A nice date night with our spouse lets us reconnect and break the daily routine that many of us experience in our busy lives…especially when we have children in our home.

Ideally, we would all have a date night scheduled every week or two, and we’d experience a magical evening out on the town romancing our spouse like it was our first (too awkward) third date all over again.

We would enjoy an exquisite gourmet meal, some incredibly unique entertainment and a horse drawn carriage or something before ending the evening with passionate sexcapades under the stars.

What?  Your last date night wasn’t like this?  Applebee’s and Avatar?  Not even in 3-D?  And you had to rush home to get the babysitter back to her house before curfew?

Yes, we don’t live in a fantasy world, and this is the reality of date nights for many married couples.  There are some great ways around this, including in-home date nights.  If you’re interested in learning more about that, just sign up for the free Marriage Mojo e-course and you’ll get a whole lesson on it.

However, for today’s post, I’d like you to turn your thoughts to what you can do before the sun sets…

Date Days: Not Just for Shift Workers Anymore

Time is precious, evenings are busy, babysitters are expensive and the same old dinner and a movie routine is becoming…well…routine.

Why don’t you think outside the evening hours for a bit and consider a romantic date day?

There are many ways to pull this off, but a few of my favorites involve making a weekday of it while the kids are in school, enjoying an awesome Saturday afternoon together while grandma has the kids or just taking a long lunch break if you are able.  If you don’t have kids, this is as simple as blocking out a Sunday afternoon and enjoying some time in the sun with your spouse.

The bottom line is that opening up your dating repertoire to daylight hours adds a whole new dimension to the quality time you can spend along with your spouse.  And it adds enough flexibility to make great “dating” possible for most married couples!

The Movie Theater is Closed.  What Do We Do?!?

If your date nights have become as predictable as a Chicago Cubs September losing streak (Go Cardinals!), you may be wondering what you would do during a date day.  This is the best part!

When you take your dates solar, it opens up a whole new realm of ideas and experiences to enjoy with your husband, wife or fiance.  One of my favorite ideas is to do something that one spouse really enjoys, but the other would never do typically.  Maybe he joins her at a day spa or she braves a weedy hike to his favorite fishing hole for an early morning excursion.  Or you can certainly do something you both enjoy…daytime sex, perhaps?

Here are a few ideas to get you thinking of your next daytime date adventure:

• Wine tasting
• Picnic lunch
• Golf
• A day baseball game
• Breakfast at a greasy spoon
• Day spa
• Fishing
• Hiking
• Shopping
• Swimming
• Zoo
• Art museum
• Breakfast in bed
• Sex in bed
• Sex out of bed

Of course, this is just a small sampling of the things you can doing on a date day.  Use your imagination!

Do You Ever Have Date Days?

I’d love to hear from you on this topic! 

What other ideas can you share for date days?  Have you had a great daytime experience that you can share with the community in the comments?

___________________________________________________

Thank you for being a subscriber!

Check out the original post and leave a comment on the blog here: A Date Day? Break the Routine & Find Some Romance in the Sun!

Tags: Date Night, Romance, Time Management

Related posts:

1. Take 15 Minutes Each Day to Just be a Couple
2. Pillow Talk: Romance Through Words
3. 10 Easy Romantic Ideas to Spice Up Your Busy Marriage

Editor’s Note: This is a super-fun guest post from David Hail at HotDateIdeas.com

These days between jobs, kids and the drama of everyday life, romance tends to get lost in the shuffle. Many couples say “It’s just too much work”, but it doesn’t have to be that way!

Some of the most romantic ideas are short and sweet.

To prove it, here’s a list of 10 romantic things that only take a few minutes to prepare:

1. Mystery Kisses

Stop by the store and pick up 5 pieces of candy with distinctly different flavors. Think of ones like butterscotch, peppermint, root beer barrels, watermelon Jolly Ranchers, lemon drops, and well, you get the idea. Later on, when you’re alone, have your spouse sit down and close their eyes. Unwrap the first piece of candy and suck on it until the flavor has saturated your mouth. Take it out and give them a big French kiss! Can they guess the flavor? If they guess every one right they win…a kiss!

2. Strawberry and Chocolate Surprise

Buy some strawberries and a few bars of your spouse’s favorite chocolate on the way home from work to surprise them after dinner with chocolate-dipped strawberries! Melt the chocolate in a double boiler or by boiling water in a large pot and setting a bowl (with chocolate) inside to keep the chocolate from burning. Coat the strawberries and let cool, or just take the bowl of melted chocolate to the couch and feed them to each other freshly-dipped.

