Find other couples friends.

We all come into a relationship with our friends and like them or not it is part of being in a relationship to deal with them. The best thing that can happen is they get in a relationship, also. Then you can do things together as a couple and maybe just maybe the other partners will get along or become closer. As your relationship gets longer and times change you need to look for friends that are couples. Ones that are dedicated to being a couple and have a strong relationship. The people can help your relationship out greatly. For starters you can do couples things with them like going out or just hanging out talking. You will have similar interests especially if both couples have children. A good place to look for these couples is at your child's school having kids the same age is a big plus. You can even form a co-op with them and take turns watching the children so the other couple can have a date and not have to spring for a babysitter. Couples can offer support to each other to get through hard times. The bigger your ring of couples the better because you might have certain couples you enjoy going to shows with and others that you can experience the outdoors with. Open your relationship up to other couples and build a foundation of great friends it can make your relationship so much stronger.

Give the gift of time!

There is one thing that you can give our partner that is the most valuable gift ever. That is the gift of time. This can be given in many different ways. You can give them time to themselves, to read, or relax or just do whatever they want to do. You can also give them the gift of your time, taking time out of your schedule to spend quality time with them. Take a day off work to enjoy it with them or to take them someplace special. You can never go wrong giving the gift of time no matte how you do it. Maybe you agree to watch the children while they exercises or take them away so they can have a totally quite house to do whatever they want. Again this is the most valuable item you can distribute to them and maybe you would like this gift also at times. Don't be afraid to ask for it. Tell them you would like them to schedule you in some time or that you really need to get something accomplished and need some alone time. If your partner truly loves you they will understand the gift will be given.

Above is the great painting by Salvador Dali

Make up your own words to the movie.

Hello I was just cutting back some brush over there and realized it was time for the hockey tryouts, my name is Happy KILLMORE!

Want a fun little think to do together that will get you both laughing. Take a movie you are both familiar with and then turn down the sound and make up words for the people speaking in the movie. Yes, you are doing your own voice overs. Make it as silly as possible but try to keep it going as long as you can. Laughing and being silly together is a great exercise to perform to keep your relationship strong and close. Make it suggestive if you want to be a little intimate during the evening. Heck include your children for a more dramatic evening. Teaching your kids that it's okay for their parents to have fun and laugh together is a wonderful way to start them out right for when they have a relationship. What ever the genre of the movie you pick make sure to make your voiceovers as far from that genre as possible. For instance if you pick a western cowboy movie then make the voiceovers of inner city rappers, or if the movie is romantic then make it flow like the three stooges. You can only imagine the fun you can have with these. It might just become a tradition in your house.

You love is never ending.

You know we think that when we give our love to our partner it stops there. We give our partner a kiss and tell them we love them. We don't think about how that simple act of love can grow and magnify. For starters it puts our partner in a good mood, so that automatically start feelings better and special. They in turn will be happy and spread that love around as they go about their day. The people that benefit from that spreading of love are people like your children, coworkers, and everyone they interact with. They will be friendly at the bank at work, even towards people they meet on the street. Eventually that love might even come back to your during the day. Be it someone you partner passed during the day or you children when you get home that love will return to you creating a never ending cycle. I didn't even mention how much love you will get in return from you partner. Start you cycle right now and walk over and kiss your partner for no reason, tell them you love them and walk away. No you have set the never ending love in motion, enjoy it when it comes back.

Take advantage of time apart.

There are times when you and your partner will have to spend some nights apart. Be it work, children commitments, or just functions they are attending you will have to break apart. This might not be hard for some couples. However, some people have trouble sleeping when their partner is not in bed with them, or they seem lost and don't know what to do for sure. If you are one of these people that your life revolves around your relationship then you need to prepare for nights apart. Save things you need to get done for you times apart, rent movies you have wanted to watch that your partner might not enjoy, catch up with some old friends, anything you can think of to keep your mind off the time. By doing this you will soon find that the time has passed and you are ready for bed. Another thing you might do is stay up later than normal so that you are really tired when you got to bed. This way you don't lay in bed and think about that special person that is not beside you. Remember the time will pass and use it to your advantage. Get things done so that you have time with your partner when they return. Clean the house if you have nothing else to do that will occupy a lot of time.

Dating for Couples with children!

