Surprise Kiss

Archive for May, 2013

So you don’t thing you can have a $1.00 date night? Well think again. Decide what you want to spend, $5 or $10, and grab your sweetheart and figure out what you can do for a $1.

Here are some suggestions:

• Buy $1 Tacos for dinner
• Go to the Dollar Store for desert, i.e. cookies, fruit, candy
• Go to the video arcade and play $1 games
• Buy a book from the Goodwill
• Wash your car
• Buy a surprise gift for a $1 for each other at the Dollar Store.
• McDonalds ice cream cone
• Get 100 pennies and make 100 wishes in a water fountain together
• Give it to a child in a $1 Store (just because)
• Buy a Lotto or Scratcher Card (all it takes is one card to win)
• Go to a Flea Market & buy something for your home for a $1
• Add it to your $5 a week stash (just couldn’t resist saying it)

I am sure once you put your heads together you can figure out lots of other things you can do for $1. Bring out the creativity in each other and find things to do in your city.

You will be surprise how this little $1 Date Night will bring fun, laughter and togetherness.

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

© 2013, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

Ok ladies this one is for you….. Do you want to look and feel sexy for those romantic nights with your sweetheart? Then you will want to see what Linda Wells from Allure Magazine has to say about this subject on the Today Show. Of course, Kathie Lee Gifford, Hoda Kotb, Savannah Guthrie & Natalie Morales make it enjoyable and funny.

6 Ways to Look Better Naked

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Here are the Items Linda Wells suggested to use:

• Redken Powder Refresh 01 Aerosol Hair Powder – $18
• L’Oreal Ever Style Beach Spray – $7
• The Body Shop Cactus Body Brush – $12
• Neutrogena Body Clear Body Scrub – $7
• St Topez Self Tan Dar Bronzing Mousse – $44
• Revlon Photoready Perfecting Primer – $10
• Covergirl Lashblast Volume Waterproof Mascara – $8
• Nude High Heel Shoes

So ladies get your sexy on and have a little fun with your guy tonight.

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

© 2013, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

Your dreams of a romantic weekend away with your sweetheart are right around the corner if you keep saving $5 a week for a year.

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

***My free eBook is coming soon! Be on the lookout for it and when it comes out you can be one of the first to get it. ***

“Your marriage is a gift from God; how you treat it is a gift to him.”

© 2013, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

Live theater is available in most cities and it is always fun to take advantage of. We have two in our community. One is your typical small playhouse that you see in most communities and the actors are usually local people. The other is run through our community college and is a professional conservatory. Actors from all over the United States come to hone their craft here. Both are very reasonably priced and it is a wonderful way of seeing some great live theater.

When we first moved from Los Angeles to Santa Maria, CA we couldn’t believe how inexpensive it was to see wonderful professional live theater. The first summer we moved here we seen three plays in one week. Granted it is a different experience but it is still quite enjoyable.

If you want to have a lovely evening out, your local community theater is one way to have a fun evening date that isn’t too expensive. Our local theater is only $15 per person and the community college starts at $28 per person. Also, check to see if they have student or senior’s rates.

That is all well and good you say but you don’t even have $15 to spare let alone buy a ticket for your partner. Did you know you can still see a play and not pay a cent? That is right. Most local theaters are running on a tight budget and can’t afford to hire people to usher or work the concession stand. They need volunteers.

I know of a couple who love to go and watch live theater and see all the plays for free! They sign up to volunteer and are assigned duties before the play starts. They will hand out the pamphlets or take tickets at the front door. Sometimes they usher or work the concession stand during admission. They are helping support the community theater and they get to have an enjoyable evening out.

This is something you might be able to do for your local symphony or concert that is coming to your city. Call the place where the venue you want to see is going to be playing and see if they have a volunteer program where you can help out and still be able to watch something you thought you couldn’t afford.

So don’t sit home complaining you can’t afford to go out on a date. Grab your partner and see live theater because it won’t cost you a penny!

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

© 2013, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

In Oct of 2010 I wrote this blog and thought it was worth revisiting. We all need to be reminded to take time out.

Are you and your spouse stressed out from the daily grind of work and responsibilities of life? Spend some time outside. Did you know just spending time outside can increase the production of endorphins, which can help you feel less stressed.

After dinner don’t sit down and just jell out. Get up and take a walk with the whole family and watch the sunset. No phones or technology allowed during your walk. It is amazing how sunsets are daily occurrences and we don’t even stop to look at them. We are always in such a rush to get things done.

Make it a point to hold hands with your sweetheart and watch the sunset tonight with the whole family while you take a walk. If the children want to hold your hand too, make them grab the hand that is free. Don’t release your hand from your spouse. Your children need to see and feel the strength of your marriage.

Walking together and watching the sunset will help to relax the whole family and will bring everyone closer to each other. It gives everyone an opportunity to talk with none of the distractions of TV, video games or texting.

