Lately, I have been communicating how a wife can bond with her husband for a more interesting marriage. In response to my ideas on helping wives communicate effectively, many of you, both husbands and wives, have been sending me e-mails expressing a similar thought: How to get that spark back in your marriage.

What, with kids, career, chores around the house, on and on. Many of you feel as though there is no time left in the day (or evening) to keep that marriage fire burning. Well, let's get right to some ideas for having fun with your spouse.

1. Mix your car with planes. Since men like anything that has a motor and makes noise, park your car close to the edge of your nearest busy airport and watch planes land and takeoff just over your car. Forget the observation deck, that's for the Metro crowd. Park your car at the noisiest side of the airport and hope planes come close to your vehicle for added thrills. If you want to make this experience a knockout, include food. Next to that one thing in life that men and women tell me they can't live without (you know what I'm referring to here), food comes in a close second.
2. Go on a picnic. Remember the last time you both were at a nice restaurant and you both felt like you could reach out and touch someone at the table next to you? My wife and I had this experience recently, prompting us to take our food and thoughts outside. Picnics can be as elaborate or as simple as the two of you wish. I suggest keeping the accouterments simple. Throw a couple of blankets in the back seat, pick up your favorite foods and beverages at a take-out window of your favorite eatery and spread everything out in the middle of your favorite park. Remember, men love to eat and women love to be complimented on providing their husband's favorite foods. After a few minutes with food in the middle of a park with no one nearby to eavesdrop, the two of you can easily begin to talk about intimate subjects that you would never dare to bring up in a crowded restaurant.
3. Visit a bakery. Amazing, I'm suggesting another place that involves food. Can you tell that I'm a man? Seriously, the intoxicating aroma of freshly-baked bread stays in your memory center for years so why not share the experience with the one you love. Take a small container of honey, paper plates and plastic utensils to a bread factory walk-in area and make a meal out of the experience.
4. Shop for correspondence cards. Now, I can hear the men: I've been ok with your ideas to this point, but there's no way I'm going to go up and down shelves of cards for more than three minutes. Some of the cards on the shelves today are genuinely entertaining--card companies pay big dollars for these verses in the cards. While the two of you pass cards back-and-forth to each other, commenting on each card, think about the cards you'll need to send for birthdays, holidays, etc. for the next three months and buy those cards now.
5. Let someone else makeup the bed. Many upscale hotels have great weekend rates and your kids can team up with their pals at a friends house (couples can reciprocate having the kids over). Apart from the obvious romantic opportunities of being alone with your spouse in a nice hotel room with disturbances for an evening, you don't have to make up the bed the next morning. Paradise found.
6. Join a dance group or enroll in a dance class. Ladies, here is a shocking revelation that many men have told me: husbands like to dance with their wives, but they are scared about appearances. Well, here's your chance to roll-up two stones at once. Join a dance class where everyone else is learning to move in the right direction and you both will have fun with other couples. Plus, when dance opportunities present themselves, you'll be ready. A major side benefit of dancing is that it gives the man a chance to lead and the woman a chance to follow.
7. Go to the symphony. Notice there is nothing in the previous sentence about opera. A few men worldwide like the opera. Many, many men worldwide can enjoy a quality performance by a symphony. Going to a civic event, such as the symphony, is a great opportunity to involve other couples. Go as a foursome, civic events are a great opportunity to involve a couple you both like to be around.
8. Go on a cruise. Remember that men love anything that involves machines, things that move and food. A cruise ship accomplishes all three. If you have kids, Disney Cruise Line is great for the family because kids can go one direction and adults can enjoy their private time. Don't feel guilty about separating from your kids during a cruise vacation because your kids want to have fun with people their own age and get together with parents for meals. Cruising is excellent for family visits. Instead of one family member setting every relative up in their house and preparing nonstop meals for several days, suggest that everyone in the family go on the same cruise and leave the details to someone else.
9. Take a long, long restaurant break. Arrive at an upscale restaurant, just the two of you, at 11 a.m. on a weekend day and just relax for as long as you like. Don't look at your watches, don't bring up the routine events happening everyday--just relax as a couple and talk about things that make you both happy. My wife and I occasionally do this and feel refreshed after a couple of hours of nonstop iced tea, food (there is this word again) and conversation. One note about fair play: If you stay at a restaurant for more than the customary time for most patrons of that restaurant, a correspondingly higher tip is appreciated by the staff.
10. Celebrate birthdays and anniversaries at an upscale restaurant. Granted, wives, I am a man and you're probably wondering if I am being an overindulgent male by bringing up the subject of food so often in this article. The answer is no. Your parents were right when they said the way to a man's heart is through his stomach. When it comes to the subject of food, all men think alike. Why not make dining out a fun experience. My wife and I have several nice restaurants in our city that we make a point of experiencing on our birthdays because these restaurants provide the birthday person with a complimentary (and large) dessert. Of course, you'll be persuaded to share the dessert with the one you love sitting right next to you. One upscale restaurant even provides the balloons to announce to everyone closeby that someone at your table is in a celebrating mood. We do have our limits in creating a scene and request that no one on the staff sing Happy Birthday at our table.

There you have it ten fun things you can do with your spouse. Prices range from inexpensive to expensive. Now, the rest is up to the two of you.