Many of you out there are in your relationships and are blessed with the wonders of having children. This is absolutely one of the best feelings in the world being a parent. Yet, it makes it very tough to make plans to go out on dates. Not only do you have to find a place to go that fits within your budget, now you have to find a babysitter and you are back to having a curfew. If you live near you family, you might be able to get the cheapest and best babysitters around in your family. Once you have secured the sitter the next thing you have to worry about is the unexpected. Children have a way of getting sick at the most unwanted time or they find a way to make you feel guilty about going out without them. Sickness is something you can't get around, however feeling guilty is one that if you are getting plenty of quality time with your child, you should make yourself numb to it. Adults need their time to and both of you need time to get out and have adult things to do. You need to go places that don't have puppets or people dressed as animals to entertain yourself. You might want to consume a beer or mixed drink which you can't do with the children, or you might want to try a food that might not be to good for a little ones pallet. No matter the reason parents need their time, too. So latch on to a good babysitter and start planning now to have a normal date night. Be it Sunday afternoon, or Saturday night. By doing this you will keep yourself fresh and ready to spend that time with your little ones by knowing that on a certain date you will be able to act like grown ups and get to have conversations that don't include Sponge Bob Square Pants.

Make sure when you partner wakes up on Christmas they are just as excited as when they were a kid.

Remember the wonderful feeling when you were a kid and you woke up on Christmas morning. You would run out of bed with your feet barely hitting the floor. Now we might not be able to get each other that excited about Christmas but you can make it a fun festive day for the two of you. If you have any children in the house you shouldn't have any problem. Watching them is excitement enough. If you don't have any children in the house then you need to make plans to have a wonderful day together. Get up early and make a wonderful breakfast together. Then Shower and slip into some warm comfy clothing and exchange gifts. Then you have the rest of the day to enjoy. Maybe a nice walk on Christmas day would be good or relaxing with some hot cocoa might be your thing. If your social creatures invite some friends over to play board games or watch movies. The point of the day is to make it special not like all the other days of the year. Make sure to set some time for the two of you to get a little closer during this wonderful day, make love, snuggle, and sleep in each others arms. Now that my friends is a very Merry Christmas.

Get Jolly for Christmas

We are no officially in the Christmas season, and being festive can be really romantic between the two of you. First thing you need to do is pick a theme for your Christmas Tree. Pick something that appeals to both of your, be it cartoon characters, snowmen, or even your favorite football team. If you don't want to do a theme then you can pick a specific color to decorate your tree in. The most important thing is for the two of you to do it together. Building memories for a lifetime, make sure to take plenty of pictures and spend as many hours sitting together looking at your work of art during this holiday season.

If you have little ones at home you can let them help pick the theme, and obviously you want them to help with the decorations. Snuggle down with them and some hot chocolate and enjoy the wonderful season with these little wonders.

Make a Date Night.

I hate saying this over and over but our lifes are so busy that unless we spacifically set times to do things a lot of times we never get around to them. With that said I want you to pick a day of the week that the two of you can have a date. I am not talking about going out with the kids to Chuckie Cheese. I want the two of you to have a time for yourselves. Find a great babysitter if need be and make it a standing arrangement that they will watch the children every week at this time. Find something that works best in your schedule. Maybe the daytime works better for the two of you, or early morning. The only requirement is that you have time for the two of you to spend together. No talking about bills or children or problems. Just the two of you enjoying why you got into a relationship to begin with. Reconnect and start living your love life all over again. Believe me most people don't see that their relationship is slipping but these date night will get you back on the straight and narrow.

I understand things pop up and kids get sick. If those things happen they you need to find a substitute day to have you date. Never just forget it, if nothing else works just plop some lawn chairs outside and star gaze. You relationship is important and so is your partner so make time for them today. You will be glad you did.

Plan some trips for the two of you!

Everyone that I know loves to go on trips. You know vacations, getting away from it all and acting like you never have to come home. Well at least until you run out of money. Well I am suggesting that as a couple you start planning out trips for the two of you to take. This way you are prepared when you really do get to take a vacation. Get as much literature as you can on the places you want to go and make sure to make an iteneray. By planning way ahead you can keep your eyes open for great deals that might pop up. You don't have to limit yourself to one destination either, choose several places that you would like to go and start files on each one. Taking your time and doing lots of research will help you get the most for you money on any trip. You will also have time to find things that might be a little out of the way to do while you are there. By taking time you can also find out if you best deal is a package vacation or purchasing hotel, air, and ground transportation separately. You vacation or trip should be a memorable time, so make sure you plan ahead, also make sure to plan ahead on things you will need. A new camera might be a good idea to help save all these memories for the future. Heck make a wall chart of all the places you want to go and then mark them off as you come back from each on. Travel is so much fun and it is even better when you go with someone you love.

You can also make a separate list of place you want to take your children if you have any. This way you can focus on romantic trips and kiddie trips both. Include the children in picking the places they want to go, after all this is their vacation also.

