them create a new resume to go job hunting with or offer to help
with their job hunt.
• Make up a fake resume for them that outlines all of the great qualities
you think they have and why they are better off finding a new job that
appreciates these qualities.
• Check in on them if they’re sitting at home during the day or meet
with them whenever you can.
• Don’t share this information with others unless your partner wants you
to. By keeping this information to yourself, you will allow your partner
the space to figure out what they think about it.
When your partner loses a job, they want to know that they’re still ‘okay’ as
a person, so you should make sure that you’re constantly complimenting
them and reminding them just how great a person they are.
Any period of stress is hard on a person. No matter if the stress is because
of something that the partner took on or from outside influences, you can
help them get through by doing these simple things:
• Create a favorite meal for them and bring it to them if they’re working.
• Help them with anything that you can – even if you’re just calling to
reschedule their dental appointment, try to pitch in whenever you can.
• Offer to rub their shoulders whenever they want. Give a foot rub at
the end of the day.
• Send them encouraging notes or stick sticky notes of encouragement
in places where they will see them.
• Let them know that you can take them away from a break if they need
one – Some people don’t realize that they need a break until someone
offers to help them.
When Anne would get behind in her writing deadlines, her husband Joe
always knew that she needed to get out of the house for a few hours and she
would be right back on track.
So, whenever he noticed that she was getting up from her desk more often,
he would offer to take her to the grocery store for soda or a snack. This
always helped her calm down and become more focused when she returned
home.
It might sound small to you, but Anne loved Joe for doing it. Having him kick
her out of her stress did the trick every time.
Money can be a wonderful thing in life or something that you just can’t stand
to think about. Having money troubles as a couple can be a difficult time
and cause a lot of stress and anxiety.
Since money is the top reason for many divorces and breakups, showing a
little love at this time can help to smooth things over and make your life a bit
happier in the process.• Take your partner out on cheap dates – the library, the museum, etc.
Show them that it’s not their money that you’re interested in – just
spending time with them.
• Make a promise to help in any way that you can – Maybe you can both
create a spending plan that will help you get out of your money
problems. Sometimes it’s just too overwhelming and the stress of not
knowing how to get out of trouble can harm a relationship. Make a
budget and stick to it as a couple.
• Don’t make a big deal out of it – Unless you’re threatened with
something really horrible because of your money problems, chances
are good that making a big deal out of it will only be damaging to your
relationship. Laugh about it and treat it like something that you will
overcome. And soon enough, you will.
• Find creative ways to give gifts without spending any money. It’s
amazing what you can find around the house when you try.
your love.
When Lynn went into the hospital with blood clots in her lungs, her husband
David stayed by her side whenever she was awake. He brought her favorite
books and clothes to wear while she recuperated and brought her food when
the cafeteria food wasn’t palatable.
He also:
• Helped her clean up in the mornings.
• Asked questions of the doctors and wrote down questions that he
wanted to ask.
• Brought flowers and had people call her when he wasn’t able to stay.
• Learn about the medicine that she would need to take when she got
home and reminded her about an allergy that she had to a medication
so that she could ask for something else.
Even if you don’t know a lot about your partner’s medical history, you need
to is something should happen to them. Today might be the perfect day to
ask your partner if there is anything you might need to know about their
health so that in case of an emergency, you can help them get through it.
Even a minor injury can put strain on a relationship when you’re not sure
how to show your partner that you love them and are trying to help them
during this time.
Here are some ideas for helping and loving your injured spouse or partner:
• Ask them if they need your help – Some people don’t like to be babied,
so if you ask, you give them the opportunity to have help, even if they
turn it down.
• Talk to the doctor about things they will need and get them before
your partner needs them – i.e. crutches, medications, etc.
• Make them a small scrapbook of their adventure so that they can see
what was going on. Sometimes severe injuries can cause the injured
to forget what happened and who came to visit. By compiling the
cards, emails, and pictures, you will be able to give them a small gift.
• Make sure to touch them and caress them as much as possible – You
never want your partner to feel like their injury is something that turns
you off.
If your relationship has been having troubles and you just can’t seem to get
over them, there comes a point when it seems like your only option is to
break up and try to start over or just simply go your separate ways.
In these times, you want to show your partner that no matter what is
happening, you still love them and you still want to make things work if you
can.
• Be honest about your feelings – True love comes from being truthful
about what you need and responding to their needs.
• Set aside time to talk with your partner about things that are
happening – Give your undivided attention to your partner in order to
show them that you’re willing to work on things if you decide to not
break up.
• Let them know how you feel about them – Be sure to let your partner
know how you feel about them and why you want to stay with them. • If you’re the one at fault for troubles – Make a plan as to the things
you will do differently in order to restart and rejuvenate the
relationship.
• Write them a note about the things that you will miss if you do break
up.
Sometimes you can’t save a relationship, but letting them know that you love
them might be the thing that turns a doomed relationship into one that can
start again.
If you ever have to face the situation of a child passing away, the strain on a
relationship can be exhausting.
At this difficult time, you need to be there for your partner, supporting them,
and showing them that you love them.
• Take time away from work if you can – You want to spend as much
time as you can with your partner. You need to support each other
and not worry about the rest of the world at this point.
• Talk about your child together and reminisce – Tell stories, bring out
old pictures, and remind your partner that you’re both going through
this together.
• Show each other your grief – By sharing your grief with each other,
you will allow the other to see that you’re being affected too.
• Create a space where you can remember your child.
When Jim and Dawn lost their daughter Kelsey in a car accident, everyone
brought them pictures of dragonflies and angels. Dawn decided that they
would create a small space in their backyard as a place where they could sit
and remember their daughter.
Dawn decorated the space and Jim prepared the lawn for the area. In doing
this, they were actively supporting and loving each other.
As a couple that has bought a house together, invested in a house together,
and built a life in a house together, losing your home to foreclosure, natural
disaster, or fire can be devastating.
To help show your love to your partner, you would deal with this situation as
you would any other loss:
• Frame a picture of your old house that you can both look at and
remember when things are getting difficult.
• Try to be positive when talking with your partner about the
advantages of having a new home and a new place to live – Let the
know that you will live with them no matter where you both end up.
• Create a plan of attack to find a new home - Focus always on the
future instead of what you have lost.
• Make a book with your partner about all of the stories that you
associate with the home that you lost.
Those that don’t have pets don’t understand what it’s like to lose this
constant companion. If your partner was particularly close to the pet, you
want to support them by showing how much you love them in these ways:
• Let your partner grieve – It sounds simply enough, but letting your
partner do whatever they want to do to accept their pet’s death, give
them the space to do that. If they want to cry, allow them to cry. If
they want to talk about the pet a lot, let them do that.
• Create a book or video of memories of your pet – If your partner took
pictures or videos, use a digital program to create a slideshow or
simply craft a photo album that will help them remember their beloved
pet.
• Spend time with your partner – Because this pet was probably a close
companion, you will want to spend more time with your partner to
help them feel less lonely.
There are other ways to help show your love for your partner when they’ve
lost a pet – perhaps frame a picture and place it where they used to eat or sleep. You might want to have a special place in the yard or at a pet
cemetery for your partner to visit.
Above all, if this pet was not yours or you were not close to it, this is not a
good time for you to show any displeasure with their ‘overreaction’ to the
death. Everyone grieves in different ways and you might want to show your
love by supporting whichever way your partner chooses.
Hopefully, you won’t have to deal with the fallout of a crime that’s happened
to you or to your partner, but if you do, being the loving partner will be the
best way to help them heal from the trauma that may have happened.
• Don’t shy away from helping them out – You want to be there for them
no matter how difficult it might be for you to be in a police station or
to look at the crime scene.
• Let them talk about it as much as they want – Your partner will
appreciate that you are listening to them.
• Write them encouraging notes and then have them mailed at different
times from different places – For example, you can write something as
simple as, “I know this is a hard time for you, so if you need anything,
just let me know.” By receiving these unexpected cheer up cards,
they will feel your love.
• Give a lot of hugs – Some of the trauma of crime is not feeling as safe
as you did before the crime occurred. By giving a lot of hugs and
holding them close, reminding them that you will protect them, you
are helping to heal their emotional wounds.
You’re going to fight if you’re a couple that’s been together for any period of
time – it happens and it’s normal.
But there are ways to show that you still love your partner, even if you’re in
the midst of a bad fight:
• Always be respectful – By never calling names or making untrue
accusations, you will allow the argument to focus on the issue at hand
and still show that you respect the other person. • Walk away if you are getting too angry – Instead of regretting what
you’ve said, walk away from the argument if you feel that you can’t
control your emotions. Go into another room for a few minutes until
you calm down and then return.
• If you feel like you have to leave the house, be sure to tell your
partner that you’re coming back – When things are fragile and
emotional, you don’t want to have any surprises when it comes to the
argument. You need to come back eventually to straighten things out.
• Ask about their opinion – Instead of trying to ‘fix’ what you see as
wrong, talk to your partner about ways that you can BOTH fix the
issue.
• Let the other person know that you love them and care about them,
even if you’re having troubles.
• Write them a small note that says, “I hate it when we fight and hope
we can make up soon.” Leave it somewhere that they might see it.
If you have children together, you might want to be even more supportive
when you’re having troubles that concern your child. Even if they aren’t your
child’s fault, being loving parents takes loving each other through this time
too.
• Write out lists of what you love about your child – This helps the both
of you to see the different qualities in the child and to learn to
appreciate each other’s viewpoints and opinions.
• Talk about the day that your child was born and what made that day
special.
• Look through old photo albums of your child or create a new one.
• Try to talk to your child together and separately – Meet up to talk
about your child from these different viewpoints too to see what you
might have missed on your own.
• Let each other have reactions to your child’s situations – It’s okay to
be made and frustrated at your child, but hiding it from your partner is
not. When Linda and Marcus’s son Rudy was having troubles at school, they both
felt like they were the one that was to blame. Linda felt like she never spent
time with him and Marcus felt like he was too controlling. When Linda and
Marcus sat down with each other, shared how much they loved each other
and how they parented, they were able to see more solutions for the
problems that were happening.
As parents, they became more effective because they knew they both were
in it together – and had each other’s support.
Since everyone has their own way of acting and reacting to things, it’s
natural that you might have times when you just don’t feel like you’re
‘clicking’ with your partner.
To help say, “I love you” during these times, you should consider:
• Try not to make a big deal out of it – Sometimes things aren’t as bad
as you might think they are. By telling your partner that you love
them and care about them, you might help this awkward time to pass
without any drama.
• Ask your partner what they might want to do – Have your partner
choose and plan the activities that you both do. And then do them
without any complaint.
• Send your partner an email that asks them out on a date – Don’t tell
them where you’re going or what you’re doing. Make it like a date
that you would have had at the beginning of your relationship.
WHEN YOU WANT TO MAKE UP
They do not love that do not show their love. The course of true love never
did run smooth. Love is a familiar. Love is a devil. There is no evil angel but
Love.
William Shakespeare
Breaking up may be hard to do, but making up is also difficult for some
couples. To help you say, “I love you” during these tricky times, here is
some advice and some tips that have worked for other couples.
When you’ve had a fight and you just want things to be better again, it’s
time to show your partner how much you care about them and their
happiness.
• Leave them love letters that remind them of how much you love them
– Place one in a plastic bag on the windshield of their car.
• Write “I’m sorry” across the bathroom mirror so they see it when they
wake up the next morning.
• Leave them a note with a small tube of super glue – the note can read,
“My heart is broken because of our fight. Can you help me glue it
back together?”
When Frederick and Cindy had another large fight, they just didn’t know how
to get back to normal. Frederick still felt mad about what happened and
Cindy wasn’t sure how to fix things.
When Frederick left for work, she took out an old video that they’d purchased
from a video store and found a “Please be kind and rewind” sticker on it.
She placed a picture on the box of them together and placed the sticker on
the picture.
She left it for Frederick to find. He thought it was hilarious and sweet, which
broke the tension and got their relationship back on track.
Instead of staying where you’ve been fighting, try to move your make up
time to another place to start over, to start fresh.
• Take your partner out to the park or a walking trail to talk things over
and let them know that you’re committed to working on your
relationship. Sometimes just getting someone away from their
situation is enough to help make things better.
• Ask your partner if you can take them out to a working lunch or dinner
to work out your problems - The idea of it sort of being a date as well
as in a public place can help your partner relax and see that you love
them and just want to start over.• Spend a night in a hotel and promise not to leave until you work things
out – By getting away from the normal distractions of your relationship
and your life, you can create a romantic setting that allows you to
make things better.
• Promise your partner that you will take them anywhere that they want
to go…once you’ve made up. That calls for a celebration, doesn’t it?
Here’s a fun way to make up with your partner:
When Sam and Emily had a big fight, they’d normally sulk around each other
for a while, which didn’t help because it seemed tot both of them that they
were not ready to make up, nor did they really care if they did.
This time, Sam decided that he wanted to do something different to show
Emily that he loved her instead of just stomping around until someone
apologized.
He got out a picture of Emily when she was smiling and happy, pasted it on a
piece of paper and wrote:
“Dear Emily, This is the smile that I fell in love with. It lights up the room, it
lights up my life, and I can not imagine a day without it. When we fight, it
becomes dark and I can’t think straight until we figure things out. I don’t
want to miss your smile for one more minute.
I promise that I never mean to hurt you when I’m angry and I promise that I
will always love you.
I’m sorry and I love you. Sam.”
Emily couldn’t help but smile when she read this and they made a list
together of promises for each other. Signing it, they hung it on the wall to
remind each other.
For some couples, they simply want to say “I love you” and think that that’s
enough to maintain a relationship. But when you’re in a fight, you need to
solve the problem in order to be able to move past it.
This is where this compromise technique can work: Each partner can write down the things that they want from the relationship
or the fight. Then they will each read their ideas aloud. This list can be
anything from silly requests to those that are more serious.
When you have these lists, trade them with each other to see what the other
wants. You can then choose two things from their list that they will have to
do, while they will do the same.
Other ways to show love in a situation of compromise:
• Both partners need to give something in the situation.
• Give your partner something that’s very valuable to you and ask them
not to give it back until they know that you’ve shown your love to
them.
• Offer to be the first one to make a change.
When you change the situation, you can change your feelings about it.
Couples have troubles, but it’s how you deal with the troubles that will
ensure that you both know how much you love each other.
For a fun way to work things out, have your partner meet you at a local park
or at a local outdoor table. But don’t tell them what you are doing.
By taking the first step towards making things better, you can help make
things much more easy to talk about.
Pack a lunch of all of your favorite foods and even some wine, if you like.
Set out a table that’s beautiful, maybe some flowers and other fun things
like:
• Real wine glasses
• Napkins
• Nice plates
The point is to make a pretty setting that will allow your partner to be caught
off guard. You want to surprise them and make them realize that you just
want to go back to the way things were before this tough time.
Feed them their food, if you like. Serve them their wine and other foods –
and see if they’re still mad after that first class treatment.
Though you might not realize it, Mother Nature can be a great helper when
you’re having relationship troubles. All you need is a good storm or a simple
rain shower to help you show your partner how much you love them.
And make it like one of those old movies where the couple heads off into the
sunset. Though you don’t need the sunset to do this.
Dance in the rain. It sounds silly, but it’s utterly romantic and will make
anyone melt when they’re not expecting it.
Grab your partner’s hands and lead them outside when you’re having a tough
time with each other and drag them into the rain. You can choose to dance
or skip or whatever seems like a good idea. This is best done at night under
a streetlight for the best effect, but anytime is the right time.
When Katie’s husband Trevor pulled her outside for a night of walking in the
rain, she thought he was crazy. But once they were outside, she couldn’t
help but start to laugh. It was a silly moment of jumping in puddles and
splashing each other that made them both realize just how happy they were
together.
Love is the great adventure in life. So why not remind your partner of that
when things are getting a little difficult?
Here are some ways that you can create an adventure:
• Use small sticky notes to create a scavenger hunt for your partner –
Have each note lead to another place in your home or in the city that
eventually ends up bringing them to you or to a note that talks about
how much you love them.
• Be surprising – Instead of just doing things when you think that you
should, try to show your love during times when it’s not expected. For
example, you could take their hand when you’re walking through the
supermarket or loop your arm in theirs as you move through the book
store.• Do something that you would never do – If you like intense dramatic
movies, take your partner out for their favorite animated comedies.
Who knows, maybe you’ll have fun too?
When you want to ask forgiveness for something that you’ve done, creativity
can help you smooth things over more easily.
Some ideas include:
• Take a piece of paper out and write down how sorry you are for the
thing that you’ve done – This can be a long letter or a simple one line
of what you’re sorry about.
• Show your partner that note and tell them how you feel about the
thing that has happened.
• Place the note in a clear bottle that they can hold onto. Whenever they
feel upset about what has happened, they can go back and look at this
bottle to see that you did apologize. You might even want to create a
jar that can be opened so they look at the notes whenever they want.
This can be your forgiveness bottle – and you can even both share it.
When it gets full, you can burn the notes inside.
Go to a used bookstore to find a nice looking book. What kind of book it is
doesn’t really matter so long as it’s pretty and will look decorative.
What you’ll want to do next is cut out letters or print out quotes that refer to
forgiveness or starting over. These should also look nice because they’re
going to be a part of this project.
Take the book and try to cut out a few page middles so that you have a
hollow space in the middle. Place the quotes at the bottom of this section
and then place a few smaller photos of you and your partner in the hollow
book as well.
Write on the first page (that you should leave in place) something to the
effect of:My life is an open book, but I’d like to start over with you at the first chapter.
I know that we’ve done some things that have made the plot twist, but I’d
like to reach the end of our book with you.
You can choose to wrap the book up or simply take the book and give it to
your partner.
Take your partner out to a clear area of your town to look at the stars when
you’re in a difficult spot in your relationship. The best areas are those with
minimal lights from the street lamps or other artificial sources as well as any
time after the moon has been full. Go to rural areas and bring the following
items:
• A thick blanket
• A thermos of hot chocolate or another hot drink
• Some romantic music
Take your partner out to the place that you have chosen and just lay back to
look at the stars and listen to the nice music as you do.
Talk to your partner about how small you are in relation to the rest of the
world and how your problems are small in comparison. This isn’t supposed
to make your partner feel badly about anything, but rather it’s supposed to
be a romantic moment. Tell them that you just want to work things out and
that you want to continue to look at the stars for years to come.
