Lovin' your Valentine...are you prepared?

It's Love Week!  Are you prepared?

Get your lovey face on (like game face, but lovey...:))

Wash those fancy glasses (or make trip to the dollar store if you have littles)

Cut some paper hearts

Dust off your cologne or perfume 

Find the lipstick, rubbing oil, and the tall candles (short work too).

Wash your attractive clothes or iron them

If you do gifts, do you know what they would like? -have you asked them?

-do you know what you would like?

Now is the time to decide what you will do this week! Right now. 

Some questions for you to answer:

How much time will you have together this week? What other things do you have going on?

How much money do you have/want to spend?

Are you going out or staying in?

Who is planning the big date?

What speaks to your spouse? Gifts, time, service, physical touch, words of affirmation?

Before you go any further, did you answer these questions?  Make the call, send the text. Find out.

Okay.  Now that you know what they would like, what would mean the most and who is doing what, we can make progress. 

If you are the one planning the date:

- what are you doing?

Going out:

Dancing? -less crowded than dinner in a restaurant.  

Bowling, mini-golf, picture scavenger hunt/service, progressive dinner, -you could even pack it along and eat inbetween activities.

Staying in:

Dinner and dancing by candlelight

Share a plate of spaghetti or don't. :)

Go fun and use serving utinsels to eat with

After the kids are asleep, walk hand in hand or arm in arm down the street. 

Watch some Olympics or a chick flic and then live a part of it later. ;)

Send them on a treasure hunt and you be waiting at the end...

 Now that you've decided what you're doing, invite them. There is still time to send an invite by mail. A simple call will do though. 

Remember the babysitter. Or plan a swap with friends. 

If you aren't the one planning the date: 

Work the week.

Make dinner special another night. Bring it home or put candles on the table and fancy glasses. 

Put hearts on the bed with reasons why you love them. Or hide them other places. 

Put lipstick on and brush your teeth all in the same day. ;) guys-wear cologne. 

Ask them if they'd like a back, shoulder or foot rub while you're chatting or watching tv. 

Now, be prepared for things to go wrong and know what you will do when they do!

From personal experience. 

Be prepared to be understanding when your spouse doesn't come home on time. Be prepared to know and act like they wanted to be home earlier than they were. 

Be prepared to be forgiving or apologize for the sake of clearing the air so you can have a good time together.

Be prepared to make the best of the long wait for dinner or the missed movie or the....oh, you get the idea and I don't really want to jinx your efforts for romance and quality time!

Life still does go on during love week. The laundry still needs to be done, the kids still scream, the pay check still needs to be earned, and you're still working on those New Years goals. So, remember an apple a day. Encourage each other. Pray for each other. Make the love notes sweeter, make the welcome home kisses longer, do what you can to lighten each others load. And dwell on the sweet because it really is. 

Happy Love Week!  I hope you're feeling more prepared! Are you? What are your plans?