With all the hustle and bustle of the holidays the children, friends, and relatives often get all the attention and the spouses are left out in the cold. Celebrate this Christmas with 12 days of romance.

On the first day of Christmas… Buy your mate one box of their favorite cereal and lace it with lots of “prizes.” Throw in some golf tees, Hershey kisses, toy cars, or whatever would bring out the child in them.

On the second day of Christmas… Take out your two engraved toasting glasses from the china cabinet and use them. Reminisce about the day you first sipped from them. If you never had any, engrave your own by buying some stencils and etching paste at a craft store.

On the third day of Christmas… Have three meals together. You could go all out with breakfast in bed, a picnic lunch and a candlelit dinner. Better yet, spend less time preparing the meal and more time sharing it together.

On the fourth day of Christmas… Put the pedal to the metal and four on the floor. Take a peaceful drive for the day. Go to the country, sightsee in the city, or cruise around looking at Christmas lights.

On the fifth day of Christmas… Fax or deliver a photocopy of your five fingers (plus the rest of your hand) to your love at work. Tell them you can’t wait to be together to hold the real thing.

On the sixth day of Christmas… Give her a half dozen of her favorite flower ? one at a time. Leave one on the pillow, one on her car seat, one at her office, etc.

On the seventh day of Christmas… Count your lucky stars by gazing into the seventh heaven. If the night is overcast, arrange for glow-in-the-dark stars on the bedroom ceiling.

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On the eighth day of Christmas… Buy an eight-pack of crayons and together design and color a personalized coloring book of happy memories you have shared.

On the ninth day of Christmas… Dress to the nines and head out to a swanky restaurant. If a full meal would be too much on the budget, simply go for cocktails or dessert.

On the tenth day of Christmas… Massage your sweetheart’s aching shoulders for ten minutes. Throw in a back scratch, a foot massage, and a hair brushing if you are feeling extra generous.

On the eleventh day of Christmas… Bake him eleven of his favorite cookies (since most recipes make one dozen, these will be bigger than usual ? he won’t complain). Stick a wooden skewer through the side of each cookie and then wrap the cookie in a colored plastic wrap. Place them in a box or vase as you would a dozen roses.

On the twelfth day of Christmas… Present your sweetheart with a custom-made twelve-month calendar for the new year. Use personal photographs or your own drawings to make it unique. Highlight special days for the new year.

Michael Webb is the best-selling author of The Romantic’s Guide and seven other books.

Copyright © Michael Webb, Used with permission.

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