What have you done for me lately?

I know it’s a trite old saying and doesn’t really give you a warm fuzzy feeling, right?

But….answer the question anyway.  What have you done for your partner LATELY?  Yep, I know, you love them and you do stuff all the time.  If you are anything like me, maybe you’re still thinking things like….”Well, there were those two children I carried and delivered for ya….does that buy me a few years??” 🙂

But it does NOT.

You know how you feel when a long period of time has passed since your lover has done something sweet for you, surprised you, said something sweet & wonderful or left you a love note.  You start to feel neglected and not so great… about yourself and your relationship.

But oh my goodness…one little sweet thing whispered in your ear, one little sticky note on the bathroom mirror, or your favorite goodie snack sitting on the counter for you and…..YOU FEEL LIKE A MILLION BUCKS!!!!

So simple, but so easily overlooked!!!

The blunt truth is, if you want your love and passion to stay fresh, you need to keep your GIVING fresh!  What to do??? I thought I would take a moment and give you a list of ideas.  I KNOW! I never do lists!!!! Look, it may never happen again, so copy this one off and treasure it 😉

Ways to demonstrate your love and passion for your partner:

• Sticky notes – seriously! Funny ones, loving ones, sassy ones, sexy ones, playful ones…get yourself a COLOR sticky note pad and start a sticky note campaign!
• Speak UP!  Remember my rule, “If it’s Nice, Let It Fly!”.  If you are thinking something nice about your honey, then say it out loud! This is challenging to vocalize for some at first, but like anything, you get used to it.  And your habit may rub off on your partner!
• GIFTS!!! Everyone LOVES presents! They don’t have to cost anything or can cost next to nothing! Paul will tell you that he doesn’t like getting “gifts”, but you should see his face light up when I leave him a big beautiful bag of organic raw almonds on the night before a business trip! It’s like it’s his birthday!  Whatever you “thought” gifts were, scratch it! A gift of ONE cookie that she so totally loves is just as awesome as that expensive perfume that she gets every 5 years on your anniversary!!!!
• Time:  Stop right in this moment and answer this question “what is your partners favorite thing to do?”.  What was the first answer that came to mind??  Schedule it now and either participate with them or arrange for them to have the time to do it without you!  Sometimes making arrangements for our partner to DO something that is super fulfilling or fun for them is not about balancing to-dos or time management…it’s about clearing the decks and doing what it takes to GIVE them that gift of time!
• Your Attention:  When was the last time that your partner had 30 minutes of your undivided attention to do what THEY wanted to do? Whatever it is.  Make it happen….regularly!
• A class or fun activity:  For our 10 year anniversary, Paul and I didn’t go away like we had planned because we had a unique opportunity to take the kids to Disney World for their first magical experience! On our anniversary, Paul told me that one of my gifts was that we are going to take dancing lessons together!! It’s something we had talked about a million years ago.  It’s not the “dancing lessons” that really fires me up, it’s the fact that we will have scheduled adult fun time doing something way outside our comfort zone on a consistent basis!!! That excites me!!!!  So whether it’s cooking, pottery, dancing, sports or building bird houses….do something together!
• And finally, they don’t call me the love and passion lady for nothing, there is NOTHING in this universe that will demonstrate your love to your partner like having a lot of ravishing and satisfying sex!!!!  Having sex and all the fun stuff that leads up to sex is the greatest gift you can give your partner!!!! It doesn’t matter how tired you are! Sex isn’t something you schedule, fit in, or only do when it’s convenient! Sex is a GIFT! GIVE IT!!!! Over and over and over again baby!!!!!

Ok, so there’s my list!  Now the question is, what are you going to do for them TODAY???? Post in the comments below and tell me!! Let’s get the ideas going!!!!

Sending love,

Stacey