“Love life and life will love you back. Love people and they will love you back.” - Arthur Rubinstein. When is the last time you and your main man (or woman) snuck off last minute for a happy hour that turned into an marvelous night out, complete with a few too many drinks, engrossing discussion, and maybe even dirty dancing? Yeah, it’s been a while for me too. Having children can really throw a wrench into spontaneous crazy nights out.
Since date nights have to be pretty planned out, we have to get a little spontaneity in other ways. How about surprising your husband with a fun gift, like a jersey from his favorite football team or the NFL Sunday Ticket from your cable company (can you tell what’s on at my house?). Maybe surprising him with a tee time and getting his best bud lined up would be the thing that would make his week. It can even be something really small, like picking up his favorite ice cream or bringing him a special coffee at work. Steve and I used to be so good about writing each other little notes every morning, and we’ve even gotten lazy about that. I am inspired to be a more fun, spontaneous, and thoughtful wife. Really, it’s just about making your spouse feel important and special.
According to research discussed in Jennifer Gill Rosier’s new book, “Make Love, Not Scrapbooks”, giving your spouse gifts is proven to enhance even long-standing and established relationships. Even if you’re not feeling crazy about your man at the moment, showing him that you still care and want him by surprising him with a thoughtful gift might be just the thing to re-ignite your relationship. You might think, “well, he hasn’t gotten me a gift for anything besides my birthday in years,” and to that I say you have to give out what you want to receive.
Here are a few ideas from “Make Love, Not Scrapbooks” that I really liked:
- Surprise him with a romantic meal after the kids go to bed
- Write a poem (this would have to be a silly one for me to pull this off)
- Jump in the shower with him
- Plan a secret vacation
- Leave a note
Have fun with this!
