Don't need a day for romance?

[AntePrincess]

In browsing the Valentines Day threads, a frequent theme was that a couple doesn't need a special day to express their feelings for one another, they can do it throughout the year. I personally love Valentines Day, but I would really enjoy hearing how everyone keeps the spark going the rest of the year. I definitely have an ulterior motive: my best girlfriend and I (not to mention my husband and I) have a good natured rivalry to see who can spoil their mate more. She's definitely "winning," but she doesn't have too small kids.

To share my two better free ideas: everyday I go to someecards.com (I just like their look the best, and DH likes it too) and use their card creator to make a coupon for something I can do for him. Recent coupons were for an uninterrupted nap, for a "get out of cooking free" card, any single question answered promptly and truthfully, a back rub, and so on. There are lots of non-free ones like a spree at the computer store and ones I wouldn't post on a family board, too. My other freebie is that I often use our iTunes to create "mix tapes" for him from the music we already own.

I borrow ideas shamelessly and will be happy to post more if a conversation gets rolling!

 

[paintnolish]

Dh makes me funny homemade cards. He also often brings me little treats...coffee, PB cups, wine (I was having a bad day yesterday). He does a lot of little, random things....I was shopping in the freezer section and he wrote out initials in a heart in the mist on the door!

 

[lovesmurfs]

DH is very task-oriented -- he uses a Franklin Planner and Outlook ad nauseum.

So every so often I send an Outlook task assignment to "Kiss Your Wife" or other some such "activities"..... It's fun when the reminder comes up! I'll also pick a date in advance in his planner and write something similar on his task list.

20 years and going strong!

 

[Jennasis]

I meet DH for lunch at work a few times a month. We give each other massages. I bake him cookies. He cooks me dinner every night. We say I love you every day.

 

[DisneyBamaFan]

Love can be found every day in a look, a touch or a smile. The way that you look at your spouse, your body language in his presence (and his in yours) will do more for your relationship than any gift, and it is free - you can give it over and over at no cost.

Try keeping score of that...

 

[MickeyMomOfThree]

I love Valentines Day too, may be though because all year is great. I do know some people feel pressure on the day but it seems to be people who have other issues. (Maybe not everyone, but of the people I know that seems to be the case.)

Some things that I do for DH. Anytime I am going to be out near where he works I will go and put chocolate kisses in his car. (Be careful in the summer, learned that they hard way!) Just to let him know I was thinking about him. I send him cards just because at work or sneak them into his laptop bag so he finds them later in the day. I make him breakfast every morning including a small steak and eggs every Monday, to start his week on a good note and to thank him for all he does for our family, going to a job he works far too hard at. We date at least once a week. And it is hard with little kids but a date can be snuggling on the couch after the kids go to bed with a movie from Redbox. For us, now that we have a teenager, we get out more, but for many years dates were at home but they were still just as needed and appreciated.

Another thing I sometimes do is write a love note on his window (Crayola window markers) to find in the morning or, when he's working really late I'll do it then. (I left Windex wipes in the car to quickly erase it.)

I think the most fun thing I do at Valentines Day, and cheap, is I go and buy a box of Valentines (cheap, Dollar Tree ones,) and on the back write something I love about him. I do one for each year we have been together, this year was 19. Then I tape them all over the inside of his car. He usually leaves them up for about a week and then they go in the glove box.

Basically I wake up every day and think, how can I show this man what he means to me and how can I make him smile and I do it. I think I hit the jackpot with my DH and want him to know that.

I too would like to see other people's ideas.

 

[wvjules]

I LOVE LOVE LOVE Valentine's day too. That doesn't mean that we don't do romantic things daily. We say "I Love You" every time we talk on the phone and when we get up, before bed, and several times in between. Kisses on the neck while doing the dishes or sitting at the table, pats on the behind while pasisng in the hallway, etc. Valentine's definately isnt the only day for romance...

 

[minkydog]

We've been married 28+ years and we still say I love you several times a day. DH makes me a pot of hot tea every morning. I let him nap when he needs to. DH helps DD16 with her algebra so that I don't have to lose face with her. I pick her up from Dance at 8pm so DH can catch the beginning of "Chuck" or "Bones." Our idea of a GREAT valentines day together is to take the RV down to someplace warm for a few days and just hang out with our books,DVDs, and a little firewood.

 

[wdwfan16]

When the alarm goes off in the morning DH rolls over and kisses me. When on of us is leaving the house we get a goodbye kiss. When we return a welcome home kiss. And we end the day with a goodnight kiss. This is just the tip of the iceburg.

