What's to Love about Valentine's Day?

I've got a lot to say on this subject, so bear with me. I can remember one Valentine's Day when I lived alone and the theater at Mayfair was in the back parking lot with two screens. That weekend I saw both movies by myself, one on Friday, and one on Saturday. As I looked around the crowded theater filled with couples, I longed to be one of them. I couldn't wait for the day when I had someone to spend Valentine's Day with. Be careful what you wish for.

Fast-forward a couple of years to my first Valentine's Day ever in which I actually had a boyfriend (my now husband). It's like so many other things in life where you spend so much energy worrying about getting somewhere, you don't ever consider what you will do once you're there. So now I've got myself a boyfriend and it's serious, but we've only been going out for two months and I don't know what to get him. I wanted to make sure whatever I got him sent the right message. Whatever my intentions were, I learned later that my message read something like "crappy cliche gift".

It wasn't that I didn't try. I knew he drank coffee every day and I noticed that his Boston Red Sox coffee mug was so old that he couldn't wash the coffee stains out of it. So I thought a cute valentine mug that would remind him of me every time he drank coffee would be perfect. Strike 1. The reason the Red Sox mug was so stained was because he LOVED it and used it every day.

What else would you get to go with a coffee mug? Of course...coffee. But it was Valentine's Day so not any old coffee would do. I got cinnamon flavored coffee. Strike 2. What I found out later is that he doesn't do flavored coffee. Or cream or sugar.

Had I known he didn't like flavored coffee (or dressing on his salads for that matter) I most likely would not have purchased the third and final Valentine's Day gift, cologne. I think it was Calvin Klein for men and I liked the way it smelled. Strike 3. The reason he didn't wear cologne (another astute observation by me) is because it made him sneeze.

I've always thought of myself as a thoughtful and considerate gift giver and so missing the mark on every gift for my first Valentine's Day was a huge blow. What I actually felt worse about was that in return he gave me all the perfect gifts. I got a dozen roses (which some may think is cliche) but it was the first time in my life someone other than my family had given me roses. They were long-stemmed and they were beautiful. He also gave me a gift certificate to get a massage. It was a luxury I couldn't afford to give myself at the time and it was great.

While I still don't love Valentine's Day, I do enjoy sharing it with my kids. I swear, you could give them just about anything and as long as it's wrapped, they're happy. (I'm putting this to the test this year because what says you love your kids more than a pack of gym socks?) Oh, don't gasp...I'm throwing in a bunch of candy and an Alterra gift card too. As for my husband, I've learned a monkey card goes a long way!