In honor of the holiday, I would like to share my views with you on this whole Valentine's Day thing. Here we go!


Valentine's Day may be one of those holidays made more popular by greeting card companies, but really, which ones aren't hyper-commercialized? Look at Christmas. We start celebrating that one in October, and I don't hear people complaining about having to get their significant other a present then. Well, I do, but it's different complaints so I'm not worrying about that today.


GIVE YOUR PARTNER A GIFT. It's that simple. When people say, "I don't need a special day to tell my wife/husband/boyfriend/girlfriend/spouse/partner/whatever that I love him/her," it just means that you're too lazy and/or cheap to do anything special. It should be considered an additional day to show people you love them. Heck, I'm 33 and I still get gifts from my parents on V-Day. Our family lives for gift-giving occasions the way other families live for....well...non-gift-giving occasions. 


I, personally, love the heck out of having an excuse to do something silly and sweet for my husband. (Again, I realize that it's hard for people to picture living up to my level of perfection, but it's really not impossible. Just unlikely.) It's never a burden for me to do something nice for him. Maybe think of it that way: an extra bonus day for you to make your relationship a little happier.


Also, Valentine's Day is not just about romantic partners. It's a day where you can make dorky cards and give them out at work or make a batch of cookies for your friends. I say this with all sincerity:  Homemade is just as good, if not better. Really. 


Here's a big part of it, as well:  If you tell a person that homemade is acceptable, mean it. Don't say it if you don't want to run the risk of getting a two-foot diameter chocolate chip cookie that tastes like foot. It happens sometimes.


Don't feel like you have to buy someone an expensive piece of jewelry. I think people like to feel that they're important enough for you to spend a little extra time on them, and that's what matters. We all get sucked in by these commercialized ideas of holidays, when really we need to learn how to make some stuff ourselves and spend time on the people we love instead of money. This year, I went online and looked up "Homemade Valentine's Day Gifts" and found a bunch of crafty stuff to make. Even if you stink at making things, try. It really is the thought that counts on Valentine's Day. Some of the things I made look like a four-year-old who failed his pre-school art class made them, but I know my family will love them, because they'll know I spent time on them.


Oh, and don't forget that taking two seconds to scribble a picture of a heart on a piece of typing paper because you forgot it was Valentine's Day until the end of the day does not count. That's just pitiful.




DISCLAIMER:  My husband does not do any of the bad things mentioned above. This is not aimed at him in any way, shape or form, because he is an awesome Valentine. This is aimed at people who are always complaining about how they make every day super special for their partner, and then go out and buy him/her a potato peeler for Valentine's Day. Argh. Don't do that.