Offer them something to drink and make sure that you kiss them as you’re
underneath the blanket of the sky.
When Jill and Drew had a big fight, she was sure that this was the end of heir
relationship. They had fought so often lately and it just seemed like things
were heading into the eventual end of their time together.
Not ready to give up, Drew decided that he wasn’t doing enough when they
were fighting. He would always just leave the room or let her leave without
saying a word.
Instead, he decided that in the next fight they had, he would chase after her.When he and Jill were fighting and getting to the point when they would
leave each other alone, he reached to her and touched her arm.
He said, “I don’t want you to leave this time or any time. I love you and
while I know things are hard, we will make it through this. I will always
chase after you to make sure we don’t leave each other without saying how
much we love each other.”
That simple thing made Jill realize that she truly loved Drew and had been
testing him to see if he’d leave her along – and that this action made her feel
worse about their fights. But when Drew chased after her, she realized that
he loved her.
Of course, they still had their fights, but they also had more good times than
bad times after this chase.
Saying that you’re sorry when you are is the most loving thing that you can
do. Telling your partner that you have done something wrong needs to
include the following things:
• A sincere “I’m sorry”
• Look them in the eyes
• Touch them as you talk to them
• Talk about what you will do differently in the future
• A promise that you will never try to hurt them again.
What’s even more important about this apology is that you don’t take too
long to tell your partner that you are sorry. You need to jump in with your
apology as soon as you can – this will help your partner know that you’re not
just sorry because you’re not with them.
Write them a note first, if you’re having troubles talking face to face, but
then tell them in person or over the phone as soon as you can.
No one wants to hear that they’re wrong, and when you love someone, you
don’t want to ever tell them that they’re wrong.What you can do is:
• Apologize for your part in the problems – everything takes two people.
• Let them know that you love them no matter what has happened.
• Let them take their time in telling you that they are sorry – Some
people take longer than others.
Another way to handle this situation is to follow the advice for saying that
you’re sorry. Why let bad feelings go on if you don’t want them to? Be the
person that takes responsibility for what has happened – and move on.
Another way to move past your anger or frustration in a loving manner is to
create a chalkboard that both of you can use when you are angry. You can
both write down the things that are making you mad during this tough time –
each on your own side.
As the day or week goes on, erase the other words that your partner has
written as you have forgiven them and gotten over the hurt.
You can also write down all of the things that you’re frustrated about and
burn them with your partner. This is a great ritual for letting go of things
that have happened so that you can move on in your relationship.
Other ways that you can erase the past:
• Talk about things that have happened honestly and openly – By
acknowledging that things have happened, you can begin to move past
them.
• Make a frustration jar that you fill with all of your frustrations – Once a
week you can simply throw it out.
60 – TOAST AWAY
A toast is an excellent way to bring attention to something and to
acknowledge that it’s happening.
When Scott and Eve have troubles, they buy a special bottle of wine and use
it at their very next meal. They use their best glasses and choose foods that
will compliment the taste of the wine.They fill their glasses at the beginning of the meal and each makes a toast
that is similar to:
I toast our relationship and I know that our love will help us move past any
troubles that we might be having.
I toast you and how much I love you.
I toast myself and how much you love me.
You can create your own toast too to help you move past the pain that you
might be feeling at a particular point in your relationship. It’s a way to move
on and create the feeling of doing something that will end the troubles that
are happening.
WHEN YOU’RE CELEBRATING
Where there is love there is life.
Gandhi
Celebrating is always a great time to show your partner how much you love
and care about them. You can do a number of things that will allow them to
see the concern and care you have for them.
These ideas work for any celebration at any time.
If your partner has worked hard to get a new job or has been lucky enough
to be approached with a new job opportunity, you can help to celebrate their
luck and their work.
Why not make another of their dreams come true? It doesn’t have to be a
big dream, but you probably know something that your partner wants to do
or might want to have that you can give them to reward them for this great
accomplishment.
For example, you might want to buy something that they can put in their
new office as a way to create a feeling of home in their new place. Think
about giving them a small plant or perhaps a small statue that they might
like to have for their desk.Or you can take them out for their favorite activity – think about the things
that you rarely do together. Maybe you can go to the batting cages with a
sports fanatic or to the museum for the art lover.
Other creative ways to celebrate are:
• Take them out for dinner with your friends – This will give your partner
multiple people that will be congratulating them.
• Place an announcement in your local paper – Just write a small
classified ad that congratulates them for their accomplishment (and
then make sure they see it.
We rarely have time to be with each other anymore, so why not go back to
your childhood for ways to have fun with your partner?
Take your partner to the local skating arena – ice or roller – to have an
afternoon of fun with them. It doesn’t cost a lot, but it can certainly be a fun
time that will feel like a private party for you and your partner.
Be sure to hold hands and dance during all of the ‘couple’s skates’ that they
have.
You might also want to put on their skates for them or getting their skates
for them.
Ice skating is particularly romantic when it’s late at night and it’s at an
outdoor rink that you can use. Bundle up with your partner, bring some hot
cocoa and then have a blast skating round and round the rink.
When you’re done, cuddling is a great way to warm yourselves back up.
John and Randa are big fans of going skating whenever they have gotten
done with a week of work. They meet each other at the rink as though they
were meeting up for a date and then drive to the local diner for hamburgers
and fries.
You love your children, of course you do. But when you want to celebrate
privately with your partner, you’ll want to remove any possible distractions
from the house to focus on each other.Bring your children to their grandparents or maybe bring them to their
friend’s house for an afternoon of fun and games away from you.
Not only is this a treat for your children, but then you can also have some
special interruption free time when you can do anything that you like.
If you want to make the time even more special, don’t tell your partner until
they come home. The added surprise of not having any responsibilities
besides their partner is something that will remind them just how much you
love them.
But this shouldn’t just be a special event. Couples need to have time to
themselves on a regular basis in order to keep their relationship healthy and
sane.
Here are some ways that you can do this:
• Create one day a week without children.
• Have a weekend to yourself a few times a year.
• You can also have a babysitter come over when you’re both still home,
just so that you can watch a movie together without the kids, but still
be available for them if they need you.
Nothing says loving like a clean house that you didn’t have to slave to do
yourself. To show your partner that you love and respect just how busy they
are, you might want to hire a cleaning service for the day or perhaps on a
more regular basis.
It’s not an expensive thing to do either. Here are some options:
• Pay your older child to do it.
• Have a cleaning person come once a month or once a week.
• Find someone that you can trade services with – i.e. you can do their
taxes if you’re an accountant if they will clean your house.
On the other hand, you could also do the dirty work yourself. All you need is
a half a day away from your work or other responsibilities.
1. Clean the clutter away.
2. Take out the trash.3. Take out the recycling.
4. Do the laundry.
5. Clean the bathrooms.
6. Make your bed.
Even a few of these items each day will make a big difference and show your
partner that you love them.
While you can’t be a mind reader, simply taking the time to notice when
things could be done for your partner could be better than any diamond ring
or other expensive gift.
Steve always makes sure to look around the house during the week to see if
they’re running out of anything important in their house – toilet paper, pens,
pencils, school supplies for the kids, etc.
When he notices that something is running low, he makes sure to stop by the
store to get it on his way home from work. This saves his wife Marie from
having to go out. She adores that he does this.
If you’re afraid that you won’t notice these kinds of things, you can also do
some of these things:
• Call or email your partner whenever you’re at a store to see if they
need anything.
• If you notice that something is low, ask them if there’s anything else
that you didn’t notice.
Never underestimate the power of a sundae.
When you’re celebrating something like a raise or a new job or perhaps just
the fact that you still have been reaching your work goals or something else
minor, going out for ice cream can bring you and your partner closer.
Try ordering something ridiculous, the bigger and the sweeter the better.
And then feed it to each other or bring it home to eat it with each other.
Some fun things to eat include:• Banana splits
• Crazy sundaes
• Multiple scoop cones
• A milkshake
Try to share your treats if you can so that you’re sitting close to each other
and really enjoying this sweet escape.
Though you might already compliment your partner on things they do, try to
make more of an effort to do this when you’re celebrating something
important in your lives.
Sometimes these celebrations can be stressful for a partner. For example,
getting a new job means that they need to learn new things and they might
be scared that they won’t be able to handle the pressure.
When you take the time to compliment them on everything they do, they will
start to feel more confident in themselves and what is happening.
Here are some ways to add more compliments to their day:
• Compliment their cooking.
• Compliment their outfits.
• Compliment their work successes.
• Look for things that you admire
• Compliment the way they treat others.
Most couples have a vacation that they want to go on when they have
something big to celebrate. Maybe you want to head to Hawaii or to Europe
– in any case, you want to start planning this trip when you’re in the throes
of celebrating.Start collecting books on traveling to the area and start picking the things
that you will want to do once you get there.
Other things you can do:
• Have each partner list out their favorite things to do.
• Set a target date of when you are going to go on his trip.
• Set up a tracker for the airline tickets to the location you want to head
to.
• Make a poster that counts down the days until you will be in your
favorite city or country.
The truth is that many guys really want the big electric gizmos that they see
on TV or in their friend’s houses. And while you might not be able to buy
them right now, there are ways to help your guy feel like a prince when
you’re celebrating something that’s happened to him.
• Look into renting a big television – There are many rent to own places
that will let you borrow the TV for a weekend or a night.
• Take your partner to a place that uses a big screen TV on a night when
he wants to watch a certain athletic event.
• Talk to him about starting to save for this TV for him.
While not every guy wants a big TV, the reality is that many of them do –
why not start looking at ways you can make this dream come true?
Alia wanted to get Andy a big screen, HDTV for his birthday, but their budget
just wasn’t letting her think that this was possible. So, she started looking at
places that would create a credit plan for her, allowing her to make smaller
payments on the item over the course of a few years.
While it was going to take a long time for the TV to be paid off, she was able
to make the payments each month and give her husband the TV he always
wanted.
It was worth the look on his face when he came home one Friday to see the
TV of his dreams.
On the other hand, if your partner is a woman and she’s interested in buying
clothes, maybe you can take her out for a day of shopping or give her free
reign of the credit card for a day.
Here’s how you can give this gift to her:
• Surprise her by taking her to her favorite stores on a day that you
were planning on spending with her.
• Give her a gift certificate to her favorite shop.
• Make a card for her that entitles her to one day of ‘shopping without
guilt’ and then let her redeem it whenever she wants it.
The key to this gift for your partner is to support anything that she might
purchase – compliment her new outfits and let her know that you think she’s
beautiful in anything she wears.
If she wonders why you did this for her, you can always say that you wanted
to make her feel as beautiful as you already see her.
Losing weight not only can affect your health, but it can also affect your
relationship. You’ll both be healthier and more energetic, and probably more
loving to each other.
To support and celebrate this accomplishment of your partner, you will want
to do something special for them:
• Take them away for a special weekend – This doesn’t even have to be
at a hotel, but rather turn off all the phones and be with your partner
for a whole weekend of undivided attention. Celebrate with healthy
meals and go for walks with them.
• Give them the gift of your own support – Join them in some of their
exercise activities if you don’t already.
• Eat whatever they’re eating to help show your support during this
time.
• Always support their goals and try not to undermine their success.• Let everyone know how proud you are of them.
When you’re away from your partner when there’s something to celebrate,
it’s a good time to take advantage of the process of voice mail.
What you’ll want to do is leave a message that tells them how proud you are
of them for whatever has happened as well as maybe their favorite song in
the background.
You can also text message them when you hear the good news or send them
a picture over your phone of you giving them a thumbs up or some other
loving gesture.
There are also a number of websites that will allow you to send free greeting
cards for any occasion to your partner – these can be customized and
personalized to suit the occasion as well as your partner, if you want.
What’s great about messages like email and ecards is that your partner can
print them out and look at them whenever they want to. If you’re really
looking to show someone that you’re proud, you can also compile these
notes into a small notebook that they can keep.
A kiss isn’t just a kiss when there’s something to be celebrated. You really
want to sweep them off their feet with a celebration kiss. Here are some
ways to sweeten up your next smooch:
• Make the kiss last at least five seconds
• Have fresh breath
• Hold their head or face as you kiss them
• Kiss them in the rain
• Tip them back as you kiss them
• Catch them off guard
• Close your eyes
You want to make this a kiss that they wish would never end. Try to feel the
love that you have for your partner as you kiss them for as long as you can
both stand it.
James always takes Keisha’s hands when he goes to kiss her, just like when
they first started dating. He pulls her to the side of the room and kisses her
softly and slowly.
Places you can kiss your partner:
• On the next
• On their head
• In the car
• On a train
• In a taxi
• Etc.
If you missed your first honeymoon, you want to make that a priority now.
Spending time together celebrating the fact that you’re a couple is a great
way to solidify for love for each other. It doesn’t have to be an expensive
trip in a fancy hotel or in a fancy locale.
You could even spend the night at a campsite in your local park:
• Bring only one sleeping bag.
• Bring a very small tent.
• Roast marshmallows
• Make S’mores
• Bring premade foods in a cooler – i.e. potato salad, fruits, etc.
Being together is the main idea for this second honeymoon idea.Try to find a campsite that’s far away from a lot of people and one that’s
near the trail that goes to a clearing where you can see the stars.
If your partner doesn’t like to camp, you might want to bring an air mattress
to make sleeping easier, plus make sure that there are suitable bathrooms
and showers for your partner to use.
Call ahead to the site or look at the site ahead of time to make sure that it’s
comfortable for the both of you. If you’re not sure, you could always rent an
RV for the night to have a home away from home for you and your partner.
Another fun idea originated with Olivia and Arnold. They like to celebrate big
moments in their life by getting up early in the day when all is quiet and still
– to meet the sunrise with their happiness.
They pack a sunrise picnic and drink mimosas while the sun comes up at
their local beach. If you don’t have a nearby beach, a nature place can work
just as well. Get to a place that faces the east and open up a picnic basket
filled with:
• Juice
• Champagne
• Bagels and pastries
• Napkins and a table cloth
• A portable stereo that plays romantic music
• A camera
You can sit and hold each other as the sun rises and then enjoy a beautiful
setting for a breakfast that lets you both enjoy each other’s company.
You can also stay up all night and wait for the sunrise, if you like. Just check
the local paper to see when the sun is expected to rise and whether it will be
a clear day before you make this place – for the best results.THE EVERYDAY THINGS
To love someone deeply gives you strength. Being loved by someone deeply
gives you courage.
Lao Tzu
While we’d all like to live in a romance novel sometimes, that’s not always
possible. To help recreate your romantic feelings for each other, you can
show your partner you love them with these simple ideas.
If you’re looking to sweeten up your relationship, you can serve your partner
dessert in bed – even if you like fruit instead of cake.
What you should do is have your partner go to bed as they normally would
(this works well when your partner doesn’t immediately fall asleep, though).
When they’re getting ready for bed, bring out a tray with dessert and one
spoon or fork.
Share the dessert back and forth between each other without speaking, if
you can.
Just play some soft romantic music and see what happens.
Other ideas include:
• Always place a small chocolate on your partner’s pillow
• Make a dessert date – have your partner request a certain dessert to
be served in bed, but don’t tell them when you plan on doing it.
• Extend this ‘date’ to a whole meal in bed.
Taking pictures of your partner is a great way to show them just how much
you love them and love looking at them.
Here’s what you’ll need:• A digital camera or a Polaroid camera – you can do this with a regular
camera too, but if you want to look at the pictures immediately, you
may want to have these options available.
• A few pieces of paper
• A few large frames for photos
• A pen or makeup pencil
This is a fun activity that can bring you both together as well as show just
how much you love each other. You don’t have to do this activity with each
other, though it’s a lot more fun if you do.
Take the pen or pencil and write “I love you” on a few places on your body.
Take pictures of those places.
Then, takes pictures of yourself in various positions.
Create a collage of these pictures to give to your partner.
You can repeat this activity whenever you want to be fun and spontaneous
with your partner. You might also want to leave these pictures in various
places for your partner to find – assuming that nothing’s too risqué.
Spontaneity is something that’s not really celebrated in this world anymore.
But love really isn’t meant to be planned out in detail. To help bring the love
and excitement back into your relationship, you need to do something wild
and crazy every once in a while.
Like getting lost with them.
All you need is a day or two as well as a car with a full tank of gas. Head in
the opposite direction of your home; just drive until you come upon a new
city or a new place that you’ve never been before.
• Take pictures.
• Try local restaurants.
• Hike in the local parks.
• Buy small trinkets• Talk to the locals.
When you feel like you’ve seen enough of one town, move onto another one
and another one until you want to go home or you find a cheap little hotel to
spend the night at.
You can bring a map with you of course, but the point is to try new things
together and have an adventure.
Don’t have a plan – just head out the door.
Most of us will have to take a trip by airplane without our partner from time
to time. Why not turn it into an exciting and loving greeting?
Here are some ideas:
• Bring flowers to bring to your partner.
• Hold a large sign with their name on it.
• Make sure to be on time and waiting for them at baggage claim or
wherever they will be walking out.
• Try to surprise them when they’re walking out of the airport.
• Grab their luggage so they don’t have to carry it.
• Bring them something to drink when they get off the plane – water’s
always a good thing after being on a plane.
Of course, bringing them a small snack and a big kiss is the best way to
greet your partner after a long trip.
Since Austin’s job takes him away from Monica a few times a month, they’ve
gotten used to meeting and greeting each other at the airport. Monica has
even created a ritual that she greets him with every time. She brings him
his favorite fruit juice and makes sure that they have nice music to listen to
on the way home.
She also asks him questions about his trip, listening without talking at all.
And Austin returns the favor by always bringing something back from his
trip.
Instead of having to go out and dress up for your partner, why not look for a
way to show them that you love them right at home? Think about what your
partner values in your alone time. Do they like to eat? Do they like to watch
movies with you or listen to music?
Try to find something that the both of you like that you can do with things
that you have at home.
Here’s a fun way to do it:
• If you’re making dinner together, you can look through the cupboards
to see what you have already available. And make a game of what
kind of dishes you can make.
• Cook together.
• Each can choose a movie to watch while you are eating or simply sit at
your table with soft music. Heck, you can dance with each other after
dinner if you like.
You can also try these cheap date ideas:
• Have a private card playing night.
• Play all the games in your game closet.
• Have an art night with each other.
• Go window shopping for things for your home.
Some relationships can feel stale by doing the same things every day. You
need to keep changing things up to make your partner feel like you are
constantly looking for ways to make them happy.
