Gotta Love the Holidays!

If there's a three-day weekend associated with any holiday, you better believe that couples are getting busy between the sheets.

Valentine's Day, Memorial Day, Fourth of July and especially New Year's Eve see a spike in sexual activity and conception in the United States, according to biorhythm researchers.

No wonder. Who doesn't want to start the New Year off right?

9 More Reasons

Here are the other 9 reasons to have sex, according to Women's Health magazine.


10. Getting busy on the regular can improve your flexibility.

11. Love the skin you're in. For some people, gettin' busy can boost body image, Resh says.

12. Yes, tonight, honey--I have a headache. Recent studies have shown that doing the horizontal hustle can bring temporary headache relief.

13. Use it or lose it. Says marriage therapist Michele Weiner Davis, author of The Sex-Starved Wife: "The more you have sex, the more likely you'll be to continue to produce testosterone, one of the primary hormones responsible for sexual desire."

14. Strengthen your core -- it's like Pilates without the annoyingly perfect instructor.

15. Good sex creates more love each time, that's why it's called 'making love.

16. Feel the power. "When things go well in the bed and you're pleasing your partner," says San Francisco sex therapist Sandor Gardos, Ph.D., "you feel more confident and powerful in other parts of your life."

17. Activate your taste buds. "Your sensitivities are heightened after sexual intercourse," Gardos says. "That bottle of wine or chocolate bar will taste even better."

18. Seriously pissed? Instead of screaming your head off, save your voice and have sex. It's a great way to release tension.

As If You Needed Another Reason

... we have 9!

Yep, 9 reasons to have sex, courtesy of Women's Health. They actually have 18 reasons, but only the first 9 are listed here. I mean, why do you really even need more than 1?

We'll post the other nine, too, but here are the first nine to start:

1. Get more z's. A little sensual massage followed by some dancing in the sheets releases sleep-inducing endorphins.

2. Wake up and smell the roses. Post-romp, you'll experience a surge in the hormone prolactin, which develops new neurons in the brain's olfactory bulb, improving your sense of smell.

3. Watch a Lost DVD marathon without constant bathroom breaks. Sex tones the pelvic muscles that support your uterus, bladder, and bowel, meaning better pee control.

4. No pain, all gain. Right after your big O, you'll be practically swimming in oxytocin (we're talking a seriously intense surge). The overload releases endorphins, which help alleviate pain from arthritis and -- hallelujah! -- menstrual cramps.

5. Put more pep in your step. Rhode Island-based relationship expert Scott Haltzman, M.D., says that women absorb some of the testosterone men secrete in their ejaculate. The payoff: "The increased testosterone can have energy-boosting effects in women."

6. Blow him away in your bikini. According to researchers, regular shagging can tighten your tummy...and firm your bum.

7. Aunt Flow, we meet again. Endocrinologists at Columbia and Stanford universities found that women who have sex at least once a week have more-regular menstrual cycles than those who do it once in a blue moon.

8. Forget flowers and the flat-screen: Sex is an easier (and cheaper) way to make up after a fight.

9. Improve your communication skills. Speaking up about what's working (or not) in the sack can help you express yourself in other parts of your life.

Let it Snow

Boy, the snow is coming down here! We managed to get a bunch of orders out right before the first snowflakes started falling. But more keep coming in!

Don't know if it's the weather (after all, what else are you going to do when you're stuck in-doors with snow piling up around you), or the season (what says, Merry Christmas, Lov-ah better than an intimate surprise), but today has been a flurry of orders.

Pun intended.

Another Day, Another Radio Interview

When: Wednesday, December 17 @8pm est
Where: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/AlphaWomen
Why: Because we love to talk!

Tonight we'll be talking with Freda Mooncotch, founder of www.alphawomen.com.

You can listen right on your computer! It doesn't get much easier than that.

Survey Says...

I love a good survey.

Especially one that answers the million dollar question: How often are couples having sex?

When Parade Magazine asked that question they got a pretty scary answer.

Less than once a month, according to 31 percent of responders.
"A few times a week" was the response of 27 percent.

And when people were asked why they didn't have marital sex more often, men overwhelmingly said their spouse wasn't interested. On the flip side, women cited a loss of sexual interest in their bedmate, anger with them -- or both.

Brenda Shoshanna, Ph.D., a psychologist in New York City, says that her clients cite time - or lack thereof - especially when it comes to frequency of sex. "Not having enough time for sex, affection and romance is usually the biggest complaint of one partner or the other," she says.

"People who are in healthy, happy marriages have less stress, better health and are better able to deal with the challenges of life," Shoshanna says.

