Posts Tagged ‘relationships’

new $5 billSee your marriage as truly amazing and show it by saving $5 a week for a romantic getaway with your sweetheart.

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

© 2013, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

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Do you have a blended family? How are you handling the discipline issues in your household? Do you find you and your husband argue a lot over how you should discipline the kids. Do you find the children trying to manipulate you or your husband because they want their life to be the way it used to be? They want Mom & Dad together not a step-mom or step-dad in their lives.

When blended families come together it isn’t always the happy togetherness you both had envisioned. The today show talks about the importance of communication between you and your sweetheart. Sitting down and setting rules ahead of time on how you will handle disciplining each other’s children.

Dana Points, editor-in-chief, of Parent Magazine and psychologist, Michelle Callahan, marriage expert and author of Ms Typed were on the Today Show and they bring up some good points on how to handle these issues.

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Our daughter, Denise, married a wonderful man who had 2 children from a previous marriage and when she married him he had legal custody of both. She not only fell in love with Tom but his children too.

When she came into their lives she never required them to call her mom because she respected they already had a mom. If they would have chosen to call her mom and did so that would have been OK for her too. I think it is important to allow the children to decide what they want to call the step parent. Tom’s 2 children are grown now and they love and look to Denise as their second Mom.

Showing respect for each other is one of the most important things when living in a blended family.  If you and your spouse stand strong together as a couple the kids won’t be able to cause some of the issues blended families have.
Don’t forget to make time for each other; it will be easier to remember why you fell in love with your sweetheart. You both will be able to deal with whatever the kids may try.

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

© 2011, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

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Do you find yourself comparing your marriage with other couples? Do you find yourself complaining about how unhappy you are with your spouse? You are not happy and you are bored with your relationship.

 
Then you will want to watch the Today Show video from last Friday.

Bedroom Boredom

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The video brought up some interesting aspects you may not have thought of. Gail Saltz and Ian Kerner talked about couples who are not happy with their jobs and life in general and put the blame on their relationship.

What is your take on why you are unhappy with your relationship? Is it because you are bored with life and putting the blame on your marriage? If that is the case maybe you need to look at yourself and your unhappiness before you point your finger at your spouse.

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

Need help with cooking for romance, relationship or travel ideas? Then go to my Surprise Kiss Store above and click on the tab to see the authors I like to read and games that are fun to play with your sweetheart.

© 2011, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

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Do you have everything you need to have a very romantic Thanksgiving evening? Last Thursday, November 18, I gave you a simple list of things you would need. If you didn’t read last Thursday’s blog don’t worry you probably already have everything.

  • Fall Scented Candle
  • Blank Note Card

In the morning on Thanksgiving day hand your sweetheart the card with a note written inside saying:

“After the company is gone and the kids are in bed and fast asleep let’s have a little Thanksgiving desert… just the two of us in our birthday suites…after we will both be singing “Thank you baby” at the top or our lungs.”

Have a very enjoyable, romantic and Happy Thanksgiving!

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

© 2010, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

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Next Thursday is Thanksgiving! With all the cleaning, preparing and cooking for this special gathering you are probably thinking there is be no way we will have a have a date night this weekend. Well I am here to help you think differently.

Sit down with your sweetheart and make a list of everything your will need for Thanksgiving. Hire a babysitter, throw a frozen pizza in the oven for the kids and make sure they have the latest video rented for them to watch. Grab your sweetheart and head out the door. On nights like this we will try to keep it cheap by going to our favorite healthy fast food place, called Baja Fresh. I signed up to receive emails from them and every month I get a coupon for discounts on our dinner. This month they have a $5.00 coupon off your dinner when your meal totals $15.00. Larry and I will order the, small guacamole and chips, chicken fajitas; we split it with an extra order of corn tortillas and two beers. Our bill is typically less than $13.00 with the coupon.

After dinner head to the grocery store together and gather everything you need for Thanksgiving. If you can spare the time and money after grocery shopping go to your local coffee house and have a special drink. On cold evenings we usually have hot apple cider or hot chocolate. If you are still hungry order something sweet at the coffee house or bring something from the grocery store bakery.

Everyday responsibilities don’t always have to be mundane responsibilities. You can make it special and turn it into a unique time together. Don’t be like other couples who only see everyday duties as chores that are completed alone. Turn it into something special with your sweetheart. When you complete tasks together you feel connected; you are a team. This is how you have a long and loving marriage.

Don’t forget to make sure you have the items I told you to get in my blog “Romantic Thanksgiving”.

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

© 2010, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

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With Thanksgiving coming up I wanted to tell you about a couple that touched me because they gave from the heart and received so much more. As you know originally I used to call close to 200 people to remind them to put their $5 a week away so they could have a romantic weekend with their sweetheart.