• Each day wake up and try to think of one thing that might make your
partner’s life easier.
• Look at each meal as an opportunity to make it into a romantic
occasion – put a flower into the middle of the table or make a heart on
their meal with one of the foods.• Place their favorite drink into a wine goblet, even if it’s diet soda.
• Place a note on the bathroom mirror that tells your partner that you
love them.
• Leave an email or a voice mail message that they will hear when
you’re apart. Tell them all the things that you love about them.
Rob had been with his wife for thirteen years and thought that maybe he
could do more to make Lucy know that she was loved by him. So, what he
did was write down every romantic thing that Lucy commented on when it
was seen in a movie or heard from her friends. Then, he had a list of things
that he could do for Lucy whenever he felt like things were getting a little
stale.
champagne.
It can be in a glass that’s sitting out when he or she arrives home from work
or perhaps just in the middle of the day when they’re least expecting it.
Just go all out on the most expensive bottle of champagne that you can
afford as well as strawberries, cheese, and crackers. This is a light and
romantic spread that will make them feel like the most special person in the
world.
Especially when it comes out of nowhere for no reason at all.
In fact, it’s almost better to surprise them with this glass of champagne when
they least expect it.
You can also:
• Include aphrodisiac foods like oysters and chocolate to boost a loving
feeling.
• Make sure that everything looks beautiful – maybe you can cut the
cheese in heart shapes.
• Create a small plate for your partner that you can drop off at their
place of work or in their home office.You should try to have an extra bottle of champagne stored somewhere for
just such an occasion.
And even if it’s not expensive champagne, it’s the thought that counts.
With all of the cares of the world, you need to get away from it all with your
partner from time to time. Sometimes, laughter is the best medicine for
revitalizing your relationship.
Why not head to your local playground or an amusement park for a day?
Though it can be expensive, you can have more fun in one day that you
might have on any other date.
Be sure to:
• Try to win prizes for your partner.
• Always go on rides together and hold on tightly.
• Try a ride that you’re scared of and hold onto your partner.
• Have cotton candy or elephant ears.
• Head to the children’s rides too.
Make sure to walk by all of the various stands and rides, holding hands and
enjoying the playfulness of the scene.
The point of an amusement park, fair, or playground is to be silly with each
other. Taking any relationship too seriously isn’t a guarantee that you will
have a better relationship.
Who hasn’t wanted to have someone rub away their stresses and their
muscle tension? When you get a massage from your loved one, you’re going
to feel their love with every stroke and rub.
Here are some tips for as great massage for the bigger muscles of the body:
• Use long movements• Push hard, but not too hard.
• Rub in circles until the muscle begins to feel looser.
• Use your thumbs on the back of the shoulders and neck.
Places that you should definitely massage:
• Back
• Shoulders
• Neck
• Hands
• Feet
To make sure that your hands move easily over the skin, invest in some
massage oil or some massage lotion. Apply this to the skin before you get
started – it should be just enough to make the skin moist, but not too greasy
or too dry. Your fingers should be able to move easily over the skin.
What’s great about candles is that you can create a romantic mood at any
time of the day. You can light them at breakfast, lunch, and dinner - and
every time in between.
Try making it a ritual to light candles before bed each night as well as in the
morning.
Some fun places to use candles include:
• Bring small tea lights and glasses to bring candles wherever you go –
even in the car.
• In the bathroom – light candles when you take a shower or when your
partner is taking a bath.
• Bring candles with you on picnics on the beach too.
Go shopping for candles together so that you both can enjoy the scent that
you have burning at times of the day.You don’t want to pick anything that’s too sweet or too strong. If you’re not
sure what you want, try a number of different scents until you find one that
you like.
Of course, it doesn’t look that romantic when you leave a candle unattended,
so be sure that you have the candle sitting in a metal or glass container
whenever you leave the room.
86 – LEARN OTHER WAYS TO SAY I LOVE YOU
Why not change things up by saying “I love you” in different languages? You
can easily go to a bookstore to look up the different ways to say “I love you”
in many language.
Here are some of the many ways that you can say that you love someone.
other ways to translate “I love you” into another language that you prefer.
Try to find a new way to say, “I love you” for each day.
If you don’t have the extra time to spend with your partner, why not call off
from work and make the time for your partner?
When you’re both in jobs that you can call off from without any
repercussions, you will want to call off one morning and then tell your
partner to call off too.
There are plenty of ways to spend this day:
• Stay in bed all day.
• Don’t change out of your pajamas.
• Have comfort foods – macaroni and cheese
• Watch daytime television
• Make crank calls
• Paint your nails or have your partner paint your nails
• Make chicken noodle soup
If you want to go somewhere on this hooky day, you might want to go far
away from the town that you live – just in case someone might see you and
get you in trouble.
Denise and Marvin try to take at least one ‘sick’ day every other month off
with each other. They sleep in late and make coffee for each other – even
splurging on fancy espresso drinks with their home espresso machine.Then they grab a lot of blankets, sit on the couch and let each other have
one hour’s control of the remote.
In the afternoons, they watch movies and take a nap with each other.
By taking this time together, they get to be alone without any distractions,
just being with each other.
A fun way to make your winters full of love is to warm up your sheets before
you head into bed. You can even warm up the sheets without telling your
partner that you did it.
This is what you have to do:
• Take the sheets and the pillowcases and put them in the microwave
for just a few seconds.
• Or you can iron the sheets and pillowcases to warm them up.
• Put them on the bed before you jump into bed – they will stay warm
for a few minutes.
• You can also take those hand warmer packets and place them between
the pillows and the sheets to help keep them warm all day.
• Make sure the heat or the AC has been on before they come home so
that the temperature is always comfortable.
Of course, you might want to cool the sheets down if it’s really hot outside.
That’s also an easy way to show that you love your partner – just put the
sheets inside a plastic bag in a freezer for a few minutes.
You can also place ice packs in the bed to help keep things cool when you’re
trying to sleep in the summer.
Put a fan in the room too on those hot days and have a spray bottle filled
89 – CHEER YOUR PARTNER ON
If your partner is on a team or in a group of some sort that you can watch,
you should go and support them whenever you can. Here are some ways to
really show your support:
• Hold up a sign with their name on it
• Shout out your support as loudly as you can
• Show up for every game
• Wear clothes that show your support
• Keep track of your partner’s success
• Learn about the game or the sport so that you can talk with your
partner about it.
• Help them with practice or other preparations for the game time.
• Surprise them once in a while by coming to a game that you said you
couldn’t attend.
Partners like to see that their lovers support the things that they do – even if
they say that they don’t.
It shows that you care about the things that your partner does when they’re
not with you. You don’t have to join the team with them, but just showing
up from time to time can show your partner how much you love them.
known of them to where they’ve been in the past.
If you want to celebrate your partner, you can do the following things:
• Take them on a road trip or other trip to their hometown where they
were born.
• Ask them to take you on a tour of their old neighborhoods
• Buy them a picture of their home city or the area where they grew up.
• Look into a book all about their home city’s history and then buy it for
them. You can even attach a book about your current city to
commemorate the history you’re building right at that moment.
• Take pictures of the two of you in the various cities that you grew up
in.
• Ask then about their childhood memories.
Every few years, going back to the place where your partner grew up is a
fantastic way to celebrate the time that has passed as well as the future that
lies ahead.
You can do some research on your own as well to see what features of their
town you can bring up at other holidays – for example, you might want to
send them a picture of the local teams winning touchdown. Or perhaps order
some of your partner’s favorite ice cream from the local shop that he or she
used to go to.
Beyond learning about the place where they grew up, it’s a good idea to
learn about the family of your partner.
Take the time to sit down with your partner and their family to really get to
know them as people and not just some relatives that you have to impress.
Talk to them honestly about things that you enjoy as well as your dreams
and plans. Then, ask them about their lives too.
Here are some tips to get to know the family:
• Ask a lot of questions.
• Listen to the answers.• Create a family album for your partner and talk to his or her relatives
to get help.
• Help them construct their family tree.
• Compile stories from the relatives to make a special book that can be
given to all of the family members.
• Celebrate major holidays with the relatives, if you can.
• Ask their mother about embarrassing stories.
• Let them tell their stories multiple times, even if you have heard them
five times before.
• Offer to hold your own family gatherings with everyone
• Plan a family reunion every few years, if you can.
• Learn about their religions or traditions.
When you take the time to get to know your partner’s family, you’re taking
the time to get to know them as a person too. These are people that have
known your partner for much longer than you have. And while it might be
difficult at first, it’s a task that you should attempt.
Your partner will appreciate it.
Another great way to show your partner that you love them is to make sure
you treat their friends like they were your own.
This can be a slippery slope though if you treat their friends better than you
treat your partner, so be sure to remember that when you’re starting to talk
to their friends.
Here are some ways to show that you care about their friends:
• Remember their birthdays – Write them down somewhere and send
them a quick email that wishes them a happy day.
• Interact with them when you’re out with your partner.• Ask them questions about their jobs and lives.
• If you share a common interest, try to meet to share in this activity.
• Give your partner space to be with their friends and not with you –
When you give your partner time for a ‘boys night out’ or a ‘girls night
out,’ you’re letting them know that you trust them and that you want
them to be happy.
• Plan things for your partner and their friends – If you notice that a
particular concert is coming up that your partner and their friends
would like, buy some tickets and don’t invite yourself along.
Diane wasn’t sure if she could be friends with her husband’s friends, but she
wanted to try.
So, she organized a poker night at their house and invited all of his friends to
come over for food, games, and even movies. Since she knew how much
they liked poker, she got a few good sets of cards, learned the rules, and
bought all of their favorite snacks.
While her husband knew she was planning this, when the guys came over
and were genuinely surprised at how great the night was going to be, they
instantly liked Diane and she had a starting point to talk to them.
And she tried not to beat them during the game too.
you love them by supporting this?
Even if your partner doesn’t like their music loud or doesn’t like to get
‘crazy,’ you can make sure they know they have the space to cut loose when
they feel the need.
This requires that you let loose too and stop taking your relationship so
seriously.
Here are some fun ideas:
• Let them turn the music up
• Choose stupid comedies for a movie night• Have a food fight
• Splash in the puddles
• Create huge sandwiches for a ‘Dagwood’ night
• Drink root beer floats in the middle of the winter
• Go sledding
• Head to the local playground to swing
There are plenty of ways to get goofy with your partner and it can invigorate
your relationship again.
If you’re ever been the recipient of something from your partner that didn’t
quite inspire a loving feeling, you probably got something that you needed
instead of something that you wanted.
And while these gifts may have had the best intentions, birthdays and
anniversaries are really about doing something that’s out of the ordinary,
instead of giving a practical vacuum, for example.
Want some ideas for impractical gifts?
• Buy them candy for their Christmas stocking
• Wrap up flowers
• Buy trashy novels for them
• Invest in a fancy piece of jewelry
• Buy him that universal remote he’s been eyeing
• Upgrade their cell phone to a model that’s way more than they need
While Kyle thought he was on the right track for gift giving by handing
Hannah a new piece of décor for their apartment, he began to realize that by
not giving her a choice in this decision, she was putting things in their
apartment that she didn’t necessarily like.Though Hannah was an interior designer and loved to decorate, she wasn’t
always happy that she felt like she ‘had’ to keep the things that he bought.
To help make his gift giving a bit more fun and spontaneous, he started
giving her a card with the room name on it (i.e. living room). She was then
given money or a gift card to decorate that room any way that she wanted
to.
Yes, it’s easier to sit around in the same old sweatpants and t-shirt when
you’ve know your partner for a long time, but where’s the romance in that?
If you really want to show them that you care about your appearance, why
not dress up when they least expect it? When you come home from work or
when they come home from work, they can have an unexpected surprise.
Try to…
• Style your hair
• Take a shower
• Add some of their favorite cologne or perfume to your neck
• Put on nice clothes
• Throw on a dress
• Try on those new heels
• Shave
When you put forth the extra effort for your appearance, you can start a very
loving mood for the afternoon or the evening.
And since you’re all dressed up, why not go somewhere special too?
If you’ve been noticing that your partner has a lot to do lately, you might
want to step in and take over some of the chores that may have gotten
pushed to the side.Without any need for them to return the favor, do all of the chores in the
house for a day (or more) to show them that you are watching out for them.
You can also twist this loving gesture to:
• Always clean the room that they hate to clean
• Always take care of your pets
• Create a ‘get out of doing the dishes for free’ card
• Have your children help around the house more
• Make sure that you’re always picking up the stuff that you leave
around the house.
• Straighten the bookshelf
• Dust
• Put the toys away
Whenever Tiffany noticed that Evan was getting busier at work, she would
create a large sign that said:
NO CHORES FOR EVAN FOR FIVE DAYS
She posted it in the hallway where he would see it after he woke up. It
really helped him feel like he was being treated like a king and it also helped
him focus more on the work that he had to do instead of having to think
about chores that were being skipped at home.
At the end of the five days, the sign would be taken down and things would
return to normal – or he would take over for Tiffany for a few days.
Whether you realize it or not, your partner’s mom is still one of the most
important people in their lives (in most cases). This is a woman that raised
them and protected them, so it’s no wonder that their mom is someone they
feel should be respected and revered.
So, if you want to show your partner that you love them, there are a number
of ways to honor their mom:• Find a recipe from their mom and learn how to make it JUST the way
that mom did – This might take special lessons from their mom, but
that will be even more touching to your partner.
• Have their mom give them their recipe book to copy and try on your
own.
• Have mom over often to show her that you love her just as much as
your partner does.
• Always remember mother’s day for her too.
• Always remember her birthday.
• If you have a question about something that she knows a lot about,
call her up and ask her for the answer.
• Ask your partner about their mom – What was she like when you were
growing up? What are some stories about her?
When you take the time to show that you genuinely care about your
partner’s mother, you allow them to see that you love everything about them
– and especially where they came from.
You might even want to write their mom a little thank you note for raising
and giving birth to such a wonderful person.
If you have a partner that has specific interests, you might want to show that
you’re supporting those interests.
There are hundreds of websites that are available to learn more about their
hobbies, but who has the time to find the ones that are really relevant?
Instead, why not give your partner the gift of words and knowledge about
their particular interest?
• Give them a year’s subscription to a magazine that offers pertinent
information about their particular hobby.
• Renew the subscription every year, if they like it.
• Subscribe to a newspaper that might offer insight into their hobbies –
i.e. finances, sports, etc.• Keep a special place for these magazines so they can refer to them at
a later time.
• Ask them about the things that they’ve read and ask if they’ve learned
anything interesting.
• Read the magazines yourself.
When you show your support for your partner’s hobbies, you show them just
how much you love the person that they are.
For extra credit, you can also:
• Take them to an exhibition of their favorite hobby.
• Let them know when you see that their favorite interest is the subject
of a talk or a class in your area.
• Take them to museums to study the history of their hobby.
100 – ALWAYS REMEMBER THEIR BIRTHDAY
If you don’t have a good memory or you just can’t seem to remember your
partner’s birthday, you might find yourself in more hot water than you’d like.
Celebrating the day that they entered this world is a sincere way to love
them and tell them that you love them. Here are some ways to remember
this day each and every year:
• Sign up from a free event reminder program
• Set an alarm on your cell phone the day before
• Have your friends remind you
• Mark it on every calendar
• Make an appointment that day in your day planner or PDA
• Make a reservation months in advance that needs to be confirmed
Thought it’s true that Brian loved Rebecca, it never seemed like he could
remember when her birthday was.It was close to the holidays, so he ended up celebrating it with Christmas,
which was nice, but seemed to be the easy way out, in Rebecca’s opinion.
To help remind himself of the day, he found a countdown program that he
could install into his computer at work. Each day, he would see just how
many days, hours, minutes, and seconds that he had left before it was her
birthday.
With all of that constant reminding, he began to take more time to think
about what kind of gift she might want that would be very special.
On the first year that he didn’t have to be reminded of her big day, he gave
her a watch. On the back, he inscribed:
I will always remember our love.
And from that day on, he did.
There are plenty of fancy ways that you can tell someone that you love
them:
• Shout it from the rooftops
• Have an airplane create your sentiments in smoke trails
• Email them
• Send them cards
• Buy them gifts
• Bring home flowers
• Build furniture for them
• Fill up their gas tank
• Take them out for dinner
• Play hooky
• Bring home the milk they asked forBut even these things aren’t enough when it comes to truly expressing the
love that you feel for your partner.
And some of them can be expensive, so what do you do then?
Tell them that you love them.
Tell them that you love them.
Tell them that you love them.
Tell them that you love them.
Tell them that you love them.
Tell them that you love them.
Just keep telling them that you love them each and every moment that you
can.
Tell them:
• In the car
• In the morning
• At night
• In the middle of the night
• When you’re leaving
• When you’ve come home
• When it’s a special occasion
• When it’s just another ordinary day
• When you really mean it
You want to make the first time you say, “I love you” to be special and the
millionth time to be just as memorable.
So, how do you do it?
Saying “I love you” doesn’t have to be perfect, but the intention and the
feeling behind it should be. In a word, saying, “I love you” needs to be
genuine.
If you’re stumped for ideas about how to tell your lover that you love them,
here are some hints and tips to get your loving feelings out in the open.
SPECIAL OCCASIONS
Love is the triumph of imagination over intelligence.
Henry Louis Mencken
Love is the triumph of imagination over intelligence.
Henry Louis Mencken
While you don’t need a special occasion to tell someone that you love them,it never hurts to make sure they know when something fantastic happens.
1 - WE’RE HAVING A BABY
child. But when you’re the one that knows before your partner does, it can
be filled with wonderful possibilities to show them how much you love them.
Mary wanted to tell Bob that they were pregnant for the first time in a special
way. They had been trying for a child for years, but nothing ever seemed to
work for them – all of their medical resources were not panning out.
But when Mary found out she was pregnant – without any help from the
doctors – she realized that she hadn’t told Bob just how much she loved him
through all of their hard times. He never complained and he was ready to
adopt in order to be a parent with Mary.
To help share the news, she wrapped up a small box in wrapping paper and
set it out on the counter in their kitchen, where Bob always went when he
came home from work.
In that box, she had put a small heart shaped candy with a note that said, “I
love you Bob and know that you will be the best father a child could ever
have.”
Stunned when he read this, Bob walked back to their bedroom to find Mary
beaming with happiness. She had placed a bow on her stomach with a tag
that read, “To Mary and Bob. Sorry it took me so long to get here.”