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Establish Your House

Have you ever been to those flea markets were they have the person carves your name into a piece of wood. Weather they burn it or carve in to the wood doesn't matter. Make sure you get the year on it as to when you became a family. Include all the names of children on the sign so that everyone feels like it is their sign. So many relationships have children from previous marriages involved with different last names, so put up the first names also. If you don't have any children or treat your pets as children then add them also. You might have to have a pretty big sign but it is worth it to include all the parts of your family.

You can find many different styles of these signs pick one that appeals to your family. I have even seen ones that have characters for each member of the family. Post it where everyone can see it, to show how proud you are of your family. Make a ceremony on the day you put it up, have a cookout or just a family get together. Remember family is a strong bond and putting it in wood makes it stronger.

Split time at kids events.

As parents we are always struggling to find time for everything. This might seem a little crazy but I want you to take turns going to your children's events. Things such as baseball game where there are about a hundred (a little exaggeration) each summer, swim lessons, or any type practice your child could possible have. Here is the point I want to make with this, when you miss one of your child's events, have you partner give you the play by play of what happened. You get to see how he/she saw the event unfold and get their perspective on it. You can even get your child's perspective on what happened. This way you get communication started between not only your partner and you but your child as well. Don't let either one of them just say "it was okay" ask for details. Even if your child struck out everytime they got up, see if they nipped the ball or almost got hit by a pitch. Encourage them to elaborate on the event. This might help you later in life when you need to talk to them about more important things such as sex or drugs. Everywhere we turn people say we need better communication and what a better way to exercise your communication skill then this method.

Parent Together

In this day and age of rush rush, hurray up life style we often are left to tend to our offspring alone for long periods on time. It can get tough on one of the partners doing this alone. Most of the time it is due to work schedules or trying to save money on a sitter. What ever the case we all need to make sure we have time when all the family is together and both parents are present to show the child how to be in a relationship. Explain to you children why mommy or daddy is gone and that they are helping support the family. Just make sure you make time to do things together as a family. Go to the zoo, or a little league game and let your children see how a couple is suppose to act. Our children learn from us so show them how a mommy and daddy should act. We hear so many horror stories about what some children go through with parents that are addicted to drugs, drink a lot, or even worse are abusive to their children. Be a role model for you children as parents, and they will grow up to be positive adults, also. Make sure they know that mommy and daddy need alone time as well as time with them. Don't forget the most important part of raising a child together and that is lots of Hugs and Kisses, they are magical and make things a lot better.

For those of you who don't have children, then you can't understand what you are missing. Raising children is tough but so worth it. So if you don't have any children offer to watch your sisters or brothers children. Your siblings will enjoy the free time and you will get a little taste of what having kids is like, plus you can always take them home.

Fathers Day or as I like to say Family Day.

Happy Fathers day to those of you who are fathers. Hope you day is as enjoyable as the day your bundle of joy was born. Being a father carries so much importance. You need to be a good role model for you children, and you need to provide and care for them. Yet, in my opinion being a father is one of the greatest feelings in the world. To have a child look up to you is one of the best feelings in the world. You need to celebrate this day with you spouse to because without your family fathers day isn't the same.

For those of you who don't have children I don't have much for you today because I am basking in the greatness of fatherhood.

Plans Change!! Unfortunately

Have you ever got together as a couple and set up some great plans set in motion. Maybe you are going to have a great escapade or meet for a romantic dinner. Maybe you are just going to get busy and don't want to be interrupted. Then something happens. That throws you plans into a tizzy. It is usually something that can't be avoided. Like a sick child or parent that needs help or it could even be a work related event. None the less it makes you plans change. You know it can't be helped so why do we feel so disgusted or angry.

We take care of the situation but we never seem to get back to the plans. The evening has been thrown off and their is no getting it back. We are glad we managed to help whoever needed the help but man are we upset it happened.

Welcome to being part of a couple. This is a sign of how strong your relationship is. People with a strong relationship understand their partner has to take care of these things. I suggest when this happens both of you call for a rain check. Don't think of it as missing your opportunity just think of it as a postponement. Nothing in life ever works out perfect so we shouldn't expect it to in our relationships either.

So quite pouting and either set your event up for another day or change it a little so you can still enjoy the evening. If you partner gets called into work on a night you were going to have a romantic dinner out make an adjustment. Find out when he/she is coming home have a pizza and candles burning on the table. If you have a sexy evening planned and one of your kids gets sick as your partner cares for the child write them a sexy note explaining what you are going to do to them tomorrow. In a relationship you have to go with the flow and the flow doesn't always go the way you want it to. Lastly never get upset with your partner when these situations arise, instead thing about how great they are for doing what they are doing for other. Isn't that part of the reason you care about them?

Choosing a Movie Theater for Home.

