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Top five anniversary gifts for men

I have got my share of anniversary gifts in my lifetime, and although it’s a bad thing to say, many of them didn’t leave a good or permanent impression on me.  Sure, I know that giving gifts is all about the intent, but I think that gifts for anniversary have to mean more than intent. They’re the proof of a sincere bond between two people, where the people actually know each other, so there shouldn’t be much room for mistakes there. Turns out that people are not mind readers, even a...

The rest is history: Pt4

As they say, "The Rest Is History" and that was almost 11 years ago (2017) and I can still remember those first 2 days very clearly although we still disagree on who made the first move.  We have ‘dated’ from the beginning and I have enjoyed being treated like a Queen, in turn I treat him like my King. Three years in, he proposed to me at the same restaurant we met in and 2 years after that we were married.  We are about to celebrate our 6th Wedding Anniversary this year although w...

Our second date: Pt3

Standing together on the pavement after the movie had ended, he lent over and kissed me on the cheek to say goodbye.  We had sat through the whole movie with our hands in our laps not knowing what to do or how to behave. Teenagers these days could learn a lot about old fashioned dating etiquette.  I thanked him for a wonderful evening and drove home. I remember thinking how that would be the last time I would ever see this man again as he would not be interested in a middle aged, singl...

Our first date: Pt2

We were seated at a table for two next to the window at the front of the restaurant.  The food was amazing and I still remember to this day what I ordered as I have ordered it each time I dine there.  It was the Chicken Burrito.  He ordered the Lassoo of Hog.  I usually eat my food slowly when nervous but on this occasion I ate quite quickly.  In fact, we both did. Dinner was over in less than an hour.  Having had such a great time and not wanting the evening to end...

Does your relationship have amazing passion and chemistry?

This question was posed to us recently, "How does a couple keep the amazing passion and chemistry long into a relationship? I believe it's a combination of 4 things.  Health, Commitment, Time and Opportunity.  Are you as healthy now as when you first met?  Is your overall health and fitness different now to that of where it was, at the beginning of your relationship? If you've found that you are exercising less now or your eating habits have changed perhaps it is time to reconside...

How did we meet? Pt1

How did we meet, who are the team behind Romantic Gestures™ and where did it all begin?  I have decided to go back to the beginning of our relationship to give you an idea of who we are and how it all started.  Over the next four weeks I will be bringing you the story of how we met giving you an insight into our relationship so that you can see how it is possible to overcome any curve ball that is thrown your way.  Let the story begin: Single mother of 2 gorgeous children st...

Why do men and women love differently?

Apart from the obvious emotional, mental and physical differences between men and women in relationships, women tend to be more emotional than men which leads to a difference in the way they love and want to be loved.  “Men on the other hand are wired to act during times of high emotion and since emotion can lead to violence" they tend to want to end the discussion where she wants to carry on talking, Peggy Drexler, Ph.D. Mike Tyrrell talks about how this situation may actually be a survi...

Ten heartfelt statements men love to hear

Here are ten heartfelt statements that your husband/partner would love to hear you say.  After speaking with numerous boyfriends and husbands, it appears we all have different ways of talking to our wives, girlfriends or boyfriends in order to make them feel appreciated, valued and respected.  I wanted to write this from a guy’s perspective and after a bit of research here are the ten heartfelt statements that we would like to hear from our wives/girlfriends or partners. “I love b...

Sweet essential oil scents of seduction

All 5 senses are incredibly important when it comes to sex.  We, as humans, fall in love using our senses.  We all have a unique sense of smell with preconceived ideas based on our preferences.  What one person may find a pleasant odour, another may not.  Inhaling scents sends a message to our brain which can trigger memories and feelings either positive or negative, that relate to each scent. One way to increase the passion in your relationship is to add essential oil scents...

Enhanced intimacy

Edit from Active SexLife Solutions offers professional therapy for people experiencing sexual or intimacy concerns in their relationship.  We would like to welcome Edit to our team as she answers your intimacy related questions and concerns.  You may contact her directly or you may send us your question and we will pass it on to her.  All questions are answered anonymously and your details will never be passed on unless you want her to get in touch with you directly.  Here is...

Couples differences

One of the fun parts about getting to know a new couple is learning about how they first met.  Because, invariably, you don’t get to hear just one story.  You get to hear two: his and hers.  Conflicting memories can be important when you’re dealing with events and situations that go deeper.  Maybe you and your spouse have different accounts of an awkward situation at a family gathering and, as a result, can’t decide how to deal with it.  Or, you don’t agree on th...

Happy wife, happy life!

While dream vacations and milestones are important, it’s the simple things you do that make your wife happy.  Show love and respect to your bride every day and remind her why you were the best choice she’s ever made.  Here are my 9 basic tips for showing every day love.  Remember: “Happy Wife, Happy Life”. Saying something like “I’d like you to meet my beautiful wife,” or “Here’s my better half” goes further than you may realize.  Publicly recognizing her ...