Other ideas include:
• Creating a card from the baby to the spouse.
• Buying a piece of baby clothing and wrapping it up.
• Placing a note where your partner will find it.
• Wrapping up the pregnancy text box and placing a note inside that
says, “Positive!
2 – WILL YOU MARRY ME?
Getting married is the first big step in any lifelong relationship. But whenyou want to show someone how much you love them, the engagement
becomes all the more important.
Here are some ideas:
• Take a bouquet of flowers and tie the ring around one. Have your
soon-to-be fiancé/fiancée receive the flowers with a card that reads, “I
will always protect you from the thorns • Bring your partner to your favorite nature setting. Pack a picnic and
have the engagement ring sitting in with their favorite foods. Tell
them or write a note that says, “Want to share every meal with me?”
• Write them a note on a sticky piece of paper and then stick it to their
most used credit card.
• Create a collage of pictures of the two of you together and place it
somewhere that your partner will see it – in the middle, write, “Will
you marry me? These memories are great, but I’d like to create
more…”
Popping the question doesn’t have to be limited to the man asking the
woman either – so women can ask that all important question too.
3 – WOULD YOU MARRY ME AGAIN?
like you’re losing the spark or that you could be doing more to show your
spouse that you love them.
Here are some ideas for those that have already been married for a while
and want to remind their spouse how much they love them.
• Keep a gratitude journal – Write down all of the things that you love
about your spouse every day for a month or so. When you’ve gotten
to the end of the month, write, “Will you marry me…again?” on the last
page and wrap up the journal to give to your spouse.
• Create a photo slide show of your marriage – With digital pictures and
simple programs, you can even set your life to music.
• Take a picture of the two of you at your wedding and one more recent
picture and place them into a picture frame with two frames. Wrap
this up and present it to your spouse as a reminder of where you
began and where you are now. If you can find a frame with another
place for a picture, write the words, “Here’s to more of us.”
• Recreate your wedding day on a smaller scale – By inviting old
wedding guests and getting the same cake as you had on your special
day, have a renewal of vows for you and your spouse. If you can find
the original minister - all the better. If your spouse doesn’t mind
being surprised, try to keep it a surprise.
Every day, you can celebrate the wedding and the memories that brought
you together.
• Tell your own versions of how you met
• Talk about the first time that you told each other, “I love you.”
• Share your love stories with your family
4 – WHEN YOU’RE ON VACATION
Too often in our lives, we become distracted by things that happen. We letwork take over, responsibilities take over, and our relationships can suffer.
Instead of letting your love go to the back burner, why not take your love on
vacation with you?
• Call ahead to any restaurants that you might go to – Make sure they
have your partner’s favorite dishes and that you can have a special
dessert or other food brought out when you’re there.
• Try to arrange for the same room as a previous vacation – But when
you arrive at the room, pretend like you don’t notice. If your partner
doesn’t notice, then point out the room and tell him/her that you just
wanted to remind them that you loved them – then and now.
• Do two things that you would never do on your own, but your partner
would love to do – For example, if your partner likes to line dance, go
line dancing. If your partner wants to learn how to scuba dive, then
go do that. By showing that you support every part of them, you’re
telling them that you love them again and again.
• Have a basket of your favorite lotions and massage oils sent ahead to
your hotel room to help liven up your romantic evenings – When the
basket is there when you arrive, it shows that you’ve thought ahead to
your time together.
Being apart is hard for any relationship – new or old – but taking the time to
connect with your partner will help you feel closer rather than further apart.
5 – WHEN YOU’RE FAR AWAY
There are times when you will be separated from your partner – a business
trip, a family emergency, etc. In those times of separation, it can help to
show your partner that you really care about them.• Call them each night – Simply talking to your partner each night or
once a day will help you stay connected and show that they’re the
most important person in your life.
• Send them small trinkets – Small, unexpected things from your trip
will show your partner that you were thinking of them.
• Come home when you say that you will – When your partner misses
you as much as you miss them, be sure that they always know when
you’re going to be home and if there are any changes in that plan.
• Be happy to talk with them – Even if you’re tired and jet lagged, be
sure that you smile when you talk to your partner on the phone. This
will sound like heaven to their ears.
6 – WHEN YOU ADOPT
Adding to your family is an exciting time – no matter how it happens.
When you’ve decided to adopt a child, you might have already been
struggling with fertility issues that have been tough on your relationship –
what better time to show your partner that you love them?
Here are some ways:
• Give your partner a photo album or a photo frame to start collecting
pictures of your new family.
• Purchase a book that you can fill in to create a family history of this
new family that is coming together.
• Make a date to travel to your child’s country of origin on the same day
each year.
• Talk about your plans to adopt and write out the story that brought
you into the decision to adopt. You can give this to your child when
they get older.
John and Julie have a special date each year that their daughter was
adopted. They spend the day with their daughter at her favorite place – the
park. And while this sounds like it would be more of a date for the daughter,
it’s a celebration for the entire family unit.
7 – WHEN YOU’RE WITH THEIR FAMILY
Sometimes dealing with different families can be a stressful time for you as a
couple, so having a way to show that you love your partner can help to
alleviate the pressure you may be feeling.
When Tom and Bonnie go to their prospective in-laws, they generally do
several things that show each other that they love the other – without
anyone knowing.
Sometimes, keeping these little signs secret makes them all the more
special:
• They squeeze each other’s hands three times in a row – one squeeze
each for I – Love – You.
• They try to talk about their partner as often as possible to showcase
their special news or abilities.
• They try to be close to their partner as much as they can during the
evening or outing.
• Talk with their family to show that you care about where they come
from as well as who they are today.
When you’re with your family, you want to show each other that you’re in it
together – even if it’s not the highlight of your week.
8 – WHEN YOU’RE AT A RESTAURANT
occasion or some other anniversary date, but even if you’re just hitting the
same steak house that you go to every week, you can still make it special for
the two of you.
A great way to continuously show that you love your partner is to make
regular dates with them. Perhaps you can choose a particular restaurant
that you both love and then go there one night a week. That can be your
special night that no other plans can interrupt.
Other ways to make a restaurant trip a loving experience:
• Have each partner choose the restaurant on alternating weeks if you
have differing tastes in food.• Make sure that you dress up for your partner in nice clothing – or just
look nicer than you do normally during the week.
• Sit next to your partner or across from your partner to be able to look
directly at them the entire evening.
• Don’t look at anyone else but your partner.
• Hold their hand or hands.
9 – WHEN YOU’RE ON A SPECIAL DATE
No matter what you classify as a special date, there are plenty of other ways
that you can make it even more loving and special for your partner.
Tim and Megan like to start their evening off with a walk on the beach or just
a walk out in nature before the sun goes down. This helps them unwind from
their days at work and can allow them to calm down and really focus on each
other as partners.
When you rush home from work to go out on a date, you may not be
creating the best mood.
They go for their walk and then head to their favorite restaurant, holding
hands as often as they can. Tim likes to feed Megan one bite from her meal
and she returns the favor right at the beginning. They don’t want to feed
each other the entire, night, but that one bite shows that they are willing to
help each other have a lovely time.
Other ideas include:
• Pulling the chair out for the woman at the table.
• Calling ahead to have the food ready for the dinner.
• Checking on any entertainment ahead of time to see if there’s
something your date might like to enjoy – and then not telling them to
make it a surprise.
• Get dressed up.
10 – WHEN YOU’RE MOVING
If you’re a couple that’s moving in together, you will have hundreds of other
things on your mind besides your partner. And since the same can be said of
your partner too, maybe you can fit in a few special ‘I love you’ moments
that they will cherish in this task-filled time.
• In boxes that you know your partner will open, place large signs that
say ‘I love you’ on them.
• Write a love note to your partner and place it in the visor of their car
so they can find it before they drive to the new home.
• Create a welcome home banner for your new place – and put it there
before your partner arrives.
When Jenna and Richard moved, they were nervous about whether they
were going to survive as a couple. But all of Richard’s doubts vanished,
when he found a note from Jenna in his wallet the day that they moved.
It said, “Welcome to our new home and life baby. I can’t wait to spend the
next day waking up next to you.”
LOVE DURING THE HOLIDAYS
Love is a friendship set to music.
E. Joseph Cossman
For some, the holidays are a time of celebration and laughter. Others thinknext day waking up next to you.”
LOVE DURING THE HOLIDAYS
Love is a friendship set to music.
E. Joseph Cossman
otherwise. But they are great opportunities to help your partner feel loved in
the spirit of whatever occasion has arrived.
11 - VALENTINE’S DAY
It seems clichéd, but Valentine’s Day is still one of the best days to spread
your love. While some people aren’t big fans of this day or the newly popular
Sweetest Day, you can still use this as an excuse to show your partner how
much you care.It doesn’t have to be a big or consist of giving jewelry to your partner – all it
needs is for you to give from your heart.
• Make a list of all the reasons why you love the person that you’re with.
Try to come up with obscure things like the idea that you love the way
they brush their teeth or comb their hair. The more specific you are,
the more touching it will be.
• Create a small book of mementos of things that you’ve done together
– movie tickets, receipts, menus, etc.
• Give the gift of time – Create a small card that entitles the recipient to
a certain amount of time with you.
• Do something that makes fun of the holiday – If you’re not big fans of
this day; try to do something that’s really ridiculous and the opposite
of the day. Maybe you can head out to dinner on another night to
celebrate or do something more active like putt putt golf. Just being
together is the point – it doesn’t have to include pink or hearts.
12 – EASTER
While we’re all going to grow up, that doesn’t mean that we can’t use some
childhood activities to help us have fun while we do it.
If your partner is a particular fan of Easter, why not take this time to create a
basket for them that shows how much you love them? Here are some ideas
for his and her baskets:
For Him: Add his favorite liquor or beverage, some tickets to a sporting event
or concert, a book, a CD, a video game, etc. Make this a ‘guys night in’
basket that’s filled with things he can enjoy when you’re not together as
much as when you are together.
For Her: Look for girly things that she might like. This may include beauty
products, spa products, gift certificates for stores or salons, etc. For not-sogirly
girls, you can add some of the same things as go in the guy’s basket –
concert tickets, CDs, books, etc.
What you want to do is hide the basket in your house or apartment to create
a fun scavenger hunt for where it might be.
You can also create an adult twist on Easter egg hunts by hiding eggs and
placing small notes in them for your partner to find. When they’ve found all the notes, they will be able to spell something out or learn the location of
their basket.
Other ideas include:
• Dying eggs together
• Splurging on your favorite Easter candy
• Watching an Easter parade or egg hunt
• Helping younger cousins, nieces or nephews celebrate the day
13 – BIRTHDAYS
Birthdays are a celebration of the time when your partner came into the
world and eventually into your life.
There are plenty of ways to celebrate their birth in a loving and joyful way:
• Send them a card in the mail with birthday wishes – Everyone likes to
get mail. If you can, try to conceal that it’s from you until they open
it.
• Send them a small token for their birthday at their place of work – You
could also send the birthday card here or send flowers. Try to keep it
small and discreet if your partner isn’t a big fan of getting a lot of
attention.
• Make sure to create some sort of plan for the day or close to the day –
Whether you decide to go out for dinner or simply stay inside with the
phones off, it doesn’t really matter. Setting aside the time to be with
your partner on their birthday is what matters. Make sure that you’re
showing them that you’re sincerely thankful that they came into the
world.
• Always remember the day
• Create a special birthday cake for them that has their picture on it –
and make sure it’s their favorite flavor.
For Justin and Martha, they go to their prospective places of birth near their
actual birthdays and then eat at local restaurants and look at where they
grew up to see how it’s changed in the past year.
14 – MOTHER’S DAY
When your partner is the mother of your children, you have a great
opportunity to show her how much you love her on Mother’s Day. While not
everyone recognizes this day, it’s the perfect opportunity to celebrate your
glowing mom.
• Have your children create something for their mom that they choose
or make with their own hands. While you might want to show them
what to do, it’s best to let their imaginations run wild. They’re
certainly going to come up with something better than you might.
• Take the children away from the house if mom needs a break for
Mother’s Day. Take the kids to their grandparent’s house, if mom
would like that or send mom on a spa day to help her celebrate
herself.
• Write your favorite mom a list of all the things that you appreciate
when it comes to her parenting. Try to talk about specific times when
she’s done something for one of your children. This gives her an idea
of how much you love her and really appreciate the things that she
does.
• Recognize your partner as a loving mom every day, not just on this
one day of the year.
Being a mother can be tough work, and by showing her how much you
appreciate her role, you’re showing your genuine love for your partner.
15 – FATHER’S DAY
On the other hand, being a father can be just as challenging and in need of a
good pat on the back from time to time.
If your partner is the best father there is, why not take Father’s Day to help
celebrate their successes as a parent?
Here are some ways that you can celebrate your love for your partner on this
day:
• Give your partner a coupon that allows him one day to do whatever he
wants to do. You might call it being a ‘King for a Day.’ He can make
all of the decisions for food that day, activities, and anything else he
chooses. • Create a large picture with the kids for dad. It can have pictures of
the kids or simply just designs that they have made for their dad.
Sign it with love from everyone.
• Have your kids write down all of the things they love about daddy and
give it to your partner.
• Just as with mom, be sure to celebrate the ‘daddy’ in your marriage as
being the best dad every day of the year.
16 – ANNIVERSARIES
Celebrating anniversaries is the perfect time for showing your love to your
partner. With the time that you have spent together, why not celebrate the
fact that you’ve been together as long as you have (and it can be months or
years)?
David and Katie like to spend their yearly anniversaries traveling somewhere
new. For their one year anniversary, they headed to a nearby town and
spent one night in a hotel. For their second anniversary, they went a little
farther away and spent two nights in a hotel. And you can guess what
happened after they were together for longer periods of time.
You can do something similar, or perhaps you can create a list of places that
you’d like to visit and then plan for certain anniversaries when you will go.
For example, the fifth anniversary can be Hawaii while the tenth might be
France.
Come up with a list of destinations with your partner to show that you love
them and plan on spending a lot of time with them in the future.
Other ideas for anniversaries:
• Go back to where you met or got married and take a new picture.
• Head to your first date spot.
• Try on your wedding outfits again and take a new picture.
17 – HALLOWEEN
While it sounds odd to think of Halloween as a couples’ holiday, you can have
a lot of fun during this holiday. What other time of year can you pretend to
be someone completely different than who you normally are?
Here are some great ways to add some loving feelings to your next
Halloween:
• Dress as a pair – Think about dressing in costumes that go together.
There are plenty of options at your local costume shop, but you can
also choose things like Raggedy Andy and Raggedy Ann. You might
want to go as Yin and Yang, etc.
• Share your candy with each other – Go out and get your favorite
candies. Then share them with each other. Show the other what
kinds of candies you liked as a kid and then taste the ones that the
like.
• If your partner wants to go to a Halloween party and you don’t, go
with them anyways. Nothing shows how much you love someone
better than supporting their wishes to do something that you don’t
like. It’s only one night, after all.
18 – THANKSGIVING
If you celebrate Thanksgiving, it’s a great time to say, “I love you” to your
partner.
• Write them a thank you letter that talks about all the things they do or
they are that you are truly grateful for.
• Cook thanksgiving dinner together – Doing anything as a team is the
ultimate way to tell someone that you love them and will stick by their
side no matter what.
• Find the recipe of your partner’s favorite Thanksgiving dish and make
it for them as a surprise. Call up their mom or their grandmother for
the special recipe that they always talk about, but aren’t able to eat
very often.
When you’re at the dinner table with your partner, be sure to let them know
that you’re thankful for them and their love more than anything else. Make a
toast to them and to their health – and thank them for everything that is to
come in your life together.
19 – CHRISTMAS/HANUKAH
It doesn’t matter which holiday you celebrate, you can still show your partner
that you love and appreciate them on Christmas or Hanukah.
In the Jones’ household, Marla is Jewish and Robert is Christian. Instead of
fighting over who gets to celebrate their holiday, they show their love for
each other by performing their own rituals for the season and participate in
their partner’s ideas for the holiday.
For example, Marla cooks the traditional meal for each night of Hanukah and
lights the candles. Robert decorates a Christmas tree and plays Christmas
carols. Sometimes, they will even go to church or temple together, if they
want to do more for the season.
Other ways you can celebrate your partner during this season:
• Volunteer together to help those in need.
• Surprise them with a special gift. Try to notice what they talk about
wanting over the rest of the year. But make sure it’s something they
would never buy for themselves. They will be touched that you
remembered. Some couples like to keep small lists of what their
partner might like.
• Give the gift of time. Though your families might be wrestling over
who can spend time with you, you need to reserve your own time to
share with your partner.
20 – NEW YEAR’S EVE/DAY
As you enter a new year, it’s a good idea to celebrate your love for each
other as the calendar turns once again.
You can be really creative with this time of year, and showing your love for
your partner is a great way to start the year anyways, isn’t it?
• Make a list with your partner or by yourself of the things that you want
to do with your partner in the New Year. And then stick to these
‘resolutions.’
• Ask your partner if there is one thing that they would change about
you if they could – and then try to change it. • Make sure to kiss your partner at midnight. If you’re separated on the
evening, try to call your partner at that time to wish them a Happy
New Year.
FOR THE FIRST TIME
Love is a canvas furnished by Nature and embroidered by imagination.
Voltaire
Saying, “I love you” for the first time is a nerve-wracking and joyous
experience all at the same time. So, if you’re a little unsteady and don’t
know quite how to plan this special moment, here are some ideas.
21 – WHEN YOU’RE DATING
Realizing that you love someone is a big step in any relationship. What you
might not realize is that it doesn’t always happen over a certain period of
time – some people know they love each other in days, while others take
months and years.
However, this is a special moment that you want to really get right in order
to make it a memorable time for both of you.
• Create a special time when you can both be together and be
uninterrupted. If you tell your partner that you have something
important to talk to them about, that will keep them excited for what
is about to happen.
• Look them in the eyes when you say it.
• Say it whenever it feels right. Sometimes, saying, “I love you” without
planning it or waiting for the ‘right’ time is better than something more
complicated.
• Don’t expect them to say it back to you – in fact, let them know that
they don’t have to repeat it. When you let someone know that you
just simply love them and can’t bear to keep it to yourself any longer,
but you don’t expect anything in return, it can be the sweetest
moment of your relationship.
22 – WHEN YOU’VE BEEN DIVORCED
Falling in love after being married once before is something that takes time.