I forgot to add that we love to celebrate all Holidays, birthdays, our anniversary and any other reason we can find.

 

[Mrs. Charming]

I'm "meh" on V-day, but DH and I do little things, like hold hands, little glances, kisses, and telling each other we love each other. The little stuff means the most.

 

[tinkntraining]

Although I love Valentine's Day too, I think making everyday valentine's day is the secret to a lifetime of romance!

It's all the little things. I put love notes in my DH's lunch and kiss the bathroom mirror with my lipsticked lips so my kiss is the first thing he sees in AM! He gets my pot of coffee ready every AM so all I have to do is pour the water in. We never leave the house without a kiss and a squeeze from the other. We have indoor picnics with wine and cheese in the wintertime. When he can't sleep, I rub his back to relax him. He cleans the snow off my car. I fix his favorite meals. One Valentine's day, he bought each of us (me, DD15 and DD14) one long-stemmed red rose for each year he'd shared with us. He does most of the grocery shopping. He wore Mickey ears with his name embroidered on the back all through Magic Kingdom. We hold hands on the couch.

He is my soulmate and my very best friend! I'm so lucky.

18 years and counting!

 

[Liberty Belle]

In browsing the Valentines Day threads, a frequent theme was that a couple doesn't need a special day to express their feelings for one another, they can do it throughout the year. I personally love Valentines Day, but I would really enjoy hearing how everyone keeps the spark going the rest of the year. I definitely have an ulterior motive: my best girlfriend and I (not to mention my husband and I) have a good natured rivalry to see who can spoil their mate more. She's definitely "winning," but she doesn't have too small kids.

To share my two better free ideas: everyday I go to someecards.com (I just like their look the best, and DH likes it too) and use their card creator to make a coupon for something I can do for him. Recent coupons were for an uninterrupted nap, for a "get out of cooking free" card, any single question answered promptly and truthfully, a back rub, and so on. There are lots of non-free ones like a spree at the computer store and ones I wouldn't post on a family board, too. My other freebie is that I often use our iTunes to create "mix tapes" for him from the music we already own.

I borrow ideas shamelessly and will be happy to post more if a conversation gets rolling!

I'm sorry your kids are too small!

Thanks for the link. I'll check it out. I'm always amazed at what little things will do in a relationship to keep the love flowing. Yesterday my nerves were frayed from being cooped up in the house (we've not had any school this week due to snow) with two kids who argued the whole day and when my husband called on his way home from work I snapped at him. He chose to ignore it and be extra sweet to me when he got home because he knew I was stressed. I appreciated that so much and I told him more than once. And he appreciated me telling him.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I responded on one of those threads. I can't say we actively keep the spark going by doing little tokens all the time...

We just savor our anniversary more than valentine's day and we purpose to celebrate the anniversary of our commitment to one another.

Also--we are one of those weird couple's--if our anniversary actual "date" is not conducive to us doing something special--we can slide it to an alternate date, but will do something on the actual date like exchange of cards or gifts or whatever.

Our favorite movie is "You've Got Mail"--probably b/c we sort of hooked up in a chat room situation in an intranet (at UF--not the internet!).

Some of our tokens and expressions of love are related to different moments in that movie.

For example--at the beginning of the school year--I think on our first homeschool day of this school year, I sent him a picture (b/c I was spur of the moment) of a bouqet of Freshly Sharpened pencils.

On one occasion a while back--I was having a super bad day somewhere (I think I was out of town ) and he sent me daisies. The note on the card said "After all, daises are the friendliest flower".

We are not a sappy couple--but we can up the sap factor enough within our comfort zones with references from that movie.

 

[TLHB70]

I love Valentines Day too, may be though because all year is great. I do know some people feel pressure on the day but it seems to be people who have other issues. (Maybe not everyone, but of the people I know that seems to be the case.)

Some things that I do for DH. Anytime I am going to be out near where he works I will go and put chocolate kisses in his car. (Be careful in the summer, learned that they hard way!) Just to let him know I was thinking about him. I send him cards just because at work or sneak them into his laptop bag so he finds them later in the day. I make him breakfast every morning including a small steak and eggs every Monday, to start his week on a good note and to thank him for all he does for our family, going to a job he works far too hard at. We date at least once a week. And it is hard with little kids but a date can be snuggling on the couch after the kids go to bed with a movie from Redbox. For us, now that we have a teenager, we get out more, but for many years dates were at home but they were still just as needed and appreciated.