Conflict resolution

No one expects any marriage to be conflict free, we all have different values and views as well as many different ideas on accomplishing a task. Even Natasha and I have disagreements that lead to compromise.  I would honestly be very firm with you that if you have no conflict in your marriage then something is wrong as one is not opening up to the other.  Here are my 8 top tips for effective conflict resolution in your marriage: Marriage is a “We” BusinessAny couple who gains a ‘...

Undivided attention

Marriage requires your undivided attention.  Even though many other important elements of living have to be attended to, nothing is more important than your marriage.  There are those moments in life when you need to give your full undivided attention to your spouse.  Here are a few of those most important times. When you wake up in the morningLet them know right off the bat at the beginning of your day that they are vitally important to you.  Start with a kiss and a, “I�...

Quality chocolate

Chocolate tends to get bashed around regarding weight gain and whether it is good for you or not, but one thing we do know is that good quality dark chocolate is more beneficial to your body than milk or white chocolate.  Here are some facts that you should know when selecting your next chocolaty treat: According to Huffington Post, research published states that regular quality chocolate eaters may more frequently have lower BMI’s.  They go on to say that treating yourself to a smal...

Celebrate milestones

Here we explain why it is important to celebrate milestones in your relationship.  Thinking back to when Russell and I met, it is easy to remember our first date, our first kiss, the first movie we saw, the first moment we both said “I Love You”.  It is easy to remember all of these but not so easy to remember the subsequent dates, the subsequent movies we saw and the subsequent milestones in our relationship without the help of our Memento box. From the very beginning I have kept ...

Romantic budget anniversary ideas

Celebrating anniversaries can be difficult when you are on limited income which is why we are excited to bring you these 25 romantic budget anniversary ideas.  How you celebrate it speaks volumes about the love you have for one another, not the value of the gift given.  You don’t have to buy each other the most expensive flowers, chocolate, jewellery etc to show them how much you care.  Gifts given from the heart will be well received than the gifts with the highest dollar value...

Romantic NZ honeymoon

Traditionally it is the Grooms responsibility to plan the Honeymoon and for some this can be a rather daunting process.  Where to begin?  The first things to think about are how much time you would like to be away for, how far you are wanting to travel, what places you would love to visit and how much money you are wanting to spend? I have spoken to quite a few couples at the recent Manawatu Wedding Expo and the consensus is that they are planning to have a couple of days away in New Z...

Romantic birthday ideas for her

An idyllic romantic setting is one filled with bouquets of red roses, scented candles filling the air with sensual aromas, a bottle of Champagne on ice, romantic music playing softly in the background in a picturesque secluded location with a sensual platter of her favourite delights.  Men, how well do you really know your sweetheart?  Take our fun quiz to find out. When searching for Romantic Birthday Ideas for Her, do you become frustrated and overwhelmed when faced with the task of ...

New age Love

Since I launched my Yes to Love workshops, I’ve been amazed at the range of people who have showed up, the emotions and issues people are dealing with, and the questions that I get asked.  The very fact that I’ve designed an attraction specific course this year shows the demand is there. The fact is, love today is not simple.  It’s not even a ‘given’ that you will find it.  As social norms have changed, and people’s perceptions about how they want to live their lives, ...

Unexpected joy

This week Monique talks about finding joy in the unexpected. My husband and I run a small gang.  We are the admin team of said gang.  Our duties involve sanitation, nutrition, entertainment, travel… and the list goes on.  Our wee gang of boys keep us busy.  It’s a new catch-word these days isn’t it… busy.  Everyone’s busy.  And yes, we all really are.  But what happens to the team building of the admin team?  Well we generally put it to...

Strengthening relationships

This week Steph talks about how you can use body language to strengthen your relationship. I’ve put a lot of time and effort into my new Yes to Love course on attraction, and it is paying off in happy couples.  Believe it or not, body language recognition and de-coding is your biggest asset when it comes to love – and it also works for couples in existing relationships. Before my Yes to Love course I traveled New Zealand for almost two years with a workshop called Say it Out Loud. ...

Time apart

Are you and your partner forced to spend time apart and away from home due to work commitments?  Perhaps there is a job that requires travel for lengthy periods or frequent travel is a requirement throughout each month? Being a solider, Russell is required to be available 24/7 in the event of an emergency, exercise, deployment or regular scheduled task.  The length of time away from home can be anywhere between 24 hours to several months and while this is the nature of his job and some...

Making memories

When a loved one passes away the first thing you do is bathe yourself in your memories of them.  You remember the good and the bad times and the moments that made you laugh, cry, feel sad and angry.  Your memories take over and all you have left of them are MEMORIES.  Making memories is vital for a healthy relationship. Possessions never last.  They are too soon forgotten about, thrown out, sold, left behind or passed on.  We can't take possessions with us when we move a...

What is Love?

At the end of 2015, TVNZ shared the findings of Googles most searched lists for that year.  The lists comprised of:  Trending Searches, (Trending) News Items, (Most Searched) How to....., (Most Searched) What is......  Number 3 in the What is? category was Love, What is Love?  Here I will answer that question giving you a deeper understanding of a powerful emotion that when used correctly will provide you with a lifetime of happiness. According to sciencedaily.com, "Love ligh...