You might be hesitant to start something new because you’re afraid that you
may have the same problems or end up losing another person that you love.
When Trina got divorced from her first husband, she thought that she was
going to live alone for the rest of her life. But when she met Finn, she
thought that he might be the next ‘right one’ for her.
So, she realized one day that she loved him and turned to him to say, “What
would you say if I told you I loved you?” This caught him off guard, but it
was so casual that he smiled and told her that he loved her too.
You can be as simple as Trina was, or you can try one of these ideas:
• Create a romantic setting at home – This creates a unique place for
you to say, “I love you” on your own home turf. It will make your
more comfortable and help you to show your feelings more easily.
• You want to say “I love you” in person.
• Trace the letters on their back and have them guess what you’re
writing. They might not be able to guess, but that’s not the point.
You have to then tell them what you wrote.
23 – WHEN YOU’RE MOVING INTO A NEW HOME
With the moving part behind you, you can find even more ways to welcome
your partner into the new home with your love and gratitude for them. Here
are some simple ways to show your love to your partner:
• Arrange their bedroom or their office so that they can use it
immediately. This will show them that you support their activities and
their comfort.
• Give them the bigger half of the closet – if that’s something they like
and want.
• Go to a store to pick out decorations that you both enjoy. When Jen moved in with Bill, she knew that his collection of movie posters
was something that he really felt strongly about. So, when they finished
moving the boxes into their new home, she told him that he could start
making the house feel like a home by putting up his treasured movie posters.
24 – FROM A MAN TO A WOMAN
While love is love, there are certainly a number of ways to show it to
someone. When you’re a man that wants to say, “I love you” to a woman,
you might want to remember that women enjoy the romantic side of love;
the timeless nature of love.
In knowing this, you should consider trying to be as romantic as you can in
order to show her and tell her that you love her.
Here are some creatively unique ideas:
• Find out the song that she considers ‘yours’ and play it the next time
you are together.
• Create a whole day in which she gets to plan what you’ll do together –
no matter what she chooses, be happy and supportive of the choices.
• Take her dancing – line dancing, square dancing, etc. Any kind of
dancing that she likes, take her out for a class or a night of that kind
of dancing.
• Create a gift basket of things that she might like – if she’s a traveling
salesperson, for example, show her that you love her by giving her
things she can use on her long flights – i.e. audio books
By taking the time to come up with something that really shows her that you
love her, she’ll be able to think back on that special memory whenever she
needs an extra boost.
25 – FROM A WOMAN TO A MAN
Showing a guy that you love him isn’t always a difficult thing to do. Many
guys like simple things and to just spend time together with you, but if you
want to do something really special, you will want to think outside of the
‘normal’ things and start thinking about what makes your relationship
something that you treasure. Susie wanted to tell her new boyfriend that she loved him, but she didn’t
want to make it a big deal because Craig was a pretty laid back and casual
guy. So, she did the following things:
• Made a list of the dates they’d been on – where they’d been and
anything special that might have happened.
• She then asked Craig out for an evening that started in the middle of
the afternoon with a trip to the place where they had their first date.
• Then they went to the next date place, and so on.
• By the end of the ‘tour’ of their past dates, she took him somewhere
new that he’d always wanted to go to – and then she told him that she
loved him – no mater how many more places they went to.
26 – WHEN YOU’VE GOTTEN BACK TOGETHER
If you’ve been in a relationship that’s suddenly ended and you decided to get
back together to try again, you might feel oddly about sharing feelings that
you’ve already had with this person. You might feel like you were repeating
yourself or that they might already know how you feel.
But since you’re starting over, why not take this opportunity to do things the
‘right’ way this time?
Here are some creative ways to make this new relationship’s “I love you”
moment into something new:
• Create a simple story on a piece of nice paper that talks about the
previous relationship and what you loved about it.
• Talk about anything that you might have done wrong in the past
relationship as well as the plans that you have to avoid these kinds of
problems in the future.
• Promise them that you will always treat them better than you did
before and that you love them more now because you’re both working
on something special.
• Take a picture of the two of you when you make this new statement of
love – and hang it somewhere that you can both see it. Put a small
note on it or on the back of it that says, “When the love began again.”
27 – IN FRONT OF OTHER PEOPLE
While saying “I love you” is generally a private time, for some people, it’s
something that you want to shout to the world, so why not do that?
You can tell your partner that you love them and want everyone to know that
you love them – by telling them in public in front of a lot of people.
Here are some fun ways to do that:
• You could shout it to everyone that’s around you.
• Have it announced over a public address system.
• Pass a note to them if you’re in a crowd.
• Dedicate a song to them when you’re out on a date.
• Bring a small sign with you that says, “I love you” and show it to them
throughout the night.
Jeremy decided that his fiancée Christa needed to hear that he loved her in a
more dramatic way, but didn’t want to embarrass her either. One night
when they were out with their parents at dinner, he had someone tell his
fiancée that there was a call for her on their phone.
When she got up to answer it, it was Jeremy on the other line telling her that
he loved her very much. Though she blushed, it was something she would
never forget.
28 – ON THE FIRST ANNIVERSARY
Making it to your first anniversary (whether it’s one month, one week, or one
year) is a milestone that you should certainly celebrate with your partner.
You might want to show them just how much you care by doing something to
commemorate the evening.
For example, you could:
• Find a picture from the first year of your relationship and have it
professionally matted and framed for your partner. Have the photo
finish store change it to a black and white portrait for an even bolder
effect. • Recreate your first kiss, if you can remember that details. Go to the
place where you first kissed, remind your partner of that time, and
then kiss again.
• Choose a small trinket to give your partner that they can carry around
or hang or store at home. Each year, give them another to show that
your relationship is getting longer and longer. For example, you might
want to give a collector of stamps or figurines one more to add to their
collection for each year that you are together.
29 – ON THE TENTH ANNIVERSARY
With ten years under your relationship ‘belt,’ you might want to do
something a little more adventurous and dramatic for your anniversary.
Tina and George were high school sweethearts that dated for five years
before actually getting married. When they had hit their ten year
anniversary, they wanted to do something wild to celebrate how long they
had been together.
They thought about going on a cruise or heading to a fancy restaurant, but
that really wasn’t their style and they didn’t want to spend a lot of money on
one day. Tina wanted to surprise George with something that would be
special, but not too expensive. So, she called up the bakery that handled
their wedding cake and asked if one layer of that cake could be made for
their special day.
That night when they sat down to a quiet dinner at home, wine and soft
music, she told him that she had done something to remind him of their
wedding day. As she walked out, she was wearing her veil and carrying the
wedding cake. She whispered, “Would you marry me again?”
And George said, “Of course,” and they danced to their favorite wedding
songs.
30 – ON THE FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY
Few people seem to be celebrating their fiftieth anniversary anymore; though
they should be celebrating. Spending half of a century with someone is a
major milestone in your life and should be treated as such.
For this anniversary, it might be a good time to bring the family together in
order to celebrate. But that doesn’t mean that you have to rent a hall or do
anything that’s expensive or time consuming. Here are some simple ideas:
• Have a child handle the invitations or the invites to the party.
• Have the party at someone’s house from the family – someone with a
place large enough for everyone that can attend.
• Let it be a potluck occasion where everyone brings something to
share.
• Have one large glass of wine before the meal begins, passing it from
you to your spouse, each taking a sip. Then you can pass it around to
the rest of the family to take a sip too.
You can say something like, “While I’ve been lucky to spend my life with this
beautiful man/woman, we want to thank everyone else for supporting us and
loving us as the family we are today.”
Look into your spouse’s eyes and thank them for the years that you’ve spent
together. You might want to share stores with the family and various other
nostalgia to show everyone just how much you care about each other.
IN BAD TIMES
If you have it [Love], you don't need to have anything else, and if you don't
have it, it doesn't matter much what else you have.
Sir James M. Barrie
Every relationship goes through times that aren’t exactly what we want them
to be. Things can happen to us and within the relationship that can alter the
way that we interact with each other. But in order to make it through these
times, we need to remind our partners and our spouses about how much we
love them. And that when the bad times pass, we’ll still be there for them.
31 – WHEN A PARTNER HAS LOST A FRIEND
Relationships change – that much is certain. Your partner has their own
relationships with friends outside of your romantic relationship that can be
just as important to them.
When something does wrong or they have the unfortunate experience of a
friend dying or leaving them alone, you can step in to help ease their pain. Some of the best ways to show someone that you love them during this time
include:
• Always being available to listen to them – They will need a
sympathetic ear at this time. By letting them experience whatever
emotions they need to experience, you show them that you love them
no matter what life throws at the two of you.
• Ask what you can do – Often, there may not be anything you can do,
but letting your partner know that you’re willing to help is a relief to
them.
Tyler was friends with Doug for thirteen years when they had a bitter falling
out over a business matter. They would scream at each other until finally
they just couldn’t stand to be the same room together.
Staci tried to help Tyler know that while the rest of his world was falling
apart, she still loved him no matter what.
While this sounds simple, it really helped Tyler through this time: she simply
let him react in whatever way seemed necessary. She didn’t say anything
about any cleaning that needed to be done in their house. She encouraged
him to get out of the house and exercise if he wanted to. She tried to allow
him the space to grieve for that friendship and offered an honest opinion
whenever he asked her opinion.
In doing so, she showed him that she loved him even when things got ugly.
32 – WHEN A PARTNER HAS LOST A PARENT
While no one wants to think of their parents in terms of their eventual death,
the truth is that parents do die. And while we might think that we’re
completely independent, losing them can be a difficult time. If we haven’t
seen our parents in a while or we weren’t on good terms with them, this
makes the process all the more difficult.
When you’re the partner of a person who has lost their parents, there are
many ways that you can show them that you love them and support them
through this tough time:
• Handle any funeral arrangements that you can.
• Make the calls to the rest of the family about the death, if there are a
lot of people to tell. • Offer a shoulder to cry on, if they need it. If your partner just wants
to be distracted, offer to help them with that too. Whatever they
need, give them the support they want.
• Talk to your partner about their parent and what made them so
special. Share your own memories if you have some to share.
• Hang a picture of the parent and your partner in a visible place to let
them remember their parent whenever they need to.
• Go to the hospital, the gravesite, etc. with your partner. Being there
is all they really need to know that you love them and are staying by
them through the death.
33 – WHEN A PARTNER HAS LOST A JOB
Losing a job is a tough time for anyone, even if you were anticipating it. In
order to help your partner through this time, you need to show them that
you love them no matter what has occurred.
Here are some ideas for supporting your partner at this time:
• Distract them from the problem – When your partner thinks about
what has happened, they can begin to feel even worse about the
situation. Try to talk them out to your favorite restaurant or bar in
order to get them away from the troubles in their head.
• Help them create a new resume to go job hunting with or offer to help
with their job hunt.
• Make up a fake resume for them that outlines all of the great qualities
you think they have and why they are better off finding a new job that
appreciates these qualities.
• Check in on them if they’re sitting at home during the day or meet
with them whenever you can.
• Don’t share this information with others unless your partner wants you
to. By keeping this information to yourself, you will allow your partner
the space to figure out what they think about it.
When your partner loses a job, they want to know that they’re still ‘okay’ as
a person, so you should make sure that you’re constantly complimenting
them and reminding them just how great a person they are.
34 – WHEN A PARTNER IS STRESSED
Any period of stress is hard on a person. No matter if the stress is because
of something that the partner took on or from outside influences, you can
help them get through by doing these simple things:
• Create a favorite meal for them and bring it to them if they’re working.
• Help them with anything that you can – even if you’re just calling to
reschedule their dental appointment, try to pitch in whenever you can.
• Offer to rub their shoulders whenever they want. Give a foot rub at
the end of the day.
• Send them encouraging notes or stick sticky notes of encouragement
in places where they will see them.
• Let them know that you can take them away from a break if they need
one – Some people don’t realize that they need a break until someone
offers to help them.
When Anne would get behind in her writing deadlines, her husband Joe
always knew that she needed to get out of the house for a few hours and she
would be right back on track.
So, whenever he noticed that she was getting up from her desk more often,
he would offer to take her to the grocery store for soda or a snack. This
always helped her calm down and become more focused when she returned
home.
It might sound small to you, but Anne loved Joe for doing it. Having him kick
her out of her stress did the trick every time.
35 – WHEN YOU’RE IN MONEY TROUBLE
Money can be a wonderful thing in life or something that you just can’t stand
to think about. Having money troubles as a couple can be a difficult time
and cause a lot of stress and anxiety.
Since money is the top reason for many divorces and breakups, showing a
little love at this time can help to smooth things over and make your life a bit
happier in the process.• Take your partner out on cheap dates – the library, the museum, etc.
Show them that it’s not their money that you’re interested in – just
spending time with them.
• Make a promise to help in any way that you can – Maybe you can both
create a spending plan that will help you get out of your money
problems. Sometimes it’s just too overwhelming and the stress of not
knowing how to get out of trouble can harm a relationship. Make a
budget and stick to it as a couple.
• Don’t make a big deal out of it – Unless you’re threatened with
something really horrible because of your money problems, chances
are good that making a big deal out of it will only be damaging to your
relationship. Laugh about it and treat it like something that you will
overcome. And soon enough, you will.
• Find creative ways to give gifts without spending any money. It’s
amazing what you can find around the house when you try.
36 – WHEN YOU OR YOUR PARTNER IS SICK
In times when one of you is sick, you can step up and try to heal them withyour love.
When Lynn went into the hospital with blood clots in her lungs, her husband
David stayed by her side whenever she was awake. He brought her favorite
books and clothes to wear while she recuperated and brought her food when
the cafeteria food wasn’t palatable.
He also:
• Helped her clean up in the mornings.
• Asked questions of the doctors and wrote down questions that he
wanted to ask.
• Brought flowers and had people call her when he wasn’t able to stay.
• Learn about the medicine that she would need to take when she got
home and reminded her about an allergy that she had to a medication
so that she could ask for something else.
Even if you don’t know a lot about your partner’s medical history, you need
to is something should happen to them. Today might be the perfect day to
ask your partner if there is anything you might need to know about their
health so that in case of an emergency, you can help them get through it.
37 – WHEN YOU OR YOUR PARTNER IS HURT
Even a minor injury can put strain on a relationship when you’re not sure
how to show your partner that you love them and are trying to help them
during this time.
Here are some ideas for helping and loving your injured spouse or partner:
• Ask them if they need your help – Some people don’t like to be babied,
so if you ask, you give them the opportunity to have help, even if they
turn it down.
• Talk to the doctor about things they will need and get them before
your partner needs them – i.e. crutches, medications, etc.
• Make them a small scrapbook of their adventure so that they can see
what was going on. Sometimes severe injuries can cause the injured
to forget what happened and who came to visit. By compiling the
cards, emails, and pictures, you will be able to give them a small gift.
• Make sure to touch them and caress them as much as possible – You
never want your partner to feel like their injury is something that turns
you off.
38 – WHEN YOU’RE ABOUT TO BREAK UP
If your relationship has been having troubles and you just can’t seem to get
over them, there comes a point when it seems like your only option is to
break up and try to start over or just simply go your separate ways.
In these times, you want to show your partner that no matter what is
happening, you still love them and you still want to make things work if you
can.
• Be honest about your feelings – True love comes from being truthful
about what you need and responding to their needs.
• Set aside time to talk with your partner about things that are
happening – Give your undivided attention to your partner in order to
show them that you’re willing to work on things if you decide to not
break up.
• Let them know how you feel about them – Be sure to let your partner
know how you feel about them and why you want to stay with them. • If you’re the one at fault for troubles – Make a plan as to the things
you will do differently in order to restart and rejuvenate the
relationship.
• Write them a note about the things that you will miss if you do break
up.
Sometimes you can’t save a relationship, but letting them know that you love
them might be the thing that turns a doomed relationship into one that can
start again.
39 – IF A CHILD PASSES AWAY
If you ever have to face the situation of a child passing away, the strain on a
relationship can be exhausting.
At this difficult time, you need to be there for your partner, supporting them,
and showing them that you love them.
• Take time away from work if you can – You want to spend as much
time as you can with your partner. You need to support each other
and not worry about the rest of the world at this point.
• Talk about your child together and reminisce – Tell stories, bring out
old pictures, and remind your partner that you’re both going through
this together.
• Show each other your grief – By sharing your grief with each other,
you will allow the other to see that you’re being affected too.
• Create a space where you can remember your child.
When Jim and Dawn lost their daughter Kelsey in a car accident, everyone
brought them pictures of dragonflies and angels. Dawn decided that they
would create a small space in their backyard as a place where they could sit
and remember their daughter.
Dawn decorated the space and Jim prepared the lawn for the area. In doing
this, they were actively supporting and loving each other.
40 – IF YOU LOSE YOUR HOME
As a couple that has bought a house together, invested in a house together,
and built a life in a house together, losing your home to foreclosure, natural
disaster, or fire can be devastating.
To help show your love to your partner, you would deal with this situation as
you would any other loss:
• Frame a picture of your old house that you can both look at and
remember when things are getting difficult.
• Try to be positive when talking with your partner about the
advantages of having a new home and a new place to live – Let the
know that you will live with them no matter where you both end up.
• Create a plan of attack to find a new home - Focus always on the
future instead of what you have lost.
• Make a book with your partner about all of the stories that you
associate with the home that you lost.
41 – IF A PET DIES
Those that don’t have pets don’t understand what it’s like to lose this
constant companion. If your partner was particularly close to the pet, you
want to support them by showing how much you love them in these ways:
• Let your partner grieve – It sounds simply enough, but letting your
partner do whatever they want to do to accept their pet’s death, give
them the space to do that. If they want to cry, allow them to cry. If
they want to talk about the pet a lot, let them do that.
• Create a book or video of memories of your pet – If your partner took
pictures or videos, use a digital program to create a slideshow or
simply craft a photo album that will help them remember their beloved
pet.
• Spend time with your partner – Because this pet was probably a close
companion, you will want to spend more time with your partner to
help them feel less lonely.
There are other ways to help show your love for your partner when they’ve
lost a pet – perhaps frame a picture and place it where they used to eat or sleep. You might want to have a special place in the yard or at a pet
cemetery for your partner to visit.
Above all, if this pet was not yours or you were not close to it, this is not a
good time for you to show any displeasure with their ‘overreaction’ to the
death. Everyone grieves in different ways and you might want to show your
love by supporting whichever way your partner chooses.