Another thing I sometimes do is write a love note on his window (Crayola window markers) to find in the morning or, when he's working really late I'll do it then. (I left Windex wipes in the car to quickly erase it.)

I think the most fun thing I do at Valentines Day, and cheap, is I go and buy a box of Valentines (cheap, Dollar Tree ones,) and on the back write something I love about him. I do one for each year we have been together, this year was 19. Then I tape them all over the inside of his car. He usually leaves them up for about a week and then they go in the glove box.

Basically I wake up every day and think, how can I show this man what he means to me and how can I make him smile and I do it. I think I hit the jackpot with my DH and want him to know that.

I too would like to see other people's ideas.

I love your ideas! I am going to try some of them!

DH and I always kiss before he leaves for work each day, kiss when he gets home, and kiss before bed. We say "I love you" several times throughout the day. We do have date nights now that DDs are older and able to stay home. I also ask him each morning, before he leaves for work, "Is there anything I can do for you today?" I try to do anything that he asks to help him in his day.

 

[Feralpeg]

I remember a few years back. I was talking to a couple of guys who worked in my department. They were scrambling around trying to get flowers for Valentine's Day and complaining about how expensive they were. My suggestion was to simply get their wives a card and write a personal message inside. They thought I was crazy. I tried to explain to them that something from the heart always means much more. Instead of spending a fortune on Valentine's flowers, I suggested that one day, for no special occasion, they should send their wives a single red rose with the message "Just because I love you". It would mean so much more than receiving flowers on a holiday because they were expected. They just didn't get it.

 

[MarilIncredible]

We hold hands and hug and give each other little back rubs.

He draws hearts in the steam on the shower door when we get in together.

I make him surprise snacks when he is working hard into the evenings.

He tells me I look hot/sexy when I come home from work (after a one hours bus ride - right!).

It is just a lot of little things. I don't need a card or a bunch of flowers to know how he feels about me.

 

[MickeyMomOfThree]

I agree it is TOTALLY the little things. Sure, we know they love us, but hearing it is so nice and visa-versa. We say I love you and kiss every time one is leaving or arriving, waking up or going to bed.

I think the a couple of things that are my favorite that my hubby does are when he calls me on the phone, says nothing, but plays the radio when "our song" is on and I just listen and know exactly what he's saying or when he calls me mid-day to say, "Hey, I just wanted you to know I was thinking of you and hoped you were having a good day." And that's it, no converstaion (usually he's way too busy at work to talk but it's nice to hear his voice.) Those things are free and make me smile inside and out. Romance does not have to be expensive (thank goodness or we'd be in trouble.)

 

[AntePrincess]

Wow! I didn't anticipate such a response, so I took some time to check back in. I guess we have a lot of affectionate couples on the Dis?

Liberty Belle, Whoops, caught me in a Freudian slip there. I agree, one of the things I appreciate the most about my husband is how quick he is to catch it if I drop a ball.

wdwfan16, I also celebrate an amazing number of occasions. One of our standard Christmas gifts is a "family almanac" with holidays, dates of important events like upcoming reunions, birthdays, and anniversaries. It gets VERY full.

MickeyMomofThree, Crayola window markers? I'll have to check that out. Speaking of Crayola: Crayola cookie dough is fantastic (easy to make your own, but tough to make as malleable)! That's how we decorate all our cookies now.

DisneyBamaFan, I'm cheerfully materialistic, so I love giving and getting little gifts all the time.

lovesmurfs, That's inspiring!

 

[Liberty Belle]

Wow! I didn't anticipate such a response, so I took some time to check back in. I guess we have a lot of affectionate couples on the Dis?

Liberty Belle, Whoops, caught me in a Freudian slip there. I agree, one of the things I appreciate the most about my husband is how quick he is to catch it if I drop a ball.

wdwfan16, I also celebrate an amazing number of occasions. One of our standard Christmas gifts is a "family almanac" with holidays, dates of important events like upcoming reunions, birthdays, and anniversaries. It gets VERY full.

MickeyMomofThree, Crayola window markers? I'll have to check that out. Speaking of Crayola: Crayola cookie dough is fantastic (easy to make your own, but tough to make as malleable)! That's how we decorate all our cookies now.

DisneyBamaFan, I'm cheerfully materialistic, so I love giving and getting little gifts all the time.

lovesmurfs, That's inspiring!

I was just teasing. Feel free to tease me about the many typos I make.

I love all these ideas. Great thread, OP.