3. Origami Love

Express your feelings in a unique way by writing your spouse a love letter on an origami flower. Buy a few sheets of pink or yellow paper from a local copy shop and get started with these easy directions. It only takes a few minutes of folding to create a love letter that they will never forget.

4. Custom Kisses

Remove the little slips of paper from a half dozen Hershey’s Kisses and replace them with your own slips of paper, each listing one thing you love about your spouse.

5. Their Favorite Ice Cream

Hide a pint of plain Haagen Dazs in the freezer and a few of your spouse’s favorite candy bars elsewhere. After dinner let them have fun creating their dream flavors Cold Stone-style with chopped-up Butterfingers, Snickers, M&M’s, or whatever!

6. Music of Your Lives

Take a musical journey through your lives by listening to the #1 song on your birthdays for every year you’ve been alive. See what your parents were rocking out to when you were in the cradle and laugh about the first songs you remember hearing. This is a great way to share childhood memories and funny stories. Start by pulling up this page at Wikipedia to find the top songs and then go to grooveshark and listen for free!

7. Steamy Message

Tomorrow morning, while your spouse is in the shower, draw a big heart on the mirror with your initials (i.e. J + B) in the middle, or write a little note like “Beth is cute”. They’ll love it.

8. After Dinner Menu

After finishing up with dinner and the dishes, present your spouse with a menu for the evening’s entertainment. Design the menu to look like a real one and print it out with items for different “courses” like:

• Appetizer: kissing, cuddling, tickling
• Entree: romantic movie of their choice, music by the fire, board games, moonlit walk
• Dessert: massage, candlelit bath, or ???

They can only choose one item from each course – don’t be greedy!

9. Automotive Treasure

Put together a little treasure hunt that takes place entirely within your spouse’s car. Hide 3 or 4 clues, such as “It holds your change and the next clue”, to lead them around the interior of the car and trunk. Start the hunt with a little text message or by leaving the first clue out in the open. Make the treasure something small such as a few green M&M’s with a “Save for later” note, or bigger like a coupon for a massage.

10. Promise of Things to Come

Drop off or mail a gift to your partner’s work that hints at an exciting evening without providing any details. This could be a ripe strawberry with whipped cream, lingerie, a small vial of massage oil, or even a blindfold. Include a note that reads “See you tonight” and let them spend the afternoon wondering. They will probably try to call you. Tell them nothing.

What are some fun, simple and romantic ideas that you’d add to this list?

_____________________________________________

This article was contributed by David Hail, owner of the leading date and romantic ideas site – HotDateIdeas.com.

___________________________________________________

Thank you for being a subscriber!

Check out the original post and leave a comment on the blog here: 10 Easy Romantic Ideas to Spice Up Your Busy Marriage

Tags: Date Night, Guest Post, Romance

Related posts:

1. A Date Day? Break the Routine & Find Some Romance in the Sun!
2. Write an Awesome Romantic Love Letter: The Simple “5R” Approach

You see, as I write this post with the bizarre title, my dear wife and several of her girlfriends are downstairs having some girl time.  I am a big fan of “yours, mine and ours” time in a healthy marriage, so I’m happy she’s able to enjoy a fun Wednesday night with good friends.

What are they doing down there?  Alas, they are having a little “New Moon” party.  If you are not familiar with the insane popularity of the Twilight series of books (mostly among teenage girls, but I digress), New Moon is the second book and the latest movie adaptation to hit DVD.

So, my 29-year-old wife and mother of two (and one on the way), is watching a vampire/teen romance with her buds.  They’re eating popcorn.  And, oh yeah, they’re all wearing their “Team Edward” or “Team Jacob” t-shirts…and Snuggies!

A Dork, Indeed

I think that my point has been proven on the dork-front.  When I found out those last few details of the evening’s plans, I let the gals know that I just had to write a post about it.  The challenge was making it relevant to the community here, at least a little bit.

Fortunately, I like challenges.  I’ve had several friends tell me they like how I can relate seemingly anything back to marriage and happy living.  Well, this may take the cake, but I think I just may have something to share.  And if it flops, at least I got to expose the Snuggie pals.

A VERY Brief Twilight Overview

I have not read the Twilight books, but I have sacrificed for my wife’s sake and watched both movies.  I have to say that New Moon wasn’t terrible, though I won’t go any further than that for fear of losing my Man Card.

