We're pretty open, too. The kids know we really love each other, we tend to have PDA a little too much for the teens' liking, but hell, it's our house. ("EW, you guys are old. Gross!")
My Man and I are both fiery people. I am a hellcat and have a Mediterranean temper with a Celtic short fuse, and the Man reacts just as loudly as I do. I know this probably isn't great for the kids, but also they get to see that people CAN get mad at each other, and scream and yell and 20 minutes later, be apologizing and in each others arms. One of the problems with some kids who come from families that are too quiet, especially if they don't have siblings their age to fight with, is that they think that every argument with their friends or S.O. is a sign of The End. Seeing that people can have real emotion and resolve it teaches kids that ALL emotions are legitimate, as long as you respect each other and let the kids know that is ISN'T their fault, and that you and your partner love each other, even when you are fighting. We always let the kids know (especially the smaller ones, who are home all the time) "Mommy and Daddy love each other very much. We had an argument, and that happens, just like how you argue with your sister/brother but we've worked it out, and it was our issue to work out. Arguing doesn't mean two people stop loving each other."
Most of the divorces I've seen come from icy marriages, where people freeze each other out, and say NOTHING when angry, give each other the silent treatment (that would NEVER happen in our house, we're both too opinionated to say nothing. And shit, when I'm MAD, the person is going to know about it.) I think getting it out in the open, dealing with it, venting, then making up is more healthy.
Likewise, our love is in the open, within reason. The kids know we love each other a lot. Many of their friends come from divorced parents and although there's nothing wrong with that (some people just can't live together and often for VERY good reasons. My parents are divorced and it was probably the best thing they could have done.) having parents who are still together at our older kids' ages is almost a novelty. People always ask me what my kids' last names are, and some people are astounded that ALL the kids, from their 20s down to small ones have the same last name, same Mama, same Daddy. That may be a novelty in this day and age, too.
I've had to explain some of the noises the smaller ones hear at times. (That's one reason I love our White Noise Machine which resides in the Little Ones room.) Letting them know that when people love each other they make each other feel "happy" and that can generate some noise is a good thing. We're also open with sex (although we don't use ourselves or our own experiences as examples, that would just be weird for me) and our kids learn about sex, body parts, reproduction, infant feeding etc naturally, through their own curiosity and honest answers from infancy on.
Your mileage may vary.
