What odd-but-lovely habits / rituals do you and your DP have?

[whatsinmypockets]

Inspired by a chat I had with a friend last night – she mentioned that she and her DP turn on 80s power ballads whenever they have to do house chores they don't enjoy, so they can play air guitar / sing into the antibac spray / throw armfuls of laundry in the air dramatically / hold the bathroom bin above their heads triumphantly while they get things done. Makes the job more fun and they get to feel connected.

It made me smile so much – and made me think of how DP and I, whenever we do something very mundane but do it well (like unpack the online shop delivery quickly or get eyedrops into the dog successfully) will put on overenthusiastic American accents and compliment one another like sports commentators: "Did you see the SPEED of that?" "This man is a true CHAMPION" "Ladies and gentlemen, I think we just witnessed history being made" "I've never seen talent like it"...

I love how couples often develop these weird little rituals that are totally unique to that specific relationship...

Given there's (understandably) so much "something's wrong with my relationship" on MN, I'd love to read some more examples of things like this - what do you and your DP do that's a quirk of your relationship?

Doesn't have to be as 'significant' as my friend and her power ballads – might just be a sweet how-we-make-coffee-in-the-morning routine or a specific way you hold hands...

Loads but here is the latest one.
My granddaughter was giving us a clue as to what animal she was, and had her arm up in the air with her hand in a bush going yum yum yum.(giraffe eating leaves, in case you hadn't realised!) For some reason we've carried this on, holding our arm up on the air and shouting "guess what?" My greatest success was drawing a St George's cross on a sheet of toilet paper, holding it up in the air and getting dh to guess what it was. It was a giraffe carrying the flag for the UK team at the Olympics! Imagine a giraffe skiing, doing the 200m hurdles, the list is endless. We laugh so much that sometimes I nearly cry.

We replicate the (very strange) meow of his long deceased family pet to locate each other in the house. Sounds even stranger when typed out 🫣

We have lots of silly little things and words or phrases for things that mean nothing to anyone else.

Tatie Kiev's (mini chicken kievs)
Kippykops (helicopter)
Ponkys (hedgehog)

Everything is "a thingy"..... "pass me the thingy". "What's that thingy called?". "Have you seen the thingy?". "Did you pack the thingy?"

Bizarrely we always seem to know what "thingy" the other is referring to!!!!!

Good night is ALWAYS NanyPipe sometimes finished with "watch the bedbugs don't bite. And if they do? Get your shoe...... and bonk them on the? BOGO!"

If one of us is making a cuppa and asks what biscuits the other person would like with it, the answer is always "a selection".

DH sits on the side of the sofa beside the opening between the kitchen and sitting room. I stroke the top of his bald head and kiss it as I walk past, EVERY TIME.

Ditto before he goes out on his motorbike, I kiss the front of his helmet for luck and this has now become I thing I do to DS(16) at the start of a mountain bike race!

If one of us is mildly annoyed at the other, we shout 'fuck you, Wendy!' It was from a weird animation my father in law found on Facebook.

We make a lot of strange noises at each other instead of actually using words.

We sing songs to the dog about how much she looks like a potato (she's a pug)

He calls me sweetpea, not sure where that even came from but they are my favourite flower.

When he comes in the bedroom to get dressed after after a shower I alway say 'willy'.

I love this and I really want to know what game!

If DH is away he won't text me anything romantic or soppy. Instead he'll usually text 'When I get home I'm gonna break your hip' - (The Other Guys reference).

He can be romantic though. If we're out he'll often catch my eye across the room and silently mouth 'I love you'.

@CoffeeWithHer that reminds me of one! You know in Peppa pig when something goes wrong there are two music notes and then the narrator explains what's wrong? Dh did that for ages when kids were small making the noise and narrating. Over the years the narrating stopped but he still makes the noise sometimes. Like I say Oh no we are out of milk and he will go boop boop. I had long since ignored it and found it annoying but it's kind of funny now I think of it.

I love this thread. From the beginning we have called each other 'face' and it is so ingrained we use it in public. Many a time we have had the side eye. We have 2 dogs and do dog voices/conversations all the time. Lots of eyerolling, swearing and sass from them but they are also quite thick so much fun to be had at their expense. Also, we are always having to change our clothes just before we leave the house when it finally clocks we are wearing coordinated colours! We also speak franglais when the kids start eavesdropping.