Less stress, better health and the ability to deal better with what life throws at you?

Sounds like a winner to us!

It's Been Busy Around Here

The Boston Globe came around last week to interview us for an article (which should be published sometime next week).

Then we hit a new milestone - our 100th customer! Hard to believe we have over 100 customers just two months after launching.

And we started shipping our month 3 surprises to the customers who became members those first few days.

And we've had so many Introductory members upgrade to 3, 6 and 12 month packages, so we're hoping that means we're doing something right.

Then there are the orders from military couples overseas. Who deserves some time to themselves more than those serving in the armed forces? We can't imagine how difficult it must be, but we're hoping that a little surprise brings a smile to what must be a difficult situation.

Finally, the notes that come through for our Surprise Someone Else packages are just so amazing. Sweet and fun and so perfect. We can't believe how many surprises are being sent to couples who are celebrating over 20 years together - that's over two decades!

So whoever said romance and passion and fun is dead, certainly never met any of our Intimate Surprises members.

Thanks to everyone who's made the first two months so much fun.

What a Fun Week!

So much fun last night on the phone with Carol the Coach.

It's been such an eventful week here. Last night on the radio, Wednesday the Boston Globe is coming out to interview us about the business and it seems as if just about everyone who ordered an Introductory Surprise has renewed for 3, 6 and 12 month subscriptions!

We can't imagine anything more exciting than to see Introductory customers coming back for more! It means we must be doing something right, but more importantly it means they must have had fun.

And we're all for fun.

On The Radio...

This Saturday night we're going to be on "Sex, Love, and Relationships with Carol the Coach" at 9:15.

You can listen on the Internet by tuning into www.wibc.com and hitting the "listen live" button on the home page. Then, on the 2nd page hit the logo and wait about 10 seconds for the streamline to begin. And, of course, hit the "listen live" button on the right of the "on air schedule" and you can hear the whole show.

It should be fun. We love to talk. And we have the faces for radio (old joke, but it still made me laugh).

Wake Up and Smell the Roses

The link between love, relationships and perfumes may have been uncovered by scientists investigating what sex does to your sense of smell. And it turns out it does a lot.

Post-romp, you'll experience a surge in the hormone prolactin, which develops new neurons in the brain's olfactory bulb, improving your sense of smell.

So, no, you're not crazy if all of a sudden you think you can smell the chocolate cake in the kitchen all the way from your bedroom. But you are crazy if you attempt to eat chocolate cake in bed.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Oh, I love turkey. And I love mashed potatos. And, stuffing... well, not really, I like stuffing a lot but I can't say I love it.

Anyway, tomorrow I'll be eating turkey and drinking egg nog (because every day is a good day for egg nog) and finishing it off with an ice cream cake decorated to look like a turkey (because I do not love pumpkin pie even if John does). And we'll be thankful. We hope you are, too.

The Doctor Is In

Today's Oprah show continued its Sex Therapy series with Dr. Laura Berman.

She talked about content from her new book, REAL SEX FOR REAL WOMEN.

I like Laura Berman, she's someone who can talk about difficult subjects easily and makes them accessible.

And she can make a good joke. It's so important to have a sense of humor.

Ready for Winter, Bye Bye Colds!

Kick colds to the curb. Say sayonara to the sniffles and tootles to sore throats.

Even though winter is right around the corner (and in some places, already here), there is some good news. You don't have to fall victim to the season.

In fact, researchers at Wilkes University in Pennsylvania found that having sex once or twice a week boosts the immune system by 30 percent.

Don't ask how they determined that, but it has something to do with measuring the levels of immuoglobulin, which is the first line of defense against colds and flu.

Luckily, you don't have to understand the science. You just have to appreciate the fact that with Intimate Surprises you're practically 1/3 less likely to get colds.

And considering how fun it is to blow your nose for six days straight while coughing up a lung, those are pretty good odds!

Out is Out, In is In

Oh, the economy. Every day it seems like we hear more disturbing news.

This month, the Consumer Spending Indicator study asked how respondents planned to trim the fat, and dining out is in the hot seat--with 57% of respondents saying they plan to spend less. Entertainment was up there, too, with 50% of respondents cutting back.

So is staying in the new "in?" Instead of heading out for dinner and a movie will people be looking for more affordable ways to entertain themselves at home?

Am I the only one thinking "intimate surprises?" One of the things we loved about this idea was that for less than what a couple typically spends on dinner and a night out you can have way more fun, way more personal attention and way more intimate enjoyment than waiting for the bread basket and passing the salt.

Case in point (according to CNN and in 2005 dollars):
- average meal in NYC costs $37.61 per person, while your tab for a meal at the most expensive restaurants will average $112.49 (and that was 3 years ago!!!).