In a nutshell, the main girl (Bella) loves/lusts for this vampire named Edward.  In New Moon, she also spends a lot of time with a werewolf named Jacob.  Jacob really has the hots for Bella, but she is just biding her time until she can get all vampired-up with Edward some day when he finally “changes her” with some mild bloodsucking.

Somewhat relevant part alert: Jacob is really the logical choice for Bella.  He is the same age, he’s (reportedly) hot, he will relinquish his werewolf-ing for regular humanhood one day, and it is presumably safe for Jacob and Bella to have sex and produce babies.

Edward is not a good match on a practical level, but he is the passionate choice.  He’s a freakin’ vampire, he’s actually like 109 years old (but doesn’t age physically), he could kill Bella at any moment by losing control of his intense desire to drink all of her blood, and there’s a real fear that his sexual prowess could be deadly in its sheer force.  Plus, there seems to be a consensus that any baby-making would kill Bella, unless of course she became a vampire for all of eternity.

So, Edward is the mate of choice based on passion, raw emotion and lust.  Jacob is a better match for reasons of compatibility, reason and apparent “matchmaker” criteria.

Which Teen Heartthrob Better Represents How YOUR Relationship Started?

I hope that as you and your spouse have grown together, you’re able to say that both passion and logic draws and keeps you together.  However, I think we all have unique stories about those characteristics or circumstances that initially brought us to our spouse and got the relationship going.

So, there’s my excuse for writing this post.  Please share a comment about why you started dating your spouse.  Was it raw passion and instant chemical attraction?  Or was your courtship a more logical and natural fit?

Yes, Bethany is a dork.  But I love her dearly (although the lust may have to wait until she takes off that t-shirt with the big Edward face on it).  When I look back all the way to our high school years, I see many reasons and differences in our backgrounds that could have kept her from taking a chance with me.

I’m glad she’s a Team Edward kind of girl.

___________________________________________________

Thank you for being a subscriber!

Check out the original post and leave a comment on the blog here: Is Your Relationship on “Team Edward” or “Team Jacob”?

Tags: Ask the Community, Funny, Marriage Preparation, My Story

No related posts.

Love Everyday

Last Week: In case you missed it, Changing the Light Bulb was posted by Mandi at Organizing Your Way.

What you are about to read is only one piece of a 27-chapter collaborative e-book written to help you learn how to make your marriage extraordinary amidst the chaos of life.  After reading this post, be sure to download a complete copy of LOVE EVERYDAY absolutely free!

____________________________________________

Pillow Talk: Romance Through Words

When it comes to the most important relationship in your life, don’t be normal.  Normal sucks.

Unfortunately, in many relationships, “normal” represents a life of mediocrity and going through the motions.  It is simply too easy to succumb to the busyness of life and lose sight of how precious our spouse or significant other really is to us.

And it is even easier for our partner to feel disconnected and a bit under-appreciated.  We know how we feel, and (if asked) we are quick to tell others that our spouse is a clear number one in our list of priorities…

But does your partner know how you feel?

Tell Them

It may sound trite.  It may seem overly simplistic.  But clear communication is THE KEY to a healthy and extraordinary relationship.

When you think a kind (or romantic) thought about your spouse, let them know how you feel.  Take the time to listen to them about their day and respond with some exuberance or empathy.  Show them you care by telling them that you care.

These are the little things that make us all feel appreciated and affirmed in the face of a crazy life.

Write It Down

Talking is good, but writing is great.  To leave a really meaningful and lasting impact on your partner’s heart, take a few minutes to write them a romantic love letter.  This doesn’t have to be some cheesy Hallmark spiel about angels and achy, breaky hearts…though it could be.

And it really shouldn’t be difficult.  Here are five simple steps to write an awesome romantic letter that your significant other will cherish for life and brag to their friends about:

1. Relax.  There’s no pressure.  Simple and heartfelt is the way to go.

2. Reflect.  Think back & write around a simple theme…favorite memories over the past year, the story of your first date or proposal through your eyes, why you fell in love with them and why today they are even better…

3. Rough it out.  Just write out some phrases and let your creativity flow.

4. Write…with your hand.  Handwritten is best.  Typed out will work, especially with some cool paper to add a little personalization.

5. Recite.  Read your letter aloud to your partner.  Or have it delivered in a cool and memorable way.

Just Do It

Simple, huh?

