Do you believe that Valentine’s Day is a made-up holiday designed to steal your money and stress your relationships? Do you refuse to celebrate each year? Valentine’s Day doesn’t have to be all about flowers and gifts and restaurant reservations. Reclaim the day as a day of love without all of the “stuff.” It’s a nice reminder to hug the people you love and treat them with some extra special care.
Here are some ideas for celebrating the wonderful people in your life without buying into the holiday hype. They are broken into categories for reference, but don’t let that restrict you.
Everyone
- Create a “love” jar for family and/or friends. Write all the things you love about each person on slips of paper and place them in their love jar.
- Bake cookies or make chocolates and share them with your favorite people.
- Call up the people you love and make sure they know about it. Elderly relatives will especially enjoy a call or visit.
- Make cards or send notes to the people you care about. Send them via good old-fashioned mail!
- Skip dinner that night and go straight to dessert.
- Buy some decal (tattoo) paper for your printer and design your own love tattoos for friends and family.
Friends
- Rent favorite movies, make popcorn and have a movie marathon.
- Have a video game marathon. Give out prizes!
- Have a worst ex contest. Compare stories and decide who had the worst ex. Be glad they’re gone!
- Band together with friends to do some renovations, finish a painting project, donate time to charity or learn a new skill.
Couples
- Spend Valentine’s Day planning your ideal date night and schedule it for a later day when the Valentine’s Day drama is over.
- Put on some music and slow dance together.
- Buy some scented oils and treat each other to a massage.
- Revisit an old, but silly, argument and make a compromise.
Married Couples
- Renew your wedding vows or add a new vow each year.
- Watch your wedding video, go through your wedding photos or reminisce about your honeymoon. Guys, take one for the team!
Parents
- Use Valentine’s Day as an excuse to do something special together, even if it’s a movie at home.
- Make a special breakfast for the kids or have the kids make breakfast if they’re old enough.
- See if someone will take the kids for the night. Do whatever you want as a couple, even if it means lounging around and sleeping in.
- Put the kids to bed, get dressed up and have a romantic date at home.
- Make heart shaped pancakes, sandwiches and hamburgers to surprise the kids and your spouse.
- Read a special book or watch a movie as a family.
- Have a “yes” day – say yes to anything that isn’t dangerous, inappropriate or illegal.
Whether you’re planning something low-key or something outrageous, try out the springpad date planner. It can help you organize recipes, shopping lists, itineraries and more. And, if you’re desperate for a creative boost, you can browse for more ideas.
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