What do you do for Valentine's Day?

Whenever I see ads for Valentine's Day gifts, I cringe a little. Oh yes, I do enjoy getting gifts, but Valentine's Day to me is a time for heartfelt gestures, not a trip to the mall. Now I'll admit that sometimes a trip to a store can yield something that symbolizes love, affection, connection, or commitment, but most of what's marketed just says, "I hope you're happy. I spent some money on you."

For me, Valentine's Day has never been a holiday for expensive gifts, romantic getaways or dinners out. It has always been about small gestures rather than grand ones.

Some things I've done on Valentine's Day:

• used calligraphy to copy a love poem and mail it to my boyfriend,
• baked heart-shaped sugar cookies and decorated them, with a few being decorated with letters to spell out "I love you,"
• mailed not one Valentine's Day card to my boyfriend, but many, so that the mailbox would be full of sweet, funny, and sexy wishes on V-Day,
• bought a box of old-fashioned school Valentines, filled them out with funny messages and stashed them all over the house, taping them to the mirror, tucking them into pockets, hiding them inside of shoes, stashing them in the coffeemaker and in his coffee cup, tucking them in his briefcase, 
• purchased heart-shaped loaves of bread that were beautifully decorated with dough flowers for a bread-loving man,
• written love letters on beautiful stationery,
• used red lipstick to leave messages on mirrors and windows.

I've also done more traditional things involving lingerie and candles and wine. I've baked fancy cookies and heart-shaped cakes. Chocolate and flowers may be unimaginative gifts, but I do love giving and receiving both. For me, cards are a big deal. In recent years, I've made my own, and when the Man has not made an effort to at least get me a card, I've noticed.

Since becoming a mom, Valentines Day has become a family holiday, celebrating family love more than romantic love. The day is filled with affection and small treats.

Do you celebrate Valentine's Day? How? Any good Valentine's Day stories to share?

Comments

[Shirl Grrrl]

Love the card. Really, really love it. Unfortunatley, I've been making sympathy cards today.

[Slow Panic]

I hated Valentines until I had kids. Now I love it. I make big heart sugar cookies and load them up with frosting.

OK that's about all I do. wow, that's lame. I need to step it up a bit....

Love the card you made....

[V-Grrrl]

When my kids were preschoolers, I would decorate the doors and windows of the house with big red hearts while they were asleep. They'd wake up and be wowed. They LOVED that. But mostly they loved the little boxes of chocolates we'd give them. : ) A few times, I made heart-shaped tea sandwiches for them.

Slow Panic, I hate making cutout cookies, so I give you lots of credit for that!.

[mamatulip]

I've never been big on Valentine's Day, but Dave and I have gotten in to the habit of either ordering in or eating out, but specifically Indian. It's something I look forward to - butter chicken and super spicy vindaloo, followed by a night of dutch ovens. I mean, nothing says I love you like an Indian-themed dutch oven.

[Nance]

We don't celebrate Valentine's Day. We're just not big on the so-called "Hallmark Holidays" though this one is far more traditional than, and not nearly as egregious as "Sweetest Day." I understand that Sweetest Day is a largely regional thing near me in NE Ohio, literally dreamed up by candymakers and florists in the Cleveland area who needed a boost in revenue. They created this monstrous "holiday" and it is the second or third Saturday in October, a markedly slow time for the chocolatiers and flowershops. How horrid is that?

[impy]

since having 3 children, we prefer to not go out. They are our favorite people on earth, so leaving them home alone on a day about love, seems silly. We make heart shaped homemade pizzas, a personal size for each of us. They also wake up to a Valentine and some sweets on the table, picked out according to their tastes. One detests chocolate, one loves chocolate and peanut butter, and one loves fruity, chewy things. My husband usually shows up with a grocery store bouquet of a dozen roses and this thorny, economical gesture is great with me. I think I might hurt him if he paid seasonal, florist prices for them. The worst thing I have to admit is this. While shopping for the childrens Valentine cards, we also (without peeking) choose a card for each other. One that says all we'd love to eloquently put into words. One year, many moons ago, we looked at the back of the cards we'd chosen. Almost 8 dollars each. 16 dollars. OH the things I could do with 16 dollars instead. So our personal funny tradition, is to pick out the perfect card for each other, meet up in the middle of the card section. read our cards, kiss and hug and laugh, and put them back. It's the thought that counts, or it's pathetic, I can't decide which! We do go home with the childrens valentines though! Hubby gets candy, not flowers.

[furiousball]

this morning I heard some jackhole (aka a relationship expert - hahahahahaa) on a morning radioshow telling listeners that husbands should let their children see them lavishing their wives with candy and gifts so that their daughters will know what they should expect and sons would know how to treat a woman.

love is wonderful and displaying love in healthy ways, but teaching children to expect... EXPECT gifts is so damn wrong and just a microcosm of this self-entitlement that so many people have fallen pray to. so sad.

[RD]

I enjoy a little romance--but not on command. Valentine's Day is so close to my husband's birthday, we sort of do that instead. We'll exchange a V card and maybe some flowers and chocolate, but it's such a hyped up fake "holiday" that it just feels a bit too Disneyesque to be serious. Love your card, though!

[Chris]

Yes. We celebrate Valentine's Day as a family. To be honest, this year the idea fatigued me. My 4 year-old asked where the decorations were first thing Sunday morning. I made a nice meal, we toasted one another and exchanged cards, and a few little fun momentos, had a heart-shaped cake for dessert. Everyone felt loved and was happy. But a little like Christmas, I felt like I was responsible for everyone's joy and experience. I suppose it's the mom/woman thing. I usually embrace it and enjoy it, and try not to overdue. Just a little tired recently.

Beautiful card!