National Couple Appreciation Month: A Second Chance at Love

If Hollywood romance movies have taught us anything, it’s that love can be celebrated anywhere and at any time of the year. You don’t need to have the perfect conditions to say “I love you,” or follow romantic traditions to pursue someone you like.

On a similar note, it’s been a couple of months since Valentine’s Day and if you’ve just missed it, then you’ve got another chance coming this April 1st. According to the website days of the year, National Couple Appreciation Month was founded in 2010 by Blissful Escapes.

To quote the words from the company, they started this celebration to “ encourage couples to do something special to reinforce and celebrate their relationship.”

Since then, it’s gained a following from couples and singles who want to show appreciation for their loved ones, or show couple friends how much they enjoy their company. So if you’ve missed wooing your girlfriend on Valentine’s Day, make a promise to do so on the 1st of April.

Reignite the love between you and your partner with these couple appreciation ideas:

Show Your Love through Simple Gestures

Love doesn’t have to be a grandiose affair. Sure, it’s nice but sometimes it’s doing the smallest details that has the biggest impact.

It could be a look of admiration, the way you hold their hand when you both cross the street, or maybe you have a habit of waking them up everyday in the morning. The simplest gesture can be the sweetest thing.

Celebrating national couple’s day is more than telling the world you love your partner, it’s making them feel special by making thoughtful gestures and loving actions.

Speak Their Love Language

What is your partner’s love language? According to the website Verywell Mind, people have 5 love languages:

• Words of Affirmation. A person enjoys receiving praise, words of appreciation, encouraging and uplifting quotes, cute text messages and love notes.

• Quality Time. A person feels loved when you give them your undivided attention. That means putting down the phone, making eye contact and actively listening.

• Physical Touch. Aside from physical intimacy, a person feels loved when their partner makes physical contact like holding their hand, touching their arm or giving them a nice foot rub.

• Acts of Service. A person feels loved and appreciated when someone helps with the chores, runs errands for them, etc.

• Receiving Gifts. A person feels loved when they receive gifts. Not just the material gift but the time and effort it took for the gift-giver to pick out the gift for them. The gift doesn’t have to be necessarily extravagant or large either. A simple gift is still appreciated.

Identify your partner’s love language by asking them what makes them feel loved. Do they feel loved when you surprise them with a gift? Do they feel happy when they’re praised by you? What about going on a trip with you?

Listening to their answers might give you a hint as to what their love language might be.

Reconnect Emotionally

If you’ve somehow lost the emotional connection in your relationship, then how do you get it back?

According to NBC News, there are 4 ways to improve emotional intimacy. You have to be:

1. Strategically vulnerable to earn their trust.

2. Give your partner daily affirmations and compliments.

3. Prioritize sexual satisfaction.

4. Make an effort to break out of your day-to-day routine.

With how busy life gets, it’s easy to forget the emotional aspect of your relationship. When you stop trying to impress and understand your partner, feelings can get lost in the routine of everyday life.

A Trip Down Memory Lane

The passing of time and everyday fights that come with long-term relationships often dull the passion and love you initially felt for each other. Hence, revisit the moments of love you had early in your relationship.

Not only is it enjoyable - you’ll probably share some good laughs or tears of relief - they can also remind you of valuable life lessons moving forward.

Remind yourselves why you fell in love with your partner in the first place. Every once in a while, it’s good to take out old photo albums, or scrapbooks and walk down memory lane from when you first started dating.

Being Grateful

It’s easy to take your partner for granted, especially if you’ve been in a long-term relationship. That’s why celebrating national couple appreciation month is crucial to keeping those romantic embers burning intensely.

If you keep it up, who knows? Maybe you and your partner will end up building a lovely home, raising beautiful children, and have spent many years together. Wouldn’t that be great?

On the other hand, if you’re single and looking for love, take some time this month to seek out family and friends to let them know you appreciate them. Maybe it’s your turn to invite them for a nice meal, or ask them to hang out with you on a weekend trip.

There can never be too many holidays to celebrate true love. Make their day by showing them how much you truly appreciate them in your life.

So no matter which side of this you’re on, make sure to never take people for granted. It’s a good way to improve your relationships and more importantly, it’s a win-win situation for everyone.