There was one gal, Suzi, that I called every week and she diligently put her money away every week. Suzi’s husband, Baltazar, is in the military and at the time he was in Iraq serving our Country. She wanted to do something special for both of them when he got home. She said she wanted to stay at a bed and breakfast that was decorated in a Victorian style in San Francisco for her and for her husband (he is a man’s man) she wanted to take him to a baseball game while they were at the city by the bay.

I recommended a couple of places for her to stay at and she chose one, made her reservations and purchased the tickets to the ball game. She made arrangements for their children to be with their grandparents while they were gone. A couple of weeks after Baltazar got home from being overseas she surprised him with the trip. She explained to him how they were going to San Francisco and how she had saved and planned a trip that matched both their personalities.

She loved the beautiful Victorian room with fireplace, the afternoon tea and full breakfast in the morning. Her husband was so excited he got to see his favorite team play, the San Francisco Giants. And of course there was lots of romance in the air for them both. They had the quite time they needed to reconnect after being apart for so long.

She told me about the game and how much fun they both had. The Giants won that night. They had brought a thermos of hot chocolate and his favorite blanket from Iraq to keep them warm. This was a special blanket because it had kept him warm during those long lonely nights away from home in Iraq.

After the game they slowly walked back holding hands, talking and laughing about the fun they were having together. They passed a homeless man trying to sleep on the cold fogy streets of San Francisco with nothing but his jacket to keep him warm. Suzi asked her husband to give his blanket to the homeless man and the husband replied “But this is my blanket and I brought it all the way back from Iraq.” It meant a lot to him. She said she understood but she felt God was asking them to give the blanket to someone who needed warmth too. Her husband smiled down on her and walked back to the homeless man, wrapped the blanket around him and told him how it had kept him warm in Iraq and now it will keep him warm. The man was very touched by his kindness. There was a real sense of peace and love as they walked back to their bed and breakfast.

The next morning they were having breakfast with another couple who was staying at the inn too and told them about how they decided to help keep the homeless man warm. Later that day when they went to check out and pay their bill the front desk clerk told them their 2 night stay had been paid for by the couple who ate breakfast with them. They tried to get the name and address of the couple that paid for their room so they could send them a thank you note but the clerk was told by the couple not to give any information to them.

This story touched my heart and I wanted to share it with you. I know God was touched by their willingness to give something that was meaningful away to a complete stranger in need. God smiled down and blessed them by making sure they were taken care of too.

Do something for someone less fortunate together. You will be blessed by the love and respect you have for each other knowing you did something for someone less fortunate than you are. God bless Suzi, Baltazar and you during this Thanksgiving season.

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

© 2010, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

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Blessings in your marriage only come to those who notice. Keep saving $5 a week for a very romantic weekend away.

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

© 2010, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

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When was the last time you quietly surprised your sweetheart with a quick little love note? When I started to write this I had to think about the last time I wrote a quickie note to say I love you. And you know what it had been a while for me too. Are you surprised I would admit to you it had been a while for me also? Well like you I get busy with life, deadlines and family and before you know it I am caught up with everything else but what really matters in life and that is letting that special someone you know you care about them.

Oprah always says your home should rise up and greet you. Well what I like to say is not only should your home rise up to greet you but we should rise up to greet our sweetheart too. We should let each other know we love and care for them. We do that for our children but why not for our spouse?

Today let’s rise up to greet our spouse with a quick little Love Note Surprise:

Grab a little sticky note and write on it “Peek a Boo I Love You” and stick it on your spouse’s pillow, put it in their underwear draw, in the cabinet where you keep the toothpaste or on top of their towel. As for me and my little Love Note Surprise I plan on sticking it on the inside heel of Larry’s slippers.

I have been reminding you to pick up some items for Halloween and Christmas for the last three weeks, see “Spice Up Your Holidays.” I hope you have purchased them because tomorrow will be the big reveal. If you want to have a very funny, inexpensive and romantic Halloween and Christmas you will want to get these items before there are none left!

May you always let your love for each other rise up and greet you everyday!

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

© 2010, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

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Wisdom is knowing when you save $5 a week for 52 weeks you will have $260 for your romantic weekend away with your sweetheart.

*Don’t forget to pickup the items I wrote about on Sept 29th called “Spice Up Your Holidays” for a very romantic Halloween and Christmas!

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo

© 2010, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

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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!

*Don’t forget to pickup the items I wrote about on Sept 29th called “Spice Up Your Holidays” for a very romantic Halloween and Christmas!

Keep those sparks flying!
JoJo
10/14/10

© 2010, Surprise Kiss. All rights reserved.

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