Recently, I noticed almost every night, without much thought, I pull down the covers on my husbands side of the bed. It’s just a small ritual that I do nightly. It’s done with love, with no expectation in return. So often it’s the little things that we do, that actually begin to add up.

Often, I go to bed before my husband, so I come to give him a kiss before retiring to the bedroom. Also, we tend to seek each other out in the morning and begin our day with another kiss. You could call these thoughtful and loving rituals.

Also, several times a week, my husband looks me in the eye and says to me with sincerity “You’re adorable!” or “Have I told you lately how beautiful you are?” Which also puts a smile on my face. In fact when getting ready in the morning, I often make a special effort, to look my best for him, even if I don’t have clients that day or plan to go out. It’s not that I’m looking and seeking a compliment; it’s choosing to look my best, since he obviously appreciates that in me.

These little daily rituals, we offer each other with love. Possibly they’ve become somewhat habits for both of us. Yet they still have a great deal of meaning.

Throughout the day, I recognize we both treat each other with respect and kindness, and the little daily rituals we do to show love also reinforces our relationship.

Do we occasionally have mishaps or disagreements, I’m sure since were only human. Yet the daily little rituals that we both have adopted, strengthen and reinforce our relationship with one another.

So I encourage you, first to pay attention to see if you already have adopted thoughtful daily rituals and if not consider trying to start getting creative and think of ways that you can apply something your partner would appreciate and feel loved by a simple act or a few loving and caring words.

Then consider putting the icing on the cake, by occasionally letting your partner know, how that creates you to feel, when given a compliment or has done a thoughtful act of kindness. The words of encouragement keeps the daily rituals flowing.

By Dr. M.P. Wylie, Founder and Director of Amore Retreat, Idyllwild, CA