Top 11 Ways to Lighten Up Your Love Life

Switch up the old routine and try a day date instead. Not only is change good for your relationship, but being out in the sun allows your skin to soak up vitamin D, which in turn raises levels of your feel-good hormone, serotonin. (Just don’t forget that sunscreen!) Take a bike ride, visit your local farmer’s market or go to a festival.

If you’re not too pressed for time, pick one day to throw out the itinerary, so you don’t have to worry about meeting the tour group somewhere or getting to a museum at your reserved time. Step out of your hotel and leisurely take in your surroundings, so you can see what it’s like to live as a local.

Make to-dos wanna-dos: Turn the hose on each other while watering the lawn; give bill paying Superbowl status by accompanying the task with chips, onion dip and an old movie; transform cleaning house into a dance party by cranking up the tunes; or have a scavenger hunt instead of merely grocery shopping.

Instead of sending your guy emails with more to-do lists, surprise him with ten fun things you can do together that night or weekend, and ask him to pick five to send back. Then, you pick three from his list, email it back, and so on. Thinking about something fun will make those work hours fly by.

If your after-work routine consists of flipping on the TV or swapping stories from your day around the kitchen table, try taking a walk around the neighborhood instead. You’ll not only burn calories, but you’ll be out of the house and doing something different together.

So the spat is over, but the mood is still tense. We advise having a go-to joke to clear the air when it’s all over. Sure, it may sound silly, but that’s kind of the point.

Schedule a family day each weekend during which hanging out together takes precedence over distractions like chores, answering email and the like. Whether you lounge in bed until noon, go rock climbing or see a movie, you’ll end up feeling refreshed.

Have to make a long drive to the in-laws? Research the route in advance and plan a detour to a landmark that’s on the way — cheesy diners count! — to turn what could be just another long drive into an adventure for two.

Have more fun in bed with a good book — yes, we’re serious! There are some great guides to getting it on, with ideas that even the shy can try. And it’s more than okay to gawk and giggle as you turn the pages; your sex life doesn’t need to be serious to be sexy. In fact, we think it’s better that way.

This one is easy: Smile at each other, even when you don’t think you want to. Dale Jorgenson, Ph.D., a psychology professor at Cal State University Long Beach, says smiling is contagious: The more you see a smile, the more you want to smile, and the overall happier you are. Sounds like an easy prescription for lightening up to us.