I was recently asked the question “What do you do post-Valentine’s Day to stay connected and keep the romance alive all year long?”
And I immediately thought, “Do I?”
With 5 kids, school, a billion activities, and both of us working at home, we are currently seeing more of each other than ever before. We’re in the same house together all day long.
And yet we talk less than we did back when he was working long hours in DC.
It’s so easy for the two of us, CandyMan and I, to get stuck in our own little worlds of work, with his computer downstairs and mine upstairs. We are working all the time. So I came up with a short list of things that I could do – daily, weekly, monthly, whatever, as long as I was doing something to build and strengthen our marriage.
5 tips to keep romance alive all year long
- Say I love you every day.
- Carve out little moments for the two of you. It could be something as simple as scheduling lunch together or sitting on the couch for a few minutes of quiet after the kids have gone to bed.
- You’re never too old to send or receive a love letter. Even a short note to let your sweetheart know that you are thinking about him or her leaves a big impression.
- Date night is important. Even if the two of you head out to run errands together, go somewhere where you can walk side by side holding hands. (Keep in mind, I would not recommend weekly dates to the Home Depot. Variety is good…).
- Find things you enjoy doing together and do them. This has always been a difficult one for us, as we are both very different people, but as we’ve been married now for almost 17 years, we have discovered new things that we enjoy doing.
Carving out some time for US
Last week, as I prepared to leave for a 3 day trip to California, I thought it would be nice to plan a special lunch date with CandyMan. I put two Dr. Oetker’s Ristorante frozen pizzas into the oven and invited him up for lunch.
![pizza collage](https://foodfunfamily.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/pizzacollage.jpg)
At first he was surprised by my impromptu invitation, but he came upstairs, we sat down together, and we chatted over pizza.
Our lunch was something so simple. But it really is the simple things that keep the magic alive.
A little about the pizza we ate….
![pizzas](https://foodfunfamily.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/pizzas.jpg)
We tried Dr. Oetker’s Ristorante Spinaci and Mozzarella frozen pizzas. Even at first glance, I could tell that this pizza was not going to be our typical “cheap frozen pizza.” It smelled wonderful baking, and tasted even better. My particular favorite was the Ristorante Spinaci (“This unique pizza is layered with sun-ripened tomatoes, savory leaf spinach, cheese and mozzarella, perfected by a hearty garlic sauce.”). Really? I could have eaten the entire thing on my own.
Other varieties include:
- Ristorante Speciale
- Quattro Formaggi
- Ristorante Spinaci
- Ristorante Mozzarella
- Ristorante Funghi
- Ristorante Vegetale
Dr. Oetker’s Ristorante frozen pizza gives you Italian restaurant style pizza taste without paying restaurant style prices (products are priced from $4.99 to $5.99).
About Dr. Oetker
Dr. Oetker (urt-ker) is a fifth-generation family-run business headquartered in Bielefeld, Germany. The company started when pharmacist Dr. August Oetker developed the baking powder Backin in 1891. The Dr. Oetker brand soon became synonymous with superior quality in baking materials as well as cereals, frozen food and chilled desserts. Dr. Oetker is now an international food business leader and a market leader in many of its product lines. The Oetker Group is also active in other industries such as beer, wine and spirits, shipping and banking.
Today, Dr. Oetker is the market leader of frozen pizza in Europe and sells Ristorante in more than 30 countries.
Dr. Oetker Ristorante is currently available at grocery stores in several states, including New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Washington, D.C., Rhode Island, Baltimore, Maryland and New Hampshire.
Win a Dr. Oetker’s Prize Pack
- 1 branded pizza cutter
- 1 branded freezer bag
- 1 Free Dr. Oetker coupon
- 1 Pizza Slice & Serve Board from Crate and Barrel (pictured separately)
Enter below!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Please note, although Dr. Oetker’s pizzas are only available in certain states, anyone in the US is eligible to enter.
Disclosure: This is a sponsored post. All opinions stated are my own.
© 2012, Food Fun Family. All rights reserved.
It does my heart good to see that there are people out here who still are in love with being in love and creating healthy relationships even in our busy workdays. We can still have a healthy, wholesome, loving relationship and its not that hard to do. Thank you for sharing this with us and keep up the great work!