42 – WHEN THERE’S BEEN A CRIME
Hopefully, you won’t have to deal with the fallout of a crime that’s happened
to you or to your partner, but if you do, being the loving partner will be the
best way to help them heal from the trauma that may have happened.
• Don’t shy away from helping them out – You want to be there for them
no matter how difficult it might be for you to be in a police station or
to look at the crime scene.
• Let them talk about it as much as they want – Your partner will
appreciate that you are listening to them.
• Write them encouraging notes and then have them mailed at different
times from different places – For example, you can write something as
simple as, “I know this is a hard time for you, so if you need anything,
just let me know.” By receiving these unexpected cheer up cards,
they will feel your love.
• Give a lot of hugs – Some of the trauma of crime is not feeling as safe
as you did before the crime occurred. By giving a lot of hugs and
holding them close, reminding them that you will protect them, you
are helping to heal their emotional wounds.
43 – WHEN YOU’VE HAD A FIGHT
You’re going to fight if you’re a couple that’s been together for any period of
time – it happens and it’s normal.
But there are ways to show that you still love your partner, even if you’re in
the midst of a bad fight:
• Always be respectful – By never calling names or making untrue
accusations, you will allow the argument to focus on the issue at hand
and still show that you respect the other person. • Walk away if you are getting too angry – Instead of regretting what
you’ve said, walk away from the argument if you feel that you can’t
control your emotions. Go into another room for a few minutes until
you calm down and then return.
• If you feel like you have to leave the house, be sure to tell your
partner that you’re coming back – When things are fragile and
emotional, you don’t want to have any surprises when it comes to the
argument. You need to come back eventually to straighten things out.
• Ask about their opinion – Instead of trying to ‘fix’ what you see as
wrong, talk to your partner about ways that you can BOTH fix the
issue.
• Let the other person know that you love them and care about them,
even if you’re having troubles.
• Write them a small note that says, “I hate it when we fight and hope
we can make up soon.” Leave it somewhere that they might see it.
44 – WHEN YOUR CHILDREN R HAVING PROBLEMS
If you have children together, you might want to be even more supportive
when you’re having troubles that concern your child. Even if they aren’t your
child’s fault, being loving parents takes loving each other through this time
too.
• Write out lists of what you love about your child – This helps the both
of you to see the different qualities in the child and to learn to
appreciate each other’s viewpoints and opinions.
• Talk about the day that your child was born and what made that day
special.
• Look through old photo albums of your child or create a new one.
• Try to talk to your child together and separately – Meet up to talk
about your child from these different viewpoints too to see what you
might have missed on your own.
• Let each other have reactions to your child’s situations – It’s okay to
be made and frustrated at your child, but hiding it from your partner is
not. When Linda and Marcus’s son Rudy was having troubles at school, they both
felt like they were the one that was to blame. Linda felt like she never spent
time with him and Marcus felt like he was too controlling. When Linda and
Marcus sat down with each other, shared how much they loved each other
and how they parented, they were able to see more solutions for the
problems that were happening.
As parents, they became more effective because they knew they both were
in it together – and had each other’s support.
45 – WHEN YOU JUST AREN’T CLICKING
Since everyone has their own way of acting and reacting to things, it’s
natural that you might have times when you just don’t feel like you’re
‘clicking’ with your partner.
To help say, “I love you” during these times, you should consider:
• Try not to make a big deal out of it – Sometimes things aren’t as bad
as you might think they are. By telling your partner that you love
them and care about them, you might help this awkward time to pass
without any drama.
• Ask your partner what they might want to do – Have your partner
choose and plan the activities that you both do. And then do them
without any complaint.
• Send your partner an email that asks them out on a date – Don’t tell
them where you’re going or what you’re doing. Make it like a date
that you would have had at the beginning of your relationship.
WHEN YOU WANT TO MAKE UP
They do not love that do not show their love. The course of true love never
did run smooth. Love is a familiar. Love is a devil. There is no evil angel but
Love.
William Shakespeare
Breaking up may be hard to do, but making up is also difficult for some
couples. To help you say, “I love you” during these tricky times, here is
some advice and some tips that have worked for other couples.
46 – TAKING ON THE BLAME
When you’ve had a fight and you just want things to be better again, it’s
time to show your partner how much you care about them and their
happiness.
• Leave them love letters that remind them of how much you love them
– Place one in a plastic bag on the windshield of their car.
• Write “I’m sorry” across the bathroom mirror so they see it when they
wake up the next morning.
• Leave them a note with a small tube of super glue – the note can read,
“My heart is broken because of our fight. Can you help me glue it
back together?”
When Frederick and Cindy had another large fight, they just didn’t know how
to get back to normal. Frederick still felt mad about what happened and
Cindy wasn’t sure how to fix things.
When Frederick left for work, she took out an old video that they’d purchased
from a video store and found a “Please be kind and rewind” sticker on it.
She placed a picture on the box of them together and placed the sticker on
the picture.
She left it for Frederick to find. He thought it was hilarious and sweet, which
broke the tension and got their relationship back on track.
47 – HEADING TO ANOTHER LOCATION
Instead of staying where you’ve been fighting, try to move your make up
time to another place to start over, to start fresh.
• Take your partner out to the park or a walking trail to talk things over
and let them know that you’re committed to working on your
relationship. Sometimes just getting someone away from their
situation is enough to help make things better.
• Ask your partner if you can take them out to a working lunch or dinner
to work out your problems - The idea of it sort of being a date as well
as in a public place can help your partner relax and see that you love
them and just want to start over.• Spend a night in a hotel and promise not to leave until you work things
out – By getting away from the normal distractions of your relationship
and your life, you can create a romantic setting that allows you to
make things better.
• Promise your partner that you will take them anywhere that they want
to go…once you’ve made up. That calls for a celebration, doesn’t it?
48 – PROMISING YOUR LOVE
Here’s a fun way to make up with your partner:
When Sam and Emily had a big fight, they’d normally sulk around each other
for a while, which didn’t help because it seemed tot both of them that they
were not ready to make up, nor did they really care if they did.
This time, Sam decided that he wanted to do something different to show
Emily that he loved her instead of just stomping around until someone
apologized.
He got out a picture of Emily when she was smiling and happy, pasted it on a
piece of paper and wrote:
“Dear Emily, This is the smile that I fell in love with. It lights up the room, it
lights up my life, and I can not imagine a day without it. When we fight, it
becomes dark and I can’t think straight until we figure things out. I don’t
want to miss your smile for one more minute.
I promise that I never mean to hurt you when I’m angry and I promise that I
will always love you.
I’m sorry and I love you. Sam.”
Emily couldn’t help but smile when she read this and they made a list
together of promises for each other. Signing it, they hung it on the wall to
remind each other.
49 – COMPROMISE IS GOOD
For some couples, they simply want to say “I love you” and think that that’s
enough to maintain a relationship. But when you’re in a fight, you need to
solve the problem in order to be able to move past it.
This is where this compromise technique can work: Each partner can write down the things that they want from the relationship
or the fight. Then they will each read their ideas aloud. This list can be
anything from silly requests to those that are more serious.
When you have these lists, trade them with each other to see what the other
wants. You can then choose two things from their list that they will have to
do, while they will do the same.
Other ways to show love in a situation of compromise:
• Both partners need to give something in the situation.
• Give your partner something that’s very valuable to you and ask them
not to give it back until they know that you’ve shown your love to
them.
• Offer to be the first one to make a change.
50 – PICNIC IT OUT
When you change the situation, you can change your feelings about it.
Couples have troubles, but it’s how you deal with the troubles that will
ensure that you both know how much you love each other.
For a fun way to work things out, have your partner meet you at a local park
or at a local outdoor table. But don’t tell them what you are doing.
By taking the first step towards making things better, you can help make
things much more easy to talk about.
Pack a lunch of all of your favorite foods and even some wine, if you like.
Set out a table that’s beautiful, maybe some flowers and other fun things
like:
• Real wine glasses
• Napkins
• Nice plates
The point is to make a pretty setting that will allow your partner to be caught
off guard. You want to surprise them and make them realize that you just
want to go back to the way things were before this tough time.
Feed them their food, if you like. Serve them their wine and other foods –
and see if they’re still mad after that first class treatment.
51 – WASH AWAY THE TROUBLES
Though you might not realize it, Mother Nature can be a great helper when
you’re having relationship troubles. All you need is a good storm or a simple
rain shower to help you show your partner how much you love them.
And make it like one of those old movies where the couple heads off into the
sunset. Though you don’t need the sunset to do this.
Dance in the rain. It sounds silly, but it’s utterly romantic and will make
anyone melt when they’re not expecting it.
Grab your partner’s hands and lead them outside when you’re having a tough
time with each other and drag them into the rain. You can choose to dance
or skip or whatever seems like a good idea. This is best done at night under
a streetlight for the best effect, but anytime is the right time.
When Katie’s husband Trevor pulled her outside for a night of walking in the
rain, she thought he was crazy. But once they were outside, she couldn’t
help but start to laugh. It was a silly moment of jumping in puddles and
splashing each other that made them both realize just how happy they were
together.
52 – CREATE AN ADVENTURE
Love is the great adventure in life. So why not remind your partner of that
when things are getting a little difficult?
Here are some ways that you can create an adventure:
• Use small sticky notes to create a scavenger hunt for your partner –
Have each note lead to another place in your home or in the city that
eventually ends up bringing them to you or to a note that talks about
how much you love them.
• Be surprising – Instead of just doing things when you think that you
should, try to show your love during times when it’s not expected. For
example, you could take their hand when you’re walking through the
supermarket or loop your arm in theirs as you move through the book
store.• Do something that you would never do – If you like intense dramatic
movies, take your partner out for their favorite animated comedies.
Who knows, maybe you’ll have fun too?
53 – FORGIVENESS IN A BOTTLE
When you want to ask forgiveness for something that you’ve done, creativity
can help you smooth things over more easily.
Some ideas include:
• Take a piece of paper out and write down how sorry you are for the
thing that you’ve done – This can be a long letter or a simple one line
of what you’re sorry about.
• Show your partner that note and tell them how you feel about the
thing that has happened.
• Place the note in a clear bottle that they can hold onto. Whenever they
feel upset about what has happened, they can go back and look at this
bottle to see that you did apologize. You might even want to create a
jar that can be opened so they look at the notes whenever they want.
This can be your forgiveness bottle – and you can even both share it.
When it gets full, you can burn the notes inside.
54 – A NEW BEGINNING, A NEW CHAPTER
Go to a used bookstore to find a nice looking book. What kind of book it is
doesn’t really matter so long as it’s pretty and will look decorative.
What you’ll want to do next is cut out letters or print out quotes that refer to
forgiveness or starting over. These should also look nice because they’re
going to be a part of this project.
Take the book and try to cut out a few page middles so that you have a
hollow space in the middle. Place the quotes at the bottom of this section
and then place a few smaller photos of you and your partner in the hollow
book as well.
Write on the first page (that you should leave in place) something to the
effect of:My life is an open book, but I’d like to start over with you at the first chapter.
I know that we’ve done some things that have made the plot twist, but I’d
like to reach the end of our book with you.
You can choose to wrap the book up or simply take the book and give it to
your partner.
55 – SINCERE STAR GAZING
Take your partner out to a clear area of your town to look at the stars when
you’re in a difficult spot in your relationship. The best areas are those with
minimal lights from the street lamps or other artificial sources as well as any
time after the moon has been full. Go to rural areas and bring the following
items:
• A thick blanket
• A thermos of hot chocolate or another hot drink
• Some romantic music
Take your partner out to the place that you have chosen and just lay back to
look at the stars and listen to the nice music as you do.
Talk to your partner about how small you are in relation to the rest of the
world and how your problems are small in comparison. This isn’t supposed
to make your partner feel badly about anything, but rather it’s supposed to
be a romantic moment. Tell them that you just want to work things out and
that you want to continue to look at the stars for years to come.
Offer them something to drink and make sure that you kiss them as you’re
underneath the blanket of the sky.
56 – WHEN CHASING IS GOOD
When Jill and Drew had a big fight, she was sure that this was the end of heir
relationship. They had fought so often lately and it just seemed like things
were heading into the eventual end of their time together.
Not ready to give up, Drew decided that he wasn’t doing enough when they
were fighting. He would always just leave the room or let her leave without
saying a word.
Instead, he decided that in the next fight they had, he would chase after her.When he and Jill were fighting and getting to the point when they would
leave each other alone, he reached to her and touched her arm.
He said, “I don’t want you to leave this time or any time. I love you and
while I know things are hard, we will make it through this. I will always
chase after you to make sure we don’t leave each other without saying how
much we love each other.”
That simple thing made Jill realize that she truly loved Drew and had been
testing him to see if he’d leave her along – and that this action made her feel
worse about their fights. But when Drew chased after her, she realized that
he loved her.
Of course, they still had their fights, but they also had more good times than
bad times after this chase.
57 – WHEN YOU’RE IN THE WRONG
Saying that you’re sorry when you are is the most loving thing that you can
do. Telling your partner that you have done something wrong needs to
include the following things:
• A sincere “I’m sorry”
• Look them in the eyes
• Touch them as you talk to them
• Talk about what you will do differently in the future
• A promise that you will never try to hurt them again.
What’s even more important about this apology is that you don’t take too
long to tell your partner that you are sorry. You need to jump in with your
apology as soon as you can – this will help your partner know that you’re not
just sorry because you’re not with them.
Write them a note first, if you’re having troubles talking face to face, but
then tell them in person or over the phone as soon as you can.
58 – WHEN THEY’RE IN THE WRONG
No one wants to hear that they’re wrong, and when you love someone, you
don’t want to ever tell them that they’re wrong.What you can do is:
• Apologize for your part in the problems – everything takes two people.
• Let them know that you love them no matter what has happened.
• Let them take their time in telling you that they are sorry – Some
people take longer than others.
Another way to handle this situation is to follow the advice for saying that
you’re sorry. Why let bad feelings go on if you don’t want them to? Be the
person that takes responsibility for what has happened – and move on.
59 – ERASING THE PAST
Another way to move past your anger or frustration in a loving manner is to
create a chalkboard that both of you can use when you are angry. You can
both write down the things that are making you mad during this tough time –
each on your own side.
As the day or week goes on, erase the other words that your partner has
written as you have forgiven them and gotten over the hurt.
You can also write down all of the things that you’re frustrated about and
burn them with your partner. This is a great ritual for letting go of things
that have happened so that you can move on in your relationship.
Other ways that you can erase the past:
• Talk about things that have happened honestly and openly – By
acknowledging that things have happened, you can begin to move past
them.
• Make a frustration jar that you fill with all of your frustrations – Once a
week you can simply throw it out.
60 – TOAST AWAY
A toast is an excellent way to bring attention to something and to
acknowledge that it’s happening.
When Scott and Eve have troubles, they buy a special bottle of wine and use
it at their very next meal. They use their best glasses and choose foods that
will compliment the taste of the wine.They fill their glasses at the beginning of the meal and each makes a toast
that is similar to:
I toast our relationship and I know that our love will help us move past any
troubles that we might be having.
I toast you and how much I love you.
I toast myself and how much you love me.
You can create your own toast too to help you move past the pain that you
might be feeling at a particular point in your relationship. It’s a way to move
on and create the feeling of doing something that will end the troubles that
are happening.
WHEN YOU’RE CELEBRATING
Where there is love there is life.
Gandhi
Celebrating is always a great time to show your partner how much you love
and care about them. You can do a number of things that will allow them to
see the concern and care you have for them.
These ideas work for any celebration at any time.
61 – NEW JOB CELEBRATION
If your partner has worked hard to get a new job or has been lucky enough
to be approached with a new job opportunity, you can help to celebrate their
luck and their work.
Why not make another of their dreams come true? It doesn’t have to be a
big dream, but you probably know something that your partner wants to do
or might want to have that you can give them to reward them for this great
accomplishment.
For example, you might want to buy something that they can put in their
new office as a way to create a feeling of home in their new place. Think
about giving them a small plant or perhaps a small statue that they might
like to have for their desk.Or you can take them out for their favorite activity – think about the things
that you rarely do together. Maybe you can go to the batting cages with a
sports fanatic or to the museum for the art lover.
Other creative ways to celebrate are:
• Take them out for dinner with your friends – This will give your partner
multiple people that will be congratulating them.
• Place an announcement in your local paper – Just write a small
classified ad that congratulates them for their accomplishment (and
then make sure they see it.
62 – A ‘SKATE’ WAY TO CELEBRATE
We rarely have time to be with each other anymore, so why not go back to
your childhood for ways to have fun with your partner?
Take your partner to the local skating arena – ice or roller – to have an
afternoon of fun with them. It doesn’t cost a lot, but it can certainly be a fun
time that will feel like a private party for you and your partner.
Be sure to hold hands and dance during all of the ‘couple’s skates’ that they
have.
You might also want to put on their skates for them or getting their skates
for them.
Ice skating is particularly romantic when it’s late at night and it’s at an
outdoor rink that you can use. Bundle up with your partner, bring some hot
cocoa and then have a blast skating round and round the rink.
When you’re done, cuddling is a great way to warm yourselves back up.
John and Randa are big fans of going skating whenever they have gotten
done with a week of work. They meet each other at the rink as though they
were meeting up for a date and then drive to the local diner for hamburgers
and fries.
63 – GIVE AWAY YOUR KIDS
You love your children, of course you do. But when you want to celebrate
privately with your partner, you’ll want to remove any possible distractions
from the house to focus on each other.Bring your children to their grandparents or maybe bring them to their
friend’s house for an afternoon of fun and games away from you.
Not only is this a treat for your children, but then you can also have some
special interruption free time when you can do anything that you like.
If you want to make the time even more special, don’t tell your partner until
they come home. The added surprise of not having any responsibilities
besides their partner is something that will remind them just how much you
love them.
But this shouldn’t just be a special event. Couples need to have time to
themselves on a regular basis in order to keep their relationship healthy and
sane.
Here are some ways that you can do this:
• Create one day a week without children.
• Have a weekend to yourself a few times a year.
• You can also have a babysitter come over when you’re both still home,
just so that you can watch a movie together without the kids, but still
be available for them if they need you.
64 – A CLEAN CELEBRATION
Nothing says loving like a clean house that you didn’t have to slave to do
yourself. To show your partner that you love and respect just how busy they
are, you might want to hire a cleaning service for the day or perhaps on a
more regular basis.
It’s not an expensive thing to do either. Here are some options:
• Pay your older child to do it.
• Have a cleaning person come once a month or once a week.
