My wife and I have been married for 9 years and have been together as a couple for 12 years. After so much time together, things can sometimes get a bit stale. And, the fact we also have two kids who take up a good portion of our time doesn’t help matters.
Since I do love my wife, I make every effort to keep the romance alive in our relationship. Sometimes this includes taking her out to dinner, buying her flowers or planning a romantic weekend. But, most of the time, we don’t have the extra money in our budget for those things and I have to focus on things that, while not necessarily free, cost less than a few dollars. Fortunately, through years of experience as a husband, I have discovered five ways that are easy, are appreciated and fall into this category.
First, breakfast in bed is always a nice way to start the day. I’m a morning person and my kids take after me. My wife isn’t and, when she doesn’t have anywhere to be, she likes to sleep in. So, I let her. And, as soon as I hear her moving around a bit, I make sure to have a breakfast plate ready for her, just so she can have a bit more alone time in bed before having to start her day.
Just a note with this, I don’t always go overboard with breakfast. Sometimes I’ll make her eggs and homemade pancakes. Other times, she’s just as happy with frozen waffles and some breakfast sausage.
In addition, candlelight dinners are a nice way to end the day. I’ve gotten away from this recently because of hectic schedules but, now that things are starting to calm down, I plan on sending (I usually do it via text message when I’m at work) an invite to have a late night dinner with me after the kids go to bed.
There are two reasons why I like doing this. First, the candlelight is romantic. But, more importantly, the fact we wait until after the kids go to bed gives us some peace and quiet so we can actually have a conversation without being interrupted by one of our kids spilling something or wanting seconds.
In fact, it doesn’t really matter what I make. There are some nights when I prepare a complicated meal. But, I could just as easily add a jar of spaghetti sauce to pasta and it wouldn’t make any difference.
Another thing I like to do for my wife is make her bubble baths. She loves these and seems to love it when I go through the effort to get the water just right, light some scented candles for her and even pour her a glass of wine (or make her hot cocoa when it’s cold outside). Most of the time, I let her have the time to herself. But, if the kids are in bed, I’ll take the time to wash her back and feet, showing her I’m still willing to take care of her.
The fourth thing I do for my wife is write her poetry. This is something I used to do when we were dating and started doing again just recently. It’s a great way to express my feelings and, if I take the time to publish them on her Facebook wall, I can score some brownie points with her friends.
The last thing I do for my wife is making sure she gets her “me” time. This isn’t always easy because of our schedules. But, whenever possible, I tell her to lock herself in our room and read a book or watch a movie while I keep the kids occupied for an hour or two. In fact, this is something she actually looks forward to on a regular basis now that she’s a stay-at-home mom and is always around our kids.
Keeping the romance alive in our relationship might not always be easy. But, taking these simple and affordable steps has made a world of difference in ours.
