K-Y Intimacy Experiment Day 1: The Love Nest

***Although the title of this post may be suggestive, I assure you this will be a PG rated post, as this is and always will be a family-friendly blog. So Mom, you don't need to cover your eyes in disgust. There will be no graphic accounts of my sex life posted.***

First off, I have a confession to make. This may come as a shocker to some of you, so please...sit down, brace yourself, have a drink....Prepare yourself for what I am about to tell you. Okay, ready? ~drumroll, please~ I am not a virgin. I have done that thing that two grown-ups who love each other very much do. You know what I mean. That thing that creates babies. Yup, I have done a whole lotta that!  Okay. I know. Not so shocking, especially considering I have three kids, two of which are well under the age of 2. I did not get abducted and artificially inseminated by aliens, my children are not the products of Immaculate Conception, and I did not slip and fall into a puddle of....Well, you get the point! No need to be any more graphic than that!

I am actually very happily married to the greatest guy in the world, and we have a very healthy, active marital relationship. But sometimes life gets in the way of intimacy. Especially lately. We have two small babies, Sophie, who is 14 months old, and Xander who is only a month and a half old. So needless to say, between all of the poopy diapers, spit-up, tantrums, and sleepless nights, (not to mention taking care of my 10 year old son, the house, the dog, and the fact that my hubby works LONG hours) it is sometimes difficult to keep that sense of intimacy that comes before having babies. Sure, we love each other just as much, and we're just as happy if not happier than before the monsters were born, but we don't get much couple time. Usually couple time consists of us collapsing into somewhat of a snuggle, each with a baby in our arms. Finding more US time, or improving the quality of the time we have available, is something we have been wanting to do for awhile now.

So needless to say, when I got the opportunity to work with K-Y Brands and  take part in their 10 Day Intimacy Experiment, I jumped at the chance. This is something that could really help my husband and I reconnect, despite the chaos that is parenthood. Let me tell you a little more about the Intimacy Experiment. Yes, K-Y is well known for their sexual enhancement aides. (Which are wonderful, if I do say myself!) But the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment is about so much more than just good sex. It was actually developed by the experts at Good In Bed, and is a 10 day experiment that helps couples reconnect on a mental, physical, and emotional level in AND out of the bedroom.

I have been with my husband for several years now. I actually met and dated him when I was 13, and reconnected with him some years later when he located me on MySpace and pestered me until I agreed to meet up with him again. So yes, he is familiar. I can finish his sentences, and look at him and know exactly what he needs before he even verbalizes it. (Which is great, if you ask him, since I will magically show up with a beer or a snack right before he asks for one!) But when is familiar TOO familiar? In relationships, we tend to get very comfortable, and fall into a routine. Which isn't bad. Having that level of comfort and security in a relationship is a wonderful thing. But it CAN sap away at some of the passion and excitement that we generally experience in the beginning of a relationship....IF YOU LET IT. That kind of passion and desire doesn't HAVE to be a thing of the past just because there are babies and chores and bills to pay.

THAT, my friends, is what the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment is all about: Recapturing that "new love" feeling, reigniting that spark, and remembering why we fell in love with our partner to begin with! It is sooooo easy to take a relationship for granted, especially after you've been with a person for years. It's easy to "forget" all of the wonderful traits that caused us to swoon in the beginning. The K-Y Intimacy Experiment is about one thing and one thing only, in a nutshell: Bringing intimacy and closeness back into marriages and relationships, even with all of the day-to-day stresses we all tend to experience. Think of it as free relationship counseling without the hefty therapist's bill or stiff, wanna-be-leather couch!

The best part is, while I conduct and post my own experiences with the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment over the course of the next 10 days, you can participate, too! The folks at K-Y want to spread the love, and are offering this eye-opening experiment to ALL couples who want to put some Va-Va-Voom back into their relationships and between the sheets! You can download your own copy of the Intimacy Experiment at the Couple's Place By K-Y Brand Facebook page! You will find all the information you need under the Experiment Tab. Please keep in mind that the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment guide can be downloaded as a .pdf file. So make sure you have the latest version of Adobe installed so you can download and enjoy it!

Like I said, over the next 10 days, beginning today, I will be recording my experiences and thoughts about the Intimacy Experiment. I hope you'll join me in my journey! Also, at the conclusion of the experiment, I will be hosting a GIVEAWAY that 2 of my lucky readers can win! The catch? You HAVE to be a blogger, and you MUST be willing to post your own 10 Day K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment on your blog. The winners will also receive the same box of K-Y brand goodies to help facilitate their experiment that I received and is pictured above. So stick around for your chance to WIN and take part in this awesome program, too! *Do NOT enter to win on this, or any other post during my experiment. There will be a separate post at the conclusion!*

So without further ado, let me begin my challenge....

Day 1: The Love Nest

Today's Daytime assignment (yes, there are day and night assignments. To keep with the family-friendly theme of my blog, I will be posting about my daytime activities. The night's activities are better left to the imagination!) is to turn your bedroom into a "Love Nest." A personal adult playground, if you will, devoid of clutter, stress, and reminders of the life that happens outside of those 4 walls. Basically, the goal is to promote romance by creating a relaxing and sensual ambience, free of children and laundry and the stresses of everyday life. A place where you, as a couple can retreat and enjoy one another. I have to be honest, I felt an odd, sinking feeling when I realized that I actually HAD to find a way to do this....You see, I am a VERY protective mama, and both of my babies sleep in the room with us. Sophie usually sleeps in her playpen, and Xander ONLY wants to sleep nestled up in Dan's armpit. (Which can be pretty gross, since he sometimes wakes up with....interesting....smelling hair!) We also have a swing, a bassinet, and a MamaRoo in our room. As well as crates of baby toys and books, and bottles, and wipes and diapers....Oh Lord. This is going to be more than challenging! So I spent half of the day de-baby-izing the room, although it may not last too long....The playpen is in the hallway, and the bassinet and swing have found their way to the nursery for the time being. I hid the toys and diapering supplies in the closet (thank goodness we have  a walk-in closet!) and I closely inspected the floor for any Cheerios or Puffs before vacuuming. I then got out our good bedding, which is black and red with a velvety scroll design on it and I even broke out some satin sheets, some candles, and burned a few CD's to set the mood. I am also making some yummy Ribeye steaks, baked potatoes, and a few other sides in preparation for another review/giveaway, so the timing couldn't be better! What man doesn't get in the mood for love when presented with a nice, juicy steak and some wine? Good timing, if I do say so myself! I couldn't 100% eliminate the presence of children from the room, but I can make it as child-free as possible, at least for one night! Thank GOD for my video baby monitor. Hopefully worrying about whether or not the babies are breathing in the nursery won't keep me from enjoying today's scheduled night time activities, wink, wink. (Insert cheesy 1970's Bow-Chicka-Wow-Wow music here,lol)

Stay tuned for tomorrow's assignment!

And remember, for more information about how you can participate in the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment, please visit the Couple's Place on Facebook!

Disclosure: I wrote this posting while participating in a blog campaign on behalf of K-Y® Brand and also received product samples to help facilitate my review. In addition, K-Y® Brand sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate. All thoughts and opinions are 100% honest and my own, and were not influenced in any way.
 

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