• Find someone that you can trade services with – i.e. you can do their
taxes if you’re an accountant if they will clean your house.
On the other hand, you could also do the dirty work yourself. All you need is
a half a day away from your work or other responsibilities.
1. Clean the clutter away.
2. Take out the trash.3. Take out the recycling.
4. Do the laundry.
5. Clean the bathrooms.
6. Make your bed.
Even a few of these items each day will make a big difference and show your
partner that you love them.
65 – KEEP YOUR EYES ON THINGS
While you can’t be a mind reader, simply taking the time to notice when
things could be done for your partner could be better than any diamond ring
or other expensive gift.
Steve always makes sure to look around the house during the week to see if
they’re running out of anything important in their house – toilet paper, pens,
pencils, school supplies for the kids, etc.
When he notices that something is running low, he makes sure to stop by the
store to get it on his way home from work. This saves his wife Marie from
having to go out. She adores that he does this.
If you’re afraid that you won’t notice these kinds of things, you can also do
some of these things:
• Call or email your partner whenever you’re at a store to see if they
need anything.
• If you notice that something is low, ask them if there’s anything else
that you didn’t notice.
66 – GO OUT FOR ICE CREAM
Never underestimate the power of a sundae.
When you’re celebrating something like a raise or a new job or perhaps just
the fact that you still have been reaching your work goals or something else
minor, going out for ice cream can bring you and your partner closer.
Try ordering something ridiculous, the bigger and the sweeter the better.
And then feed it to each other or bring it home to eat it with each other.
Some fun things to eat include:• Banana splits
• Crazy sundaes
• Multiple scoop cones
• A milkshake
Try to share your treats if you can so that you’re sitting close to each other
and really enjoying this sweet escape.
67 – GIVE MORE COMPLIMENTS
Though you might already compliment your partner on things they do, try to
make more of an effort to do this when you’re celebrating something
important in your lives.
Sometimes these celebrations can be stressful for a partner. For example,
getting a new job means that they need to learn new things and they might
be scared that they won’t be able to handle the pressure.
When you take the time to compliment them on everything they do, they will
start to feel more confident in themselves and what is happening.
Here are some ways to add more compliments to their day:
• Compliment their cooking.
• Compliment their outfits.
• Compliment their work successes.
• Look for things that you admire
• Compliment the way they treat others.
68 – START PLANNING YOUR ‘BIG’ TRIP
Most couples have a vacation that they want to go on when they have
something big to celebrate. Maybe you want to head to Hawaii or to Europe
– in any case, you want to start planning this trip when you’re in the throes
of celebrating.Start collecting books on traveling to the area and start picking the things
that you will want to do once you get there.
Other things you can do:
• Have each partner list out their favorite things to do.
• Set a target date of when you are going to go on his trip.
• Set up a tracker for the airline tickets to the location you want to head
to.
• Make a poster that counts down the days until you will be in your
favorite city or country.
69 – GET HIM THE BIG SCREEN TV
The truth is that many guys really want the big electric gizmos that they see
on TV or in their friend’s houses. And while you might not be able to buy
them right now, there are ways to help your guy feel like a prince when
you’re celebrating something that’s happened to him.
• Look into renting a big television – There are many rent to own places
that will let you borrow the TV for a weekend or a night.
• Take your partner to a place that uses a big screen TV on a night when
he wants to watch a certain athletic event.
• Talk to him about starting to save for this TV for him.
While not every guy wants a big TV, the reality is that many of them do –
why not start looking at ways you can make this dream come true?
Alia wanted to get Andy a big screen, HDTV for his birthday, but their budget
just wasn’t letting her think that this was possible. So, she started looking at
places that would create a credit plan for her, allowing her to make smaller
payments on the item over the course of a few years.
While it was going to take a long time for the TV to be paid off, she was able
to make the payments each month and give her husband the TV he always
wanted.
It was worth the look on his face when he came home one Friday to see the
TV of his dreams.
70 – TAKE HER CLOTHES SHOPPING
On the other hand, if your partner is a woman and she’s interested in buying
clothes, maybe you can take her out for a day of shopping or give her free
reign of the credit card for a day.
Here’s how you can give this gift to her:
• Surprise her by taking her to her favorite stores on a day that you
were planning on spending with her.
• Give her a gift certificate to her favorite shop.
• Make a card for her that entitles her to one day of ‘shopping without
guilt’ and then let her redeem it whenever she wants it.
The key to this gift for your partner is to support anything that she might
purchase – compliment her new outfits and let her know that you think she’s
beautiful in anything she wears.
If she wonders why you did this for her, you can always say that you wanted
to make her feel as beautiful as you already see her.
71 – WHEN ONE OF YOU HAS LOST WEIGHT
Losing weight not only can affect your health, but it can also affect your
relationship. You’ll both be healthier and more energetic, and probably more
loving to each other.
To support and celebrate this accomplishment of your partner, you will want
to do something special for them:
• Take them away for a special weekend – This doesn’t even have to be
at a hotel, but rather turn off all the phones and be with your partner
for a whole weekend of undivided attention. Celebrate with healthy
meals and go for walks with them.
• Give them the gift of your own support – Join them in some of their
exercise activities if you don’t already.
• Eat whatever they’re eating to help show your support during this
time.
• Always support their goals and try not to undermine their success.• Let everyone know how proud you are of them.
72 – LEAVE A LOVING MESSAGE
When you’re away from your partner when there’s something to celebrate,
it’s a good time to take advantage of the process of voice mail.
What you’ll want to do is leave a message that tells them how proud you are
of them for whatever has happened as well as maybe their favorite song in
the background.
You can also text message them when you hear the good news or send them
a picture over your phone of you giving them a thumbs up or some other
loving gesture.
There are also a number of websites that will allow you to send free greeting
cards for any occasion to your partner – these can be customized and
personalized to suit the occasion as well as your partner, if you want.
What’s great about messages like email and ecards is that your partner can
print them out and look at them whenever they want to. If you’re really
looking to show someone that you’re proud, you can also compile these
notes into a small notebook that they can keep.
73 – KISS THEM PASSIONATELY
A kiss isn’t just a kiss when there’s something to be celebrated. You really
want to sweep them off their feet with a celebration kiss. Here are some
ways to sweeten up your next smooch:
• Make the kiss last at least five seconds
• Have fresh breath
• Hold their head or face as you kiss them
• Kiss them in the rain
• Tip them back as you kiss them
• Catch them off guard
• Close your eyes
You want to make this a kiss that they wish would never end. Try to feel the
love that you have for your partner as you kiss them for as long as you can
both stand it.
James always takes Keisha’s hands when he goes to kiss her, just like when
they first started dating. He pulls her to the side of the room and kisses her
softly and slowly.
Places you can kiss your partner:
• On the next
• On their head
• In the car
• On a train
• In a taxi
• Etc.
74 – YOUR SECOND HONEYMOON CAMPS OUT
If you missed your first honeymoon, you want to make that a priority now.
Spending time together celebrating the fact that you’re a couple is a great
way to solidify for love for each other. It doesn’t have to be an expensive
trip in a fancy hotel or in a fancy locale.
You could even spend the night at a campsite in your local park:
• Bring only one sleeping bag.
• Bring a very small tent.
• Roast marshmallows
• Make S’mores
• Bring premade foods in a cooler – i.e. potato salad, fruits, etc.
Being together is the main idea for this second honeymoon idea.Try to find a campsite that’s far away from a lot of people and one that’s
near the trail that goes to a clearing where you can see the stars.
If your partner doesn’t like to camp, you might want to bring an air mattress
to make sleeping easier, plus make sure that there are suitable bathrooms
and showers for your partner to use.
Call ahead to the site or look at the site ahead of time to make sure that it’s
comfortable for the both of you. If you’re not sure, you could always rent an
RV for the night to have a home away from home for you and your partner.
75 – LOOKING AT THE SUNRISE DIFFERENTLY
Another fun idea originated with Olivia and Arnold. They like to celebrate big
moments in their life by getting up early in the day when all is quiet and still
– to meet the sunrise with their happiness.
They pack a sunrise picnic and drink mimosas while the sun comes up at
their local beach. If you don’t have a nearby beach, a nature place can work
just as well. Get to a place that faces the east and open up a picnic basket
filled with:
• Juice
• Champagne
• Bagels and pastries
• Napkins and a table cloth
• A portable stereo that plays romantic music
• A camera
You can sit and hold each other as the sun rises and then enjoy a beautiful
setting for a breakfast that lets you both enjoy each other’s company.
You can also stay up all night and wait for the sunrise, if you like. Just check
the local paper to see when the sun is expected to rise and whether it will be
a clear day before you make this place – for the best results.THE EVERYDAY THINGS
To love someone deeply gives you strength. Being loved by someone deeply
gives you courage.
Lao Tzu
While we’d all like to live in a romance novel sometimes, that’s not always
possible. To help recreate your romantic feelings for each other, you can
show your partner you love them with these simple ideas.
76 – HAVE DESSERT IN BED
If you’re looking to sweeten up your relationship, you can serve your partner
dessert in bed – even if you like fruit instead of cake.
What you should do is have your partner go to bed as they normally would
(this works well when your partner doesn’t immediately fall asleep, though).
When they’re getting ready for bed, bring out a tray with dessert and one
spoon or fork.
Share the dessert back and forth between each other without speaking, if
you can.
Just play some soft romantic music and see what happens.
Other ideas include:
• Always place a small chocolate on your partner’s pillow
• Make a dessert date – have your partner request a certain dessert to
be served in bed, but don’t tell them when you plan on doing it.
• Extend this ‘date’ to a whole meal in bed.
77 – GET OUT THE CAMERA
Taking pictures of your partner is a great way to show them just how much
you love them and love looking at them.
Here’s what you’ll need:• A digital camera or a Polaroid camera – you can do this with a regular
camera too, but if you want to look at the pictures immediately, you
may want to have these options available.
• A few pieces of paper
• A few large frames for photos
• A pen or makeup pencil
This is a fun activity that can bring you both together as well as show just
how much you love each other. You don’t have to do this activity with each
other, though it’s a lot more fun if you do.
Take the pen or pencil and write “I love you” on a few places on your body.
Take pictures of those places.
Then, takes pictures of yourself in various positions.
Create a collage of these pictures to give to your partner.
You can repeat this activity whenever you want to be fun and spontaneous
with your partner. You might also want to leave these pictures in various
places for your partner to find – assuming that nothing’s too risqué.
78 – GET LOST WITH YOUR PARTNER
Spontaneity is something that’s not really celebrated in this world anymore.
But love really isn’t meant to be planned out in detail. To help bring the love
and excitement back into your relationship, you need to do something wild
and crazy every once in a while.
Like getting lost with them.
All you need is a day or two as well as a car with a full tank of gas. Head in
the opposite direction of your home; just drive until you come upon a new
city or a new place that you’ve never been before.
• Take pictures.
• Try local restaurants.
• Hike in the local parks.
• Buy small trinkets• Talk to the locals.
When you feel like you’ve seen enough of one town, move onto another one
and another one until you want to go home or you find a cheap little hotel to
spend the night at.
You can bring a map with you of course, but the point is to try new things
together and have an adventure.
Don’t have a plan – just head out the door.
79 – THE AIRPORT ARRIVAL
Most of us will have to take a trip by airplane without our partner from time
to time. Why not turn it into an exciting and loving greeting?
Here are some ideas:
• Bring flowers to bring to your partner.
• Hold a large sign with their name on it.
• Make sure to be on time and waiting for them at baggage claim or
wherever they will be walking out.
• Try to surprise them when they’re walking out of the airport.
• Grab their luggage so they don’t have to carry it.
• Bring them something to drink when they get off the plane – water’s
always a good thing after being on a plane.
Of course, bringing them a small snack and a big kiss is the best way to
greet your partner after a long trip.
Since Austin’s job takes him away from Monica a few times a month, they’ve
gotten used to meeting and greeting each other at the airport. Monica has
even created a ritual that she greets him with every time. She brings him
his favorite fruit juice and makes sure that they have nice music to listen to
on the way home.
She also asks him questions about his trip, listening without talking at all.
And Austin returns the favor by always bringing something back from his
trip.
80 – THE CHEAPEST DATE EVER
Instead of having to go out and dress up for your partner, why not look for a
way to show them that you love them right at home? Think about what your
partner values in your alone time. Do they like to eat? Do they like to watch
movies with you or listen to music?
Try to find something that the both of you like that you can do with things
that you have at home.
Here’s a fun way to do it:
• If you’re making dinner together, you can look through the cupboards
to see what you have already available. And make a game of what
kind of dishes you can make.
• Cook together.
• Each can choose a movie to watch while you are eating or simply sit at
your table with soft music. Heck, you can dance with each other after
dinner if you like.
You can also try these cheap date ideas:
• Have a private card playing night.
• Play all the games in your game closet.
• Have an art night with each other.
• Go window shopping for things for your home.
81 – TRY NEW ROMANTIC THINGS EVERY DAY
Some relationships can feel stale by doing the same things every day. You
need to keep changing things up to make your partner feel like you are
constantly looking for ways to make them happy.
• Each day wake up and try to think of one thing that might make your
partner’s life easier.
• Look at each meal as an opportunity to make it into a romantic
occasion – put a flower into the middle of the table or make a heart on
their meal with one of the foods.• Place their favorite drink into a wine goblet, even if it’s diet soda.
• Place a note on the bathroom mirror that tells your partner that you
love them.
• Leave an email or a voice mail message that they will hear when
you’re apart. Tell them all the things that you love about them.
Rob had been with his wife for thirteen years and thought that maybe he
could do more to make Lucy know that she was loved by him. So, what he
did was write down every romantic thing that Lucy commented on when it
was seen in a movie or heard from her friends. Then, he had a list of things
that he could do for Lucy whenever he felt like things were getting a little
stale.
82 – BUY AN EXPENSIVE BOTTLE OF CHAMPAGNE
Even if you don’t have a reason, surprise your partner with a big bottle ofchampagne.
It can be in a glass that’s sitting out when he or she arrives home from work
or perhaps just in the middle of the day when they’re least expecting it.
Just go all out on the most expensive bottle of champagne that you can
afford as well as strawberries, cheese, and crackers. This is a light and
romantic spread that will make them feel like the most special person in the
world.
Especially when it comes out of nowhere for no reason at all.
In fact, it’s almost better to surprise them with this glass of champagne when
they least expect it.
You can also:
• Include aphrodisiac foods like oysters and chocolate to boost a loving
feeling.
• Make sure that everything looks beautiful – maybe you can cut the
cheese in heart shapes.
• Create a small plate for your partner that you can drop off at their
place of work or in their home office.You should try to have an extra bottle of champagne stored somewhere for
just such an occasion.
And even if it’s not expensive champagne, it’s the thought that counts.
83 – GO TO AN AMUSEMENT PARK
With all of the cares of the world, you need to get away from it all with your
partner from time to time. Sometimes, laughter is the best medicine for
revitalizing your relationship.
Why not head to your local playground or an amusement park for a day?
Though it can be expensive, you can have more fun in one day that you
might have on any other date.
Be sure to:
• Try to win prizes for your partner.
• Always go on rides together and hold on tightly.
• Try a ride that you’re scared of and hold onto your partner.
• Have cotton candy or elephant ears.
• Head to the children’s rides too.
Make sure to walk by all of the various stands and rides, holding hands and
enjoying the playfulness of the scene.
The point of an amusement park, fair, or playground is to be silly with each
other. Taking any relationship too seriously isn’t a guarantee that you will
have a better relationship.
84 – MASSAGES FOR ANYONE
Who hasn’t wanted to have someone rub away their stresses and their
muscle tension? When you get a massage from your loved one, you’re going
to feel their love with every stroke and rub.
Here are some tips for as great massage for the bigger muscles of the body:
• Use long movements• Push hard, but not too hard.
• Rub in circles until the muscle begins to feel looser.
• Use your thumbs on the back of the shoulders and neck.
Places that you should definitely massage:
• Back
• Shoulders
• Neck
• Hands
• Feet
To make sure that your hands move easily over the skin, invest in some
massage oil or some massage lotion. Apply this to the skin before you get
started – it should be just enough to make the skin moist, but not too greasy
or too dry. Your fingers should be able to move easily over the skin.
85 – LIGHT CANDLES WHENEVER YOU CAN
What’s great about candles is that you can create a romantic mood at any
time of the day. You can light them at breakfast, lunch, and dinner - and
every time in between.
Try making it a ritual to light candles before bed each night as well as in the
morning.
Some fun places to use candles include:
• Bring small tea lights and glasses to bring candles wherever you go –
even in the car.
• In the bathroom – light candles when you take a shower or when your
partner is taking a bath.
• Bring candles with you on picnics on the beach too.
Go shopping for candles together so that you both can enjoy the scent that
you have burning at times of the day.You don’t want to pick anything that’s too sweet or too strong. If you’re not
sure what you want, try a number of different scents until you find one that
you like.
Of course, it doesn’t look that romantic when you leave a candle unattended,
so be sure that you have the candle sitting in a metal or glass container
whenever you leave the room.
86 – LEARN OTHER WAYS TO SAY I LOVE YOU
Why not change things up by saying “I love you” in different languages? You
can easily go to a bookstore to look up the different ways to say “I love you”
in many language.
Here are some of the many ways that you can say that you love someone.