Today life is so fast-paced that we seldom have time to take our sweetie to the movies. Either the times don't work out right or we don't have the hundreds of dollars it will take to purchase a ticket and snacks - Last time I went it was under a hundred, but let’s just use that as a general feeling. Nowadays, you can rent a movie not long after it has been in the theaters, and we have recently been downloading them from iTunes. I believe Netflicks has the downloading available also. It doesn't take much for us to get a movie and watch it on our time. We can pause it or stop it when we have things that arise like bathroom breaks or putting kids to sleep. But, just because we can’t find the time to attend the show at the theater doesn't mean we have to lose the ambiance.

Next time you get a movie to watch at home take some time and set up your own little theater in the family room. Move the couch around to sit right in front of the television. Make a trip to the local discount store and pick up all the snacks you would get at your local movie theater. They are much cheaper this way, and you usually get more for your money. Microwave some popcorn. You can even get some of those super humongous cups to get the real movie theater feel. Turn off all the lights in the house, and presto you have your own movie theater. You can even watch the previews at the start of the disc if you want to get a more authentic feeling. iTunes even carries trailers of movies that are not out in theaters yet.

Most movies have ratings like PG-13 or R. You need to decide what your theater rating will be! If you’re doing this with your children, you can use a G rating. Use pretend money and make tickets. The kids can use it to “purchase” their snacks and tickets. This is a good way to make sure they don't over do it on the snacks. Only give them enough play money to purchase a set amount of candy. If you want your theater to have a PG-13 rating you could invite all your teenage children’s friends over for a showing. Just get some extra folding chairs and presto you can create a teenager’s dream - all of their friends at the movies together. The R rated theater is probably just for the two of you (just depends on what you allow you kids to watch). Since the kids are probably in bed and no one else is in the theater let the make out session begin. Heck, if you know you won't have any interruptions, you can even slip into the X rating.

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Affection in front of the kids (ewww yuck!)

Something that I think needs to be done in your relationship is to let your children know you are in love. Show each other affection in front of them. Now I am not talking about getting down and dirty. Save that for the bedroom or any other room as long as the little ones are asleep. However, let your young children know it is okay for the two of you to touch each other and be affectionate with each other. I don't ever remember seeing my parents touch, kiss or hold hands when I was growing up. I think that without such a vision in a young child’s mind he/she might think that it is not to be done. Or he/she may grow up to believe you shouldn't show that you care about someone in front of other people. It may sound crazy, but I can see this leading to a lot of problems in a relationship. Keeping the fact that you are attracted to each other away from your children gives them a different idea of what a relationship is! I think of all the domestic abuse in this country, and how many children see that. Far too often that child grows up to think it is okay or the norm.

Well, what if we reverse that? What if a child sees his/her daddy kiss his/her mommy or hold hands with her? Don't you think that will help a child grow up knowing that a relationship should be nurturing. Young children love to imitate their parents. Let’s start showing them how to care about one another. Heck maybe even someone else’s kids will see you holding hands or quickly kissing each other goodbye and see that is okay. From time to time your child might walk in on you during a little more intimate situation (come on you know what I mean- sex), and I think one thing that is important and maybe a little hard to do is not jump up right away like the two of you are doing something wrong. If you can slowly move apart and address the young child’s needs then explain to them that mommies and daddies need time alone together, you just might help them deal with similar situations when they are adults.

Be up front with your children in regards to love and relationships. Not only will they understand it better, but you will definitely help them out later in life. So many relationship problems and sexual problems can be traced back to parents. Don't be the one that makes your son feel like kissing his wife is wrong or the one that makes your daughter feel like sex is dirty. Use the right words and explain when they are curious and their future partners will thank you!

The Stars at Night Look Big and Bright (Click here to learn about constellations)

Here is a quickie that will be a wonderful event between you and your partner. Find some cushions, bean bag chairs, or even a blanket, and on the next clear warm summer night head outside. Arrange whatever sitting or laying device you have brought out and position it so that you can gaze skywards without straining your neck. Also, make sure that in this position you can touch or hold your partner. Then simply relax and enjoy the greatest light show in the universe. This is a great stress reliever also as it seems to put some perspective into your life. You could even brush up a little on your astronomy or even purchase a book showing the constellations so that you and your partner can enjoy trying to point them out to each other. If you have a quiet back yard, you might even bring out a little mood music or even just a taping of a waterfall or rain. But, first and foremost relax, take your time and enjoy searching the cosmos with your love.

Not a night person? You can do the same thing during a warm summer day, but instead of stars use clouds. Point out clouds and what their shapes look like to you, and then see what your partner sees in the same cloud. It is quite interesting to see the differences in your ideas. Don't be afraid to involve your children in this too. I love to hear the perspective of a young child, and this will bring you closer as a family, which will bring you closer as a couple.