- An average meal in San Francisco costs $35.52, swank meals in the Bay Area average $85.27.

- Atlanta comes in at $24.72 a person or $55.70 per meal.


And that doesn't include gas and parking and other associated expenses. Staying in with an intimate surprise sounds downright frugal compared to that.

Help Him Stay Healthy

According to a study at Queens University in Belfast, men who have sex three or more times a week can cut their risk of heart attack in half.

According to that same study, regular romps will also halve your man's chances of suffering a stroke.

The Honeymoon is Officially Over

When do you find you get a relationship "itch"? New research tells us the official length of the honeymoon period...

Scientists have figured out that the typical honeymoon period lasts exactly: two years, six months and 25 days into a marriage.

Is that longer or shorter than you would have expected?

And tell me: When do you usually get restless in relationships? Are you still in the honeymoon period with your man, or are those days long gone? How do you keep up those giddy feelings in relationships?

Here's one suggestion: Intimate Surprises. We defy you not to get giddy when you two are opening the package together. Or not to want to try what's inside.

So maybe the honeymoon doesn't have to end, the surprise just has to begin!

A Quiz for the Brave

Eh, gosh. We love taking quizzes in magazines. But this one isn't for the faint of heart.

Men's Health magazine has a quiz on their site that only brave men should take. It helps to answer the question, "Am I lousy is bed?"

If you think you can handle the truth, check out the quiz here.

A Quiz For the Brave

Eh, gosh. We love taking quizzes in magazines. But this one isn't for the faint of heart.

Men's Health magazine has a quiz on their site that only brave men should take. It helps to answer the question, "Am I lousy is bed?"

If you think you can handle the truth, check out the quiz here.

Cheaper Than Plastic Surgery - and Infinately More Fun

Skip the Botox. Nix the filler, and don't even think about a nip and tuck. Women's Health magazine has given us a bunch of reasons to go "au naturale," here's just one.

In his book, "Secrets of the Superyoung." , neurophysiologist David Weeks, M.D., of Scotland's Royal Edinburgh Hospital, writes: "An active sex life slows the aging process."

So how often do you need to do it to keep looking 25? We don't know. But it will be fun trying to turn the clock back.

As If You Needed Another Reason to Have Dessert...

Work off that ice cream sundae without hitting the treadmill.

One 30-minute roll in the hay burns about 200 calories.

So go ahead, have that extra scoop of vanilla fudge ripple. And then enjoy working it off.

Lackluster Phase #1 – Now That’s Scary!

Yes, it's Halloween time, but you know what’s really scary? When it feels like the thrill is gone.
Dr. Laura Berman, director of the Berman Center, has some thoughts on what to do when the novelty has worn off – or what to do when it feels like the novelty has officially worn off.

Lackluster Phase #1: The Novelty Has Officially Worn Off
When you first met, your mattress springs squeaked on a regular basis and you always had that dewy glow. That's because infatuation triggers the release of extra dopamine, a brain chemical that fuels your libido, says Laura Berman, Ph.D., director of the Berman Center for sexual health and menopause management in Chicago and author of "The Passion Prescription." When the novelty wears off, so does the dopamine boost, Dr. Berman says.

Get Back on Track: Scare your pants off
Dopamine also kicks in when you're taken by surprise. "Do things that are new and different together, even a little scary," Dr. Berman says. Even a relatively tame act can be a thrill if it's unexpected, says Sherry Amatenstein, relationship expert and author of "Love Lessons from Bad Breakups." Pick up a box of drugstore hair color (the kind that eventually washes out) and go to town on each other. You'll get that sexy hands-on-the-scalp feeling along with the risky excitement of not knowing quite how it's going to turn out.

Hmm, sounds like Dr. Berman just wrote a prescription for Intimate Surprises!

A Fun Week Here

We received our first 12-month subscription. A whole year! It's crazy to think a year away but the surprises are planned and we can't wait to ship them.

We also heard from a couple of our new members. The funniest story came from someone who received her surprise in the mail and was saving it for a night she and her boyfriend were getting together.

Only that day, the boyfriend's dog was sprayed by a skunk and then let into the house. Not a good thing. House reeked of skunk. Needless to say, surprise was put off for two nights. Only then the boyfriend caught a cold and runny noses and sore throats weren't conducive to a night of fun. So they put it off again.

Their plan was to open the surprise together this weekend, with fingers crossed that the medicine did it's trick and the house was less skunk-like.

I guess the package they received in the mail wasn't the only surprise they got all week, but we hope it's the best!

www.intimatesurprises.com