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A Valentine’s Day idea that requires some planning

(I wrote this post earlier this morning but apparently didn’t hit “publish”. Whoops.)

This will be a quick post because it’s 7:04 at the moment, and in 56 short minutes, I need to be fed and presentable and I also need to have 4 fed, presentable children (it would also be good if my house was presentable).

That’s because today is my official return to piano teaching after the holidays. Boo for the return to routine.

K, so, Valentine’s Day is coming up.

Now, I know there are a bunch of you out there who are all, “Valentine’s Day is a stupid, made-up, Hallmark holiday and why in the world would you celebrate it because you should show your love every day.”

And to that I say, “You are party-poopers.”

😉

Mr. FG and I are VERY on board with the idea of showing love year round (in fact, Mr. FG just gave me a very sweet present yesterday for no particular reason or occasion, but I’m not going to tell you what it is because I want to show you. And it’s too dark to take a picture right now. Besides, I don’t have time!).

Speaking of which, I should get to the point.

Anyways, yes, we should totally show our love year-round, and no, we should not celebrate Valentine’s Day by spending too much money buying large, ugly stuffed animals holding hearts that say, “I love you.”.

But Valentine’s Day can be a super fun excuse to spoil each other a little bit, and that’s how Mr. FG and I treat it.

A couple of years ago, I read about an idea that I knew would be right up Mr. FG’s alley. We call it The 14 Days of Valentines, and it is pretty entrenched as a tradition around here now.

Each day from February 1-14th, I give Mr. FG a little present or surprise of some sort. Mr. FG is the sort of person who is very touched when someone gives him a thoughtful gift, so having 14 of these in a row makes him happy.

Making this happen does take some planning ahead, which is why I’m sharing the idea now (last year I mentioned it on Valentine’s Day, I think, which was a little late!). I usually make a list of my 14 ideas so that I’m not stuck trying to come up with a gift on the day it’s supposed to be given.

Sharing my list of ideas with you probably won’t be super helpful because if you want to do this, you need to study your spouse/boyfriend/girlfriend.

But just in case they might get your gears turning, here are some of the things I’ve done in past years.

In order to keep this from being insanely expensive, I generally keep the gifts pretty small. Sometimes, I buy him a food item that doesn’t normally fit into our budget (like the gourmet orange cream sodas that come in glass bottles).

Sometimes I cook or bake something for him that I don’t normally get around to cooking or baking (like Sweet and Sour Shrimp, which I rarely make because of the smell/mess of frying!).

Sometimes I buy him something like a novelty t-shirt, or some MP3 downloads.

Sometimes I arrange for babysitting and surprise him with a lunch or dinner out.

And because it’s a Valentine’s Day thing, some of the surprises are things that wouldn’t be appropriate to share here. I’m sure you can figure out that stuff without any help from me. 😉

In recent years, Mr. FG has been joining me, but doing things a little differently. I’m not super into gifts, but I do really love compliments and encouragement from Mr. FG. So, he hides a little note somewhere around the house for me to find, and I enjoy that more than I’d enjoy a daily present.

If you’re looking for something fun and new to do for Valentine’s this year, do give this a try, even if you just do it for one. And hey, you could always just do seven days of Valentine’s if two weeks is too much for you.

Have fun!

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Nancy

Tuesday 22nd of January 2013

WOW I didn't know of anyone else that has ever done 14 days of Valentines. I have done this for my girls for at least 20 years. I started because winter is long and since that is the middle of winter I thought that would make the month go faster. When they were home I always put one gift out at a time, my favorite year we made mailboxes complete with the flag and every morning they would find their mailbox with the flag up and a gift inside, now that they both live away from home I wrap up their things and mark the number on them on the days I want for them to open them. They are both married and I also do this for their spouses. They look forward to it as well. This is one thing that I didn't start with the grandkids. I always do something special for my spouse, my favorite being the year I made a poster of the top ten "reasons" why I love you. Complete with "reasons" candy. Glad to know someone out there loves Valentines as much as I do. Thanks

Tricia

Tuesday 22nd of January 2013

Great idea! In Nebraska, where I live, the dreary winter and limited access to going outside when it's freezing, well you have to make fun where you are and that means celebrating at home in creative ways! Love it!

Lisa @ Cents To Save

Friday 27th of January 2012

This is a wonderful idea. My husband's birthday is Valentine's Day... so it would tie in nicely. Time is running out.... gotta get started!

RS@The Suburban Minimalist

Wednesday 12th of January 2011

I love this idea. I'm going to try very, very, very hard to do this for my husband. I would be curious to know what you do with your children. Last year, we had breakfast for dinner, and all the pancakes were heart-shaped. The waffles were pink. But I'd like to do more this year without breaking the bank or driving myself crazy (certainly don't want to treat it as a second Christmas...)

Virginia Dare

Wednesday 12th of January 2011

Our wedding anniversary (also the anniversary of our first date, so it's been "ours" for a while) is only about 2 weeks before Valentine's Day, so we officially "blow it off." :-) Considering that we do a date and gifts for the anniversary--and that Christmas was only about a month before that--we usually get each other some tiny "I thought of you" thing! For example, a piece of each other's very favorite holiday candy, or a card, or a balloon. The more last-minute and spontaneous, the better b/c we have a laugh. Not only do we avoid the expense, but also the stress of planning it! A few years ago, we went on a daytime "family date" with my BIL and his family: chicken wings and terribly-played games of pool. Very fun! We hope to continue to make Valentine's day about family. Totally ripped that off from Kate+8, but a great notion all the same!

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