All it takes is a few minutes to create a sweet little letter that expresses the romantic feelings you usually never take the time to consider or (especially) to deliver.  With just a small effort, you have the ability to rock your relationship and make your significant other feel as special as they truly should.

It is time.  Take the motivation you feel right now and start to jot down your thoughts.  Follow through with a heartfelt romantic letter and deliver in an awesome way.  Your spouse, and you, will be so glad that you did.

The best “pillow talk” doesn’t have to take place in bed, although I bet it will make the time you spend there more enjoyable.

___________________________________________

Next Week: Don’t forget to check out Let’s Go Out: Dates to Bring You Closer Together over at ONE Extraordinary Marriage.

If you enjoyed this article, please share this free download with your family and friends. Get your FREE copy of LOVE EVERYDAY today!

___________________________________________________

Thank you for being a subscriber!

Check out the original post and leave a comment on the blog here: Pillow Talk: Romance Through Words

Tags: Communication, Romance

Related posts:

1. Write an Awesome Romantic Love Letter: The Simple “5R” Approach
2. How to Get Your Spouse to Talk to You: 7 Tips for Engagement
3. 10 Easy Romantic Ideas to Spice Up Your Busy Marriage

I am happy to introduce the Engaged Marriage community to a fellow reader and author that I think many of you may relate to.  Actually, you may already recognize Gina Parris because she is a regular commenter here.  Gina often has some great insight to share from her experiences as a Christian wife and mom to four (including twins).

Well, Gina is also a high-performance coach, and she has used those skills to develop a new program aimed at helping to stoke the romance and passion within committed marriages.  When I heard about The Romance Rescue – How to Have Really Great Sex When You’re NOT in the Mood, I asked her if she would like to guest post here at Engaged Marriage to help spread the word about what I felt was a very worthwhile program.

Well, Gina took it up a notch and offered to exclusively share what she refers to as the “restricted reading” chapter from The Romance Rescue book, which you will find below.  I think her words do a wonderful job of explaining in real terms the power of Christian Sexuality.  Whether or not you have any interest in the The Romance Rescue program, I think you’ll enjoy this particular chapter.

The reason this is “restricted reading” is that this particular chapter of the book is really the only one that focuses so intently on Gina’s Christian beliefs.  The majority of the program is instead focused on practical techniques and mindset exercises to help married couples, and women in particular, rekindle the spark (or inferno) in their sexuality even as we struggle with all of the busyness and distractions of modern life.

To give you a better flavor for what The Romance Rescue – How to Have Really Great Sex When You’re NOT in the Mood is all about, Gina has also offered an additional excerpt of the e-book for your review.  You can download the free introductory excerpt right here to get the full picture of whether The Romance Rescue may be a good fit for you.

Without further ado, please enjoy “The Supernatural Side of Sex” by Gina Parris!  Here is a quick intro note Gina asked me to include:

This post is an excerpt from my forthcoming book, The Romance Rescue – How to Have Really Great Sex When You’re NOT in the Mood. The book describes a technique that transformed my pitiful sex drive so dramatically and quickly that I had to pray about it to make sure it was not some kind of “voodoo.” Thankfully, I was able to move forward in full confidence that my discovery was a good thing – and finally our years of  bedroom frustration were over.  In the book, this chapter falls under “restricted reading” – as the program is intended to help people who don’t necessarily share my faith. –Gina Parris

The Supernatural Side of Sex

By Gina Parris

What a Beautiful Ring!

My precious neighbor held my hand close to her face to gaze at my wedding ring. She was from Pakistan – living in the house behind ours, with her husband and their grown children.  I loved this family – including her daughter who had fled an abusive marriage.  “What a beautiful ring!” She exclaimed.

“Thank you; this is my wedding ring,” I explained.  “Paul has one that matches it, only without all the diamonds.”

She nodded her head.

“In our Christian marriage, this ring means that everything that Paul ever owned or will own becomes mine, and everything I have ever owned or will own is now his. We are joined together in COVENANT.”

She shook her head in disbelief.

“Well, really it is a symbol of our relationship with God. Through Jesus, he created a covenant or commitment to us that made us one with God. Everything that He has is now available to us, and our lives are His.”

It was a little more than her Muslim mindset could swallow, but in sincerity she answered, “I wish my daughter could have a Christian husband!”

I gave her a hug.  “It’s okay. Most Christians don’t even understand it.”

…And the Two Shall Become One Flesh

The thought hit me as I was minding my own business one day.  Boom!  “For this reason a man shall leave his mother and father and be joined to his wife and the two will become one flesh. This is a profound mystery but I am talking about Christ and the church.”