Afrikaans Ek is lief vir jou
Chickasaw Chiholloli (first 'i' nasalized)
Hopi Nu' umi unangw'ta
Mohawk Konoronhkwa
Navajo Ayor anosh'ni
Sioux Techihhila
Zuni Tom ho' ichema
Brazil/Portuguese Eu te amo
Canadian (French) Sh'teme
Czech Miluji te
Danish Jeg elsker dig
Dutch Ik hou van je, Ik hou van jou
Equador Quechua Canda munani
Farsi Tora dost daram
Filipino (Phillipino) Mahal ka ta
French Je t'aime, Je t'adore
Greek S'ayapo
Hawaiian Aloha wau ia oi
Hebrew Ani ohevet otcha (female to male)
Hungarian Szeretlek
Irish Taim i' ngra leat
Japanese Kimi o ai shiteru
Kurdish Ez te hezdikhem
Latin Te amo
Latvian Es tevi milu
Lebanese Bahibak
Luxembourgish Ech hun dech ga"r
Moroccan Kanbhik
Portuguese Eu amo te
Romanian Te iubesc, Te ador
Russian Ya tyebya lyublyu
Serbian Volim te
Slovak Lubim ta
Spanish Te amo, Te quiero
And if you can’t find one that you want to use, try looking at online sites forAmerican Indian Apache Sheth she~n zho~n
(nazalized vowel sounds)
Cheyenne Ne mohotatse(nazalized vowel sounds)
Chickasaw Chiholloli (first 'i' nasalized)
Hopi Nu' umi unangw'ta
Mohawk Konoronhkwa
Navajo Ayor anosh'ni
Sioux Techihhila
Zuni Tom ho' ichema
Brazil/Portuguese Eu te amo
Canadian (French) Sh'teme
Czech Miluji te
Danish Jeg elsker dig
Dutch Ik hou van je, Ik hou van jou
Equador Quechua Canda munani
Farsi Tora dost daram
Filipino (Phillipino) Mahal ka ta
French Je t'aime, Je t'adore
Greek S'ayapo
Hawaiian Aloha wau ia oi
Hebrew Ani ohevet otcha (female to male)
Hungarian Szeretlek
Irish Taim i' ngra leat
Japanese Kimi o ai shiteru
Kurdish Ez te hezdikhem
Latin Te amo
Latvian Es tevi milu
Lebanese Bahibak
Luxembourgish Ech hun dech ga"r
Moroccan Kanbhik
Portuguese Eu amo te
Romanian Te iubesc, Te ador
Russian Ya tyebya lyublyu
Serbian Volim te
Slovak Lubim ta
Spanish Te amo, Te quiero
other ways to translate “I love you” into another language that you prefer.
Try to find a new way to say, “I love you” for each day.
87 – PLAY HOOKY FROM WORK
If you don’t have the extra time to spend with your partner, why not call off
from work and make the time for your partner?
When you’re both in jobs that you can call off from without any
repercussions, you will want to call off one morning and then tell your
partner to call off too.
There are plenty of ways to spend this day:
• Stay in bed all day.
• Don’t change out of your pajamas.
• Have comfort foods – macaroni and cheese
• Watch daytime television
• Make crank calls
• Paint your nails or have your partner paint your nails
• Make chicken noodle soup
If you want to go somewhere on this hooky day, you might want to go far
away from the town that you live – just in case someone might see you and
get you in trouble.
Denise and Marvin try to take at least one ‘sick’ day every other month off
with each other. They sleep in late and make coffee for each other – even
splurging on fancy espresso drinks with their home espresso machine.Then they grab a lot of blankets, sit on the couch and let each other have
one hour’s control of the remote.
In the afternoons, they watch movies and take a nap with each other.
By taking this time together, they get to be alone without any distractions,
just being with each other.
88 – WARM UP THE SHEETS OR COOL THEM DOWN
A fun way to make your winters full of love is to warm up your sheets before
you head into bed. You can even warm up the sheets without telling your
partner that you did it.
This is what you have to do:
• Take the sheets and the pillowcases and put them in the microwave
for just a few seconds.
• Or you can iron the sheets and pillowcases to warm them up.
• Put them on the bed before you jump into bed – they will stay warm
for a few minutes.
• You can also take those hand warmer packets and place them between
the pillows and the sheets to help keep them warm all day.
• Make sure the heat or the AC has been on before they come home so
that the temperature is always comfortable.
Of course, you might want to cool the sheets down if it’s really hot outside.
That’s also an easy way to show that you love your partner – just put the
sheets inside a plastic bag in a freezer for a few minutes.
You can also place ice packs in the bed to help keep things cool when you’re
trying to sleep in the summer.
Put a fan in the room too on those hot days and have a spray bottle filled
with water to help cool down your partner – when they least expect it!
89 – CHEER YOUR PARTNER ON
If your partner is on a team or in a group of some sort that you can watch,
you should go and support them whenever you can. Here are some ways to
really show your support:
• Hold up a sign with their name on it
• Shout out your support as loudly as you can
• Show up for every game
• Wear clothes that show your support
• Keep track of your partner’s success
• Learn about the game or the sport so that you can talk with your
partner about it.
• Help them with practice or other preparations for the game time.
• Surprise them once in a while by coming to a game that you said you
couldn’t attend.
Partners like to see that their lovers support the things that they do – even if
they say that they don’t.
It shows that you care about the things that your partner does when they’re
not with you. You don’t have to join the team with them, but just showing
up from time to time can show your partner how much you love them.
DO YOU REALLY NEED A
REASON?
Love is shown in your deeds, not in your words.
Fr. Jerome Cummings
Loving your partner means loving everything about them – from what you’veREASON?
Love is shown in your deeds, not in your words.
Fr. Jerome Cummings
When you love someone, you really shouldn’t need a reason to say or show
that you love someone. But if you’re still stumped for ideas, here are some
more ways to show your partner just how special they are to you.
While it might not seem like a way to show someone that you love them,
doing the car maintenance for your partner will show them that you’re
concerned about their safety when they’re not around to protect you.
And that’s a very loving gesture.
Why not…
• Get their oil changed for them
• Bring their car into the shop every six months
• Check the air pressure in their tires
• Make sure they have enough oil in their car
• Fill up their gas tank when you notice it’s low
• Clean and vacuum out the car
These little steps are easy for anyone to do and they can help keep your
partner safe from harm as well as keep their car in great working order.
Doing these things for a partner that doesn’t remember to do them is all the
better. Some partners just don’t have the time to get around to maintaining
their car. Why not step in to help?
Jackson always made sure that Moira’s car was up to date on the service that
was needed or any other small maintenance tasks. Once a week, when she
was sleeping in, he would take her car to the local gas station and service
shop to fill it up with gas, vacuum and wash the exterior, check the oil and
the tires in addition to getting any repairs done.
Of course, Moira appreciated them, but not so much as the cup of coffee he
always brought back for her too.
that you love someone. But if you’re still stumped for ideas, here are some
more ways to show your partner just how special they are to you.
90 – DO THEIR CAR MAINTENANCE
While it might not seem like a way to show someone that you love them,
doing the car maintenance for your partner will show them that you’re
concerned about their safety when they’re not around to protect you.
And that’s a very loving gesture.
Why not…
• Get their oil changed for them
• Bring their car into the shop every six months
• Check the air pressure in their tires
• Make sure they have enough oil in their car
• Fill up their gas tank when you notice it’s low
• Clean and vacuum out the car
These little steps are easy for anyone to do and they can help keep your
partner safe from harm as well as keep their car in great working order.
Doing these things for a partner that doesn’t remember to do them is all the
better. Some partners just don’t have the time to get around to maintaining
their car. Why not step in to help?
Jackson always made sure that Moira’s car was up to date on the service that
was needed or any other small maintenance tasks. Once a week, when she
was sleeping in, he would take her car to the local gas station and service
shop to fill it up with gas, vacuum and wash the exterior, check the oil and
the tires in addition to getting any repairs done.
Of course, Moira appreciated them, but not so much as the cup of coffee he
always brought back for her too.
91 – BUY THEM A PICTURE OF THEIR HISTORY
known of them to where they’ve been in the past.
If you want to celebrate your partner, you can do the following things:
• Take them on a road trip or other trip to their hometown where they
were born.
• Ask them to take you on a tour of their old neighborhoods
• Buy them a picture of their home city or the area where they grew up.
• Look into a book all about their home city’s history and then buy it for
them. You can even attach a book about your current city to
commemorate the history you’re building right at that moment.
• Take pictures of the two of you in the various cities that you grew up
in.
• Ask then about their childhood memories.
Every few years, going back to the place where your partner grew up is a
fantastic way to celebrate the time that has passed as well as the future that
lies ahead.
You can do some research on your own as well to see what features of their
town you can bring up at other holidays – for example, you might want to
send them a picture of the local teams winning touchdown. Or perhaps order
some of your partner’s favorite ice cream from the local shop that he or she
used to go to.
92 – LEARN ABOUT THEIR FAMILY
Beyond learning about the place where they grew up, it’s a good idea to
learn about the family of your partner.
Take the time to sit down with your partner and their family to really get to
know them as people and not just some relatives that you have to impress.
Talk to them honestly about things that you enjoy as well as your dreams
and plans. Then, ask them about their lives too.
Here are some tips to get to know the family:
• Ask a lot of questions.
• Listen to the answers.• Create a family album for your partner and talk to his or her relatives
to get help.
• Help them construct their family tree.
• Compile stories from the relatives to make a special book that can be
given to all of the family members.
• Celebrate major holidays with the relatives, if you can.
• Ask their mother about embarrassing stories.
• Let them tell their stories multiple times, even if you have heard them
five times before.
• Offer to hold your own family gatherings with everyone
• Plan a family reunion every few years, if you can.
• Learn about their religions or traditions.
When you take the time to get to know your partner’s family, you’re taking
the time to get to know them as a person too. These are people that have
known your partner for much longer than you have. And while it might be
difficult at first, it’s a task that you should attempt.
Your partner will appreciate it.
93 – TREAT THEIR FRIENDS WELL
Another great way to show your partner that you love them is to make sure
you treat their friends like they were your own.
This can be a slippery slope though if you treat their friends better than you
treat your partner, so be sure to remember that when you’re starting to talk
to their friends.
Here are some ways to show that you care about their friends:
• Remember their birthdays – Write them down somewhere and send
them a quick email that wishes them a happy day.
• Interact with them when you’re out with your partner.• Ask them questions about their jobs and lives.
• If you share a common interest, try to meet to share in this activity.
• Give your partner space to be with their friends and not with you –
When you give your partner time for a ‘boys night out’ or a ‘girls night
out,’ you’re letting them know that you trust them and that you want
them to be happy.
• Plan things for your partner and their friends – If you notice that a
particular concert is coming up that your partner and their friends
would like, buy some tickets and don’t invite yourself along.
Diane wasn’t sure if she could be friends with her husband’s friends, but she
wanted to try.
So, she organized a poker night at their house and invited all of his friends to
come over for food, games, and even movies. Since she knew how much
they liked poker, she got a few good sets of cards, learned the rules, and
bought all of their favorite snacks.
While her husband knew she was planning this, when the guys came over
and were genuinely surprised at how great the night was going to be, they
instantly liked Diane and she had a starting point to talk to them.
And she tried not to beat them during the game too.
94 – LET THEM PLAY THEIR MUSIC LOUDLY
Everyone needs to let loose on occasion, so why not show your partner thatyou love them by supporting this?
Even if your partner doesn’t like their music loud or doesn’t like to get
‘crazy,’ you can make sure they know they have the space to cut loose when
they feel the need.
This requires that you let loose too and stop taking your relationship so
seriously.
Here are some fun ideas:
• Let them turn the music up
• Choose stupid comedies for a movie night• Have a food fight
• Splash in the puddles
• Create huge sandwiches for a ‘Dagwood’ night
• Drink root beer floats in the middle of the winter
• Go sledding
• Head to the local playground to swing
There are plenty of ways to get goofy with your partner and it can invigorate
your relationship again.
95 – BUY IMPRACTICAL GIFTS
If you’re ever been the recipient of something from your partner that didn’t
quite inspire a loving feeling, you probably got something that you needed
instead of something that you wanted.
And while these gifts may have had the best intentions, birthdays and
anniversaries are really about doing something that’s out of the ordinary,
instead of giving a practical vacuum, for example.
Want some ideas for impractical gifts?
• Buy them candy for their Christmas stocking
• Wrap up flowers
• Buy trashy novels for them
• Invest in a fancy piece of jewelry
• Buy him that universal remote he’s been eyeing
• Upgrade their cell phone to a model that’s way more than they need
While Kyle thought he was on the right track for gift giving by handing
Hannah a new piece of décor for their apartment, he began to realize that by
not giving her a choice in this decision, she was putting things in their
apartment that she didn’t necessarily like.Though Hannah was an interior designer and loved to decorate, she wasn’t
always happy that she felt like she ‘had’ to keep the things that he bought.
To help make his gift giving a bit more fun and spontaneous, he started
giving her a card with the room name on it (i.e. living room). She was then
given money or a gift card to decorate that room any way that she wanted
to.
96 – DRESS UP FOR NO REASON
Yes, it’s easier to sit around in the same old sweatpants and t-shirt when
you’ve know your partner for a long time, but where’s the romance in that?
If you really want to show them that you care about your appearance, why
not dress up when they least expect it? When you come home from work or
when they come home from work, they can have an unexpected surprise.
Try to…
• Style your hair
• Take a shower
• Add some of their favorite cologne or perfume to your neck
• Put on nice clothes
• Throw on a dress
• Try on those new heels
• Shave
When you put forth the extra effort for your appearance, you can start a very
loving mood for the afternoon or the evening.
And since you’re all dressed up, why not go somewhere special too?
97 – DO ALL THE CHORES FOR THE DAY
If you’ve been noticing that your partner has a lot to do lately, you might
want to step in and take over some of the chores that may have gotten
pushed to the side.Without any need for them to return the favor, do all of the chores in the
house for a day (or more) to show them that you are watching out for them.
You can also twist this loving gesture to:
• Always clean the room that they hate to clean
• Always take care of your pets
• Create a ‘get out of doing the dishes for free’ card
• Have your children help around the house more
• Make sure that you’re always picking up the stuff that you leave
around the house.
• Straighten the bookshelf
• Dust
• Put the toys away
Whenever Tiffany noticed that Evan was getting busier at work, she would
create a large sign that said:
NO CHORES FOR EVAN FOR FIVE DAYS
She posted it in the hallway where he would see it after he woke up. It
really helped him feel like he was being treated like a king and it also helped
him focus more on the work that he had to do instead of having to think
about chores that were being skipped at home.
At the end of the five days, the sign would be taken down and things would
return to normal – or he would take over for Tiffany for a few days.
98 – LEARN A RECIPE FROM MOM
Whether you realize it or not, your partner’s mom is still one of the most
important people in their lives (in most cases). This is a woman that raised
them and protected them, so it’s no wonder that their mom is someone they
feel should be respected and revered.
So, if you want to show your partner that you love them, there are a number
of ways to honor their mom:• Find a recipe from their mom and learn how to make it JUST the way
that mom did – This might take special lessons from their mom, but
that will be even more touching to your partner.
• Have their mom give them their recipe book to copy and try on your
own.
• Have mom over often to show her that you love her just as much as
your partner does.
• Always remember mother’s day for her too.
• Always remember her birthday.
• If you have a question about something that she knows a lot about,
call her up and ask her for the answer.
• Ask your partner about their mom – What was she like when you were
growing up? What are some stories about her?
When you take the time to show that you genuinely care about your
partner’s mother, you allow them to see that you love everything about them
– and especially where they came from.
You might even want to write their mom a little thank you note for raising
and giving birth to such a wonderful person.
99 – GIVE THEM THE GIFT OF READING
If you have a partner that has specific interests, you might want to show that
you’re supporting those interests.
There are hundreds of websites that are available to learn more about their
hobbies, but who has the time to find the ones that are really relevant?
Instead, why not give your partner the gift of words and knowledge about
their particular interest?
• Give them a year’s subscription to a magazine that offers pertinent
information about their particular hobby.
• Renew the subscription every year, if they like it.
• Subscribe to a newspaper that might offer insight into their hobbies –
i.e. finances, sports, etc.• Keep a special place for these magazines so they can refer to them at
a later time.
• Ask them about the things that they’ve read and ask if they’ve learned
anything interesting.
• Read the magazines yourself.
When you show your support for your partner’s hobbies, you show them just
how much you love the person that they are.
For extra credit, you can also:
• Take them to an exhibition of their favorite hobby.
• Let them know when you see that their favorite interest is the subject
of a talk or a class in your area.
• Take them to museums to study the history of their hobby.
100 – ALWAYS REMEMBER THEIR BIRTHDAY
If you don’t have a good memory or you just can’t seem to remember your
partner’s birthday, you might find yourself in more hot water than you’d like.
Celebrating the day that they entered this world is a sincere way to love
them and tell them that you love them. Here are some ways to remember
this day each and every year:
• Sign up from a free event reminder program
• Set an alarm on your cell phone the day before
• Have your friends remind you
• Mark it on every calendar
• Make an appointment that day in your day planner or PDA
• Make a reservation months in advance that needs to be confirmed
Thought it’s true that Brian loved Rebecca, it never seemed like he could
remember when her birthday was.It was close to the holidays, so he ended up celebrating it with Christmas,
which was nice, but seemed to be the easy way out, in Rebecca’s opinion.
To help remind himself of the day, he found a countdown program that he
could install into his computer at work. Each day, he would see just how
many days, hours, minutes, and seconds that he had left before it was her
birthday.
With all of that constant reminding, he began to take more time to think
about what kind of gift she might want that would be very special.
On the first year that he didn’t have to be reminded of her big day, he gave
her a watch. On the back, he inscribed:
I will always remember our love.
And from that day on, he did.
101 – JUST TELL THEM OVER AND OVER
There are plenty of fancy ways that you can tell someone that you love
them:
• Shout it from the rooftops
• Have an airplane create your sentiments in smoke trails
• Email them
• Send them cards
• Buy them gifts
• Bring home flowers
• Build furniture for them
• Fill up their gas tank
• Take them out for dinner
• Play hooky
• Bring home the milk they asked forBut even these things aren’t enough when it comes to truly expressing the
love that you feel for your partner.
And some of them can be expensive, so what do you do then?
Tell them that you love them.
Tell them that you love them.
Tell them that you love them.
Tell them that you love them.
Tell them that you love them.
Tell them that you love them.
Just keep telling them that you love them each and every moment that you
can.
Tell them:
• In the car
• In the morning
• At night
• In the middle of the night
• When you’re leaving
• When you’ve come home
• When it’s a special occasion
• When it’s just another ordinary day
• When you really mean it
CONCLUSION
Love is always bestowed as a gift - freely, willingly, and without expectation -
We don't love to be loved; we love to love.
Leo F. Buscaglia
The love that we feel for our partner is something that we should always be
expressing to them. Whether we’re in a good part of our relationship or
having difficulties, sometimes just showing them how much we love them
can make things all better.
True love is given without any thought to getting something in return – aside
from the love that our partners also have for us.
Love is always bestowed as a gift - freely, willingly, and without expectation -
We don't love to be loved; we love to love.
Leo F. Buscaglia
The love that we feel for our partner is something that we should always be
expressing to them. Whether we’re in a good part of our relationship or
having difficulties, sometimes just showing them how much we love them
can make things all better.
True love is given without any thought to getting something in return – aside
from the love that our partners also have for us.
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