11 Ways to Rev Up the Romance

photo by Sari Fried-Fiori, sffphotography.com

Valentine's Day is just around the corner.  Never fear, The Whoopie Queen is here with ideas to rev up the romance.

Romance is a verb meaning "to woo."   Friends often ask me about how Dan and I keep the fires burning.  We have been together for 15 years and I still feel so lucky to wake up beside him every day.  There have been bumps along the way that include therapy and tears and fighting, and best of all, a deeper connection.  A relationship REQUIRES work.  They say marriage is an "institution" and I respond that people in institutions appear drugged and die slowly.  I want an alternative!  I want a love affair and that doesn't come easy.  It's called keeping the love ALIVE.  The best way to make sure love is in the air is to THINK LIKE A LOVER, not a wife or husband.  Lovers do things to keep interest peaked. They flirt. They text. They call.  They write each other sexy notes.  They make plans to spend time together (without the kids).  They hold a special place of honor for each other.  They are partners.  They get naked.  They have sex.  They woo.

I want to woo you too (not that way) to share what I've learned during the 47 years I've been on the planet.  Starting next week, I'll have a new series that will air on my website whoopiequeen.com - ASK CYNDY, THE WHOOPIE QUEEN.  They are short segments of advice using positive psychology tips with a splash of whoop POW.  This month the topic is LOVE.  Next month's topic is CREATING LUCK & GOOD FORTUNE.  Post your ?'s here as "anonymous" or use a fake name.  And you can always send ?'s to cyndy@whoopiequeen.com .

11 WAYS TO REV UP THE ROMANCE:

1. Leave post-it love notes all over the inside of your lover's car or inside a kitchen cabinet.
   
2. Ask better questions like, "What can I do for you today that will make your life easier and less stressful?"  Then do it.   Here's a great article about other questions that will "save your relationship."  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/glennon-melton/the-questions-that-will-save-your-relationships_b_4618254.html
3. Make a playlist for your lover.   http://www.experiencecord.com/artists/our-valentines-day-playlist-new-school-love-songs/ 
   
4. Send a whoopie gram to work - favorite candy bar with sexy note in briefcase.
5. Drive separately & pick each other up at a bar. 
6. Find a funny, laugh out loud card and mail it to your lover's office.
7. Make breakfast for your luvr.  Heart shaped egg in a hole.
   
    
8. Do something different together.  Learn graffiti art, take an architecture tour of Gilded mansions, learn food photography at a street market, paint designer antlers (ha!), have dinner with a director, take a mob tour, and so much more.  Sidetour is a new site that offers unique excursions in lots of major cities including NY, Philly, Dallas, Boston, San Fran and more.  https://www.sidetour.com/washington 
    
   
9. Create a unique keepsake.  Here's a link to a cool photo puzzle http://allforthememories.com/blog/2014/1/20/diy-valentine-photo-puzzle  
   
   
     
10. Send a sext message.  Just do it!  Ok, if you can't sext, send your lover a romantic line of poetry.  For a little help on the poetry front:  http://ingenira.hubpages.com/hub/Romantic-Love-Quotes-for-Valentines-Day AND http://www.toptenz.net/top-10-love-poems.php.  
11. Write SEX on your luvr's to-do list.