“Wow.” I thought. That’s a lot of words.  Do those verses even go together in the Bible?”  Then they kept mulling over and over in my mind.  I couldn’t stop saying the two sentences.  “What in the world is this about?” I wondered.

Finally I couldn’t stand it anymore.  Actually I had been teaching a series that I wrote called, “Blood, Guts, and Glory” which was all about the Blood Covenant in history and examples of God making covenants with man.  I had not thought so much about marriage at the time.  I had to find a Bible and see if these verses went together.

Sure enough.  Let’s look at it. (Ephesian 5:31-32)

“The two will become one flesh.”  This is a reference to spiritual, soul- bonding sex but also to the relationship that sex represents.  It is a cutting away from the old family unit and the creation of something new and very intimate.

“…A profound mystery, but I am talking about Christ and the Church.”  A profound mystery is something we can’t even pretend to explain with perfection, but it’s worth thinking about.   Jesus Christ was God in the flesh – sent to become a man to offer his perfection as redemption from man’s rotten state.

He was Love. Sent by Love, because of Love – to demonstrate Love and bring us back to the power of  Love – relationship with Himself. Redemption!  What a story.  What a covenant – sealed  by that supernatural blood, which came from his father’s DNA, just like yours did. This is why the Redeemer was born of a virgin. Everyone’s blood comes not from their mother, but from their father.

To Cut Where Blood Flows

The word “covenant” means “to cut where blood flows.” Throughout history in cultures all around the world, we have seen an almost instinctive understanding of this kind of relationship.  We have seen “blood brothers” made where guys cut their wrists and mingle the blood to show an unbreakable pact.

We have seen small pygmies in Australia cut covenant with big Aborigines in the same way. When an enemy came against the short people, they could hold up their arms and the scars down their forearms showed that they represented relationship with many others.  “If you touch me, you’re touching all of them – and they will fight for me,” the scars said.

In most cultures the covenant extended to generations, and if one party were to break covenant – that person’s own family would kill him to protect the honor.  Covenant is not something to be taken lightly.

What Does All that Have to Do With Sex?

Sexual intercourse is an act that brings two people together in covenant. Blood flows when the virgin breaks that mysterious hymen. Scientists don’t know the purpose for such a piece of tissue. God knows though. It represents deep unity.  This is why it is so painful to be physically intimate with someone and have the relationship be meaningless.

“Casual Sex” is a lie.  At its core, divine unity between a husband and wife represents another divine mystery – Christ and the church.

Loving unity is a symbol of the heart of God towards you. He desires to make you one with himself.  He cut the covenant through Jesus, when the blood flowed on the cross. You are safe when you respond to that wooing and say, “Yes, I am yours.”

You Are Loved – Supernaturally

Perhaps you were raised with images of an angry God who was waiting to punish you. The Truth is that He is LOVE. When you can know in your heart that you are loved unconditionally, by the One who IS love, than your whole life can change. You can ultimately only give what you have received.  I encourage you to receive this love. It comes with full forgiveness of the past. God is longing to embrace you.

This is Dustin again to close out this post.

I hope you enjoyed Gina’s contribution here as much as I did.  Like I said up above please feel free to download the free introductory excerpt to Gina’s e-book to get a better feel for what her entire program is about.  By the way, after I invited her to guest post here, Gina asked if I’d like to receive a commission on any sales that are made from Engaged Marriage.  As always, I want to up-front and open about it, so please know that if you do buy the course through these links: The Romance Rescue – How to Have Really Great Sex When You’re NOT in the Mood I will get some money to help fund the efforts at this site.  Of course, your cost is the same regardless and you support Engaged Marriage if you do choose to purchase the program.  Thanks!

I would love to hear from you all on a couple of fronts on this one.  Please leave a comment pertaining to any or all of these questions:

• What do you think of this notion of “The Supernatural Side of Sex”?
• What do you think of The Romance Rescue program?  Do you think there is a need for this sort of coaching?
• What do you do to keep passion alive in your marriage when life gets crazy?

___________________________________________________

Thank you for being a subscriber!

Check out the original post and leave a comment on the blog here: Christian Sexuality: The Supernatural Side of Sex

Tags: Book Review, Guest Post, Romance, Sex, Spirituality

Related posts:

1. I am Thankful for Sexuality
2. How Marriage Helped Make Me a Christian
3. The Best Kept Secret About Mind-Blowing Sex