Bedtime if we are both getting ready for bed at the same time - race to get under the covers, sometimes manhandling each other out of the way, leaping into bed and pulling the duvet over ourselves.... All to avoid having to be the one to turn the light out and get into bed in the dark. We've rearranged the bedroom and got bedside lamps but the getting into bed race persists. Daft and makes us both laugh!

Great thread!

Dh and I laugh a lot, we love watching comedy and going to comedy gigs. We have lots of quotes from Frasier which we both love. We use the phrase ‘sherry Niles?’ when asking one another if we want to watch an episode.

We also greet each other on the phone in the style of Nessa ‘alright, how’s it going, alright?’ 😂

We do this too 😂

On the first day of the month there’s a game of hide and seek to pinch the other one for the first day of the month. I often forget despite my Aussie cousin reminding me. We have a figure of eight house so can slip from room to room downstairs and get behind the target.

if I remember and am first up it’s always hilarious but sometimes I let dh think I’ve forgotten and get quite close before I go in for the pinch. Occasionally if I think I’ve got two on the trot I let him think he’s won it.

we also play hide and seek with the dog, DH talks to the dog and I reply in the dogs voice.

I love all of these!
we do a lot of film and tv references lots of blackadder, Red Dwarf and Hot Fuzz. We can usually find something from one of those that fits any moment. Dd is 21 and she has been joining in for a few years now too.

At the weekend when we start the housework I always put on cheesy 80’s or 90’s pop music because the teenagers once saw a meme about knowing you’re going to be asked to clean when you hear your mum blasting those out. That is ds (18) cue to appear and say “cleaning? Who is coming over?” because he asked me that once when he was small so we do it every time now.

This has made me smile so much! My 3 year old is deaf and we are learning BSL with him. He also likes to make up his own signs... especially insults.

His poor nursery key worker spent the best part of a day trying to work out what he was telling her last week. When I picked him up, I got to explain that he'd basically been calling her daft all day. Me and DH use his made up signs when we're out and about too... they come in really useful!

DH and I are watching a 10-season series. By about season 4 we'd developed a ritual of taking turns to sing along to the opening music (which is instrumental) making up new words each time based on that episode's intro scene. We give each other marks out of 10.

We recently started a spin off series and are discussing whether we have to start singing that as well right away or wait until it deserves the honour.

Signs are SO handy in everyday life!! Noone deaf here, but did baby sign with my kids when they were small and loved it so much I learned more. DH and I use them often to have 'quiet chats' or send a message across a crowded room.

My partner always makes the morning coffees .

I don’t have any funny DP rituals as I’m single but this is my all time favourite thread. It’s so funny, heartwarming and love affirming.

I often make him desserts and he will never take a taste until I give it a personalised name

What, like 'Gertrude' or like 'Mr Fluffy's Soft & Squidgy Chocolate Surprise'?😂

I reckon you could start a business going to people's homes with personalised desserts. Lucky Mr Fluffy.

When we are on a long car journey, the passenger will reach out after an hour or so and do a series of light pats on the drivers thigh to say Thank you for driving. Always 5 pats, same rhythm

"Thank you for hoovering/washing up/putting the washing away" leads to the other person say huffily "NO need to thank me for a basic domestic task!". I also add a tut and a muttered "bloody PATRIARCHY" but DH doesn't get to do that bit

Every morning I say "good moaning" to my son and it is only just occurring to me now that he will not have the foggiest idea why.

We used to have Linen Wars.

It started when DH tossed me a pillow while we were making the bed but I wasn't paying attention and as I turned to face him it hit me full face like a slapstick comedy. So after that it was an ongoing challenge while bedmaking to catch the other unawares with a full face pillow, sheet or light blanket.

This went on for YEARS. Making the bed took longer and longer as we each warily watched the other for signs of attack or a lack of attention to exploit.

Eventually we had to call a truce as it was too disruptive to the smooth running of the home.

But I know even now, as we make the bed, he is still thinking about it and watching for weakness, and one day...one day...

Allo Allo?