Elder Spencer W. Kimball taught, “Clearly, right marriage begins with right dating.” And if I may add to that, I would say, for a marriage to last, it still needs right dating. Marriage needs to be cultivated or else it will wither away. Constant dating throughout married life helps withstand the adversary’s attacks on the sanctity of marriage. In the month of hearts, let us count down to February 14 by considering these 14 Valentine’s Day Dating Ideas.

Marriage can be nurtured through constant dating.

Go back to where you first met.

Rekindle how the “first times” felt. What you felt when you first saw your spouse. What you did to get his or her attention. All the tingling down the spine feels.

Visit the Temple.

“A place of love and beauty”, the Temple will remind us of the covenants we made therein. For those who have not entered the Temple yet, it will serve as an inspiration to work for their sealing in the house of the Lord.

Make a list of what you are grateful for about each other.

The hustle and bustle of daily life can sometimes make us forget why we fell in love with our spouses. Making a why-am-I-grateful-for-my-spouse list can help us recall all the good that he or she is and the beauty the world has received because he or she exists.

Make a bucket list as a couple.

May it be a trip you both have been longing to do or a home improvement project you want to accomplish, make a list of the things you want as a couple. With this, both of you can plot a timeline and make goals to achieve them.

Visit widows or widowers and spend time with them.

The month of February can sometimes feel like winter to widows and widowers. It is a great idea to spend time with them so they will not feel alone during the Love Season.

Remember our forebears by learning about their love story.

Valentine’s Day is a good way to do genealogy work. We can research and look back on how our parents, grandparents or great grandparents met. Their love story may be different or similar from ours but it is a way to know them better.

Visit the young “single’” adults in your ward.

Married couples can be a positive influence on the youth and the young single adults. During Valentine’s day, it can make a difference in their lives if couples visit them and share their love and testimony of the importance of marriage.

Play mystery Valentine with your spouse.

Leave Valentine’s Day cards or heart cookies on the doorsteps of people in your community. Express your appreciation to them by leaving notes of gratitude and sincere compliments. The mystery adds to the excitement and leaves them in awe that there are people who appreciate them.

Write Valentine messages to full-time missionaries.

As a couple, express your love and appreciation for the service full-time missionaries are giving. This can be done via snail mail or email. This will boost their morale as they receive encouragement and strength from your letters.

Spend the day gardening.

Love needs nurturing like a garden does. Making a garden or improving one can compare to taking the necessary steps to also tend your marriage relationship. This will also cultivate your love for the environment.

Work out together.

You can go to the gym as a couple or go biking or hiking. Make time to appreciate health and wellness. Doing this together as a couple is becoming popular nowadays. It doesn’t hurt if we get on the bandwagon to couple fitness.

Travel.

This does not always mean going far. Taking a bus ride to the next town and back again is still travel. Make it an opportunity to communicate with each other with a change in scenery every now and then.

Write a letter to each other.

When was the last time you wrote a love letter to your spouse? Get classical in expressing your feelings by writing on a fancy stationery and sealing it with a kiss. As one of the most loved Valentine’s Day dating ideas, you can never go wrong with writing love letters.

Cook together.

The kitchen may be a small space in the house but it can be a place to spend quality time together. Prepare your Valentine’s Day dinner as a couple. From the preparation of the ingredients to plating the dish, there is more than enough time to exchange sweet talks.

Dating on Valentine’s Day is not a matter of age but a matter of the heart.

Married couples tend to forego dating as an important part of the marriage relationship. In a culture where dating is viewed as only for the young ones, the young once must reconsider dating as not “only a luxury” for married couples. It is a part of the nurturing process to make marriage work. Nurture your marriage. Don’t stop dating!