When you walk back into your home you will all feel a relaxing glow from watching a sunset together that will last until the next day!

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

***My free eBook is coming soon! Be on the lookout for it and when it comes out you can be one of the first to get it. ***

“Your marriage is a gift from God; how you treat it is a gift to him.”

© 2013, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

Your marriage is the best you could ever want and you are proving it by saving $5 a week for a year for a romantic weekend away with your sweetheart.

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

***My free eBook is coming soon! Be on the lookout for it and when it comes out you can be one of the first to get it. ***

“Your marriage is a gift from God; how you treat it is a gift to him.”

© 2013, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

I published this in 2010 and recently was telling a friend about how we dealt with having a teenager in your life. My friend loved the idea and planned on doing the same thing. It got me thinking you would enjoy hearing about it too.

Do you have teenage children? Are they driving you a little crazy and you can’t agree with your spouse on how to handle a particular situation with your teen? I remember those days well. Larry sometimes would be very upset about something our daughter had done and I didn’t think it was that big of a deal. And then there were the times I was upset and he wasn’t. Do you argue in front of the kids until you find a solution? We found a way to come to an agreement without our daughter hearing us. How did we do it?

It was our daughter’s responsibility to clear the dishes and put them in the dishwasher after dinner. That’s when we would go for a walk and argue it out. There were no ears to hear and she couldn’t play us against each other. It was good not only for our relationship but it was good for our health too. If we were really upset about something she had done we would walk really fast.

As we walked we would talk about how a situation should be handled. There were times when one of us felt we needed to be hard on her and after discussing it the other would say you are right it’s not that important and then there were times after a discussion we would agree together we were not happy with her. These walks taught us how to pick our battles with what was really important in raising our child.

When we walked back in the door we would stand strong together. She had a hard time pushing our buttons. What she got was a strong mother and father who didn’t let her go between them. She knew when she was in trouble and there was no getting out of it. She was taught responsibility for her actions which has turned her into a responsible and productive adult today.

So the next time you and your husband aren’t agreeing on how the children should be raised go for a walk and work it out. Your children will thank you later in life and you will keep the sanity in your marriage.

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

© 2013, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

Saving $5 a week for a romantic weekend away with your sweetheart will ignite the romance back in your relationship once you have that quiet time you both have been dreaming of.

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

***My free eBook is coming soon! Be on the lookout for it and when it comes out you can be one of the first to get it. ***

“Your marriage is a gift from God; how you treat it is a gift to him.”

© 2013, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

Hey guys it is Mother’s Day this weekend. Do you have any plans to surprise your wife with something romantic but not too expensive. Don’t worry I have a plan for you and it will be pleasurable & memorable.

In the morning have the kid’s help you make breakfast and serve her in bed. Don’t know how to cook? No worries. Bring her breakfast from McDonalds. One of the most memorable Mother’s Day was when I turned up sick and Larry & Denise went to McDonalds and got me breakfast and we all ate in bed.

First thing in the morning hand your lovable wife a card with a note written in it.

“Happy Mother’s Day my sweetheart! I want to spoil you the way you spoil me and the kids all day long and later this evening when the kids are in bed I want to put a sparkle in your eyes and a tingly feeling all over your body”

Let your woman choose what she likes to do. Maybe it is coffee at Starbucks or a walk along the beach. The simple things are usually the most memorable.

After the kids are in bed:

• Light the candles
• Pour something bubbly
• Turn on some romantic Music
• Have the massage oil on the bedside table

Need I say more?

Yes…..give that wife of yours a Mother’s Day gift that is both pleasurable and memorable.

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

© 2013, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

Have you ever checked into a hotel and it ended up not looking like the photos on the internet? We’ve had that happen to us a few times. Thank goodness not very often.

Anthony Melchiorri of the Travel Channel’s “Hotel Impossible” was on the Today Show with Kathy Lee Gifford & Hoda Kobt and gave some great advice on how to deal with a hotel that doesn’t quite meet the standard you expected.

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Love the tip about calling the hotel manager and letting them know you are coming and what you have reserved. I will be using this idea from now on.

One time we checked into a room in Las Vegas late at night after an unusually long drive and discovered ants crawling all over the bed. We immediately walked out of the room luggage and all and went directly to the lobby and told them our situation and like Anthony said we were friendly and nice to the front desk and were given an upgraded room minus the ants. We still laugh about the story but it wasn’t too funny at the time. We were tired and hungry.

Remember that old saying “You can get more with honey than vinegar.”

For Men Only: Check in on Friday for a romantic idea to give your wife for Mother’s Day.

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

***My free eBook is coming soon! Be on the lookout for it and when it comes out you can be one of the first to get it. ***

“Your marriage is a gift from God; how you treat it is a gift to him.”

© 2013, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.