If you’re a parent that has kids you realize one thing pretty quick – kids are the ringmasters of fun. Having fun is the only thing you live for as a kid and should be incorporated into your relationship every day. Relationships without fun become stale, boring and can become problematic. I remember being young, not having a care in the world and the only thing I was worried about was what the next game I was going to play or meeting up to play with friends. [Hmmm sounds familiar doesn’t it?]

Any long term committed relationship can get boring or stale if you’re not having fun together. Not to mention during COVID many of us were going stir crazy together. Life happens, kids come into the picture or maybe you get consumed with school or work. It’s important to always take inventory of your relationship and ask yourself “Are we having fun?” I can speak for myself and admit that I’m way too serious most of the time. This puts a damper on times when my wife is asking for more play or my friends are wanting to let loose and have a good time. I have to remember to put things into perspective in those moments and remind myself that just because I’m having fun, doesn’t mean I’m being irresponsible and forgetting the more important adulting that I have to do in life. We have to live in the moment sometimes and here are a few tips on having more fun in your relationship in case you’re like me and need help in this department:

•  Get the whipped cream out
Kids love messes and so should we. Whipped cream is fun because you can spray it all over your partner. Make a whipped cream tower on their forehead. Take the whipped cream and spray a huge dollop in their mouth. Bring it in the bedroom and eat it off their nipples, stomach or the hot area. Not a fan of whipped cream, try chocolate syrup, ice cream or something else that is easy to just grab and have a food fight with. I guarantee if you don’t fall over laughing, you’ll at least get a smile out of it. I like to do this to my wife when we’ve had an intense discussion to break the atmosphere.

• Tickle fight
You know your partner, so you know if this would get some laughs out or if it would just be super annoying. Sometimes my kids beg me to tickle them, which is surprising because when I start to do it with them, they then beg me to stop. Tickling or wrestling is a great stress reliever. Grab your partner, pin them down and make them say a dirty safe word to stop like “Daddy’s girl,” or “Promise you’ll do the dishes tonight.” If you’re not laughing or in tears by the end you might have to go see a doctor because there might be a biological problem that needs to be checked out. [Insert sarcasm here]

• Try a new activity together
Research shows that trying new activities together helps with the bonding process with couples. It’s especially powerful when you both are trying a new thing for the first time together. This allows both of you to be vulnerable and possibly look like an idiot together depending on what you’re trying. Don’t do something that you know the other person is good at and you’re not. Maybe take cooking lessons together, do one of those tough mudder competitions together or ride big wheels. Who cares! Just do something new together.

• Prank your partner
When I first met my wife we both were so uptight. We had went on a camping trip with some friends of ours and I secretly liked her so I decided I wanted to pull out the tent sticks in her tent so it would collapse on her in the middle of the night. She caught wind of it from some other people and warned me that if I did it she would be so upset and never talk to me. She and I have lightened up since then, but there are no shortage of pranks you can pull on your partner from big to little. Every now and then I like to pour a bucket of cold water on her while she is in the shower. Now that I think of it, maybe it’s time to up the ante. 😈

• Dance
It’s hard to not have fun if you’re shaking your ass. Depending how serious of a dancer you are, you can always just pull out some goofy moves to make your partner bowl over laughing at you. If you are a serious dancer, maybe you can both choreograph a dance routine to your favorite song and post it on social media to make your friends and family laugh or crack a smile. Dancing is a good stress reliever too and also a good workout. It releases endorphins in your brain, leaving you feeling good and energized.

Hopefully this gets the brain juices going to help you think of some ways you can have more fun with your partner. If you have any problems finding something fun to do just go find a way to hang out with some children. Let them lead you and do what they suggest to do without reservation. Before you know it, you’ll be having a blast.

Post your comments and ideas below. Do you find it challenging to have fun with your partner? What types of things have worked for your that turn a stale time into a silly time?