Cupid Ought To Hit You Everyday!

Yes, I'm a Valentine's Day Scrooge. I really don't see the point. I'll stop here and fess up, though, and say, "yes, I do LOVE Valentine's candy, and I most certainly expect a box of chocolates when the 14th of February arrives." I just really love candy!! I'm kinda under the notion that the holiday is a great time for couples who are dating. It's kind of like dating is already good training ground for when you get married and go on dates. It's just a day for you, you dating people, to pull out all the stops and tell the one you love you love her/him. My beef with it, though, when you are married is you kinda should've grown up by now and don't need the little extra nudge to show your mate how important they are. I hear you out there saying that you don't have time to date, that life is busy, that "she/he ought to know I love her/him by now." Pshaw! Pleeeeease!
If you have time to sit and watch two hours of American Idol, and really, let's take a sidebar here and say...if you really have time to watch two hours of American Idol and endure that horrendous laugh of Tatiana, you HAVE time to take your spouse out on a date. Really, that puts things in perspective, huh? Tatiana's laugh or time with your spouse? Ummmmm....
I must say, I do love this holiday for my kids. They are just so giddy with excitement over their V-day loot when they get home from school. They get so much they never seem to notice when all the Bottle Caps go missing!
My favorite Valentine memory is from back in High School. As Seniors we sold carnations for our class fundraiser. We loved trying to sell the most we could, but for the girls in my dorm (remember, I went to boarding school) we would have one of those unspoken contests to see who would get the most flowers. I didn't do too bad, really. Practically every square foot in my room was covered in flowers. Every girl's dream, really. The funny part of this to me, though, is that eventually they would die. Have you ever smelled a dead carnation? There is no other smell to compare it to! It was horrible...ghastly, really. It was always funny to me that the flowers brought so much happiness, and really, they stayed pretty so long, especially if you took good care of them, only to die a horrible, smelly death. Kind of a picture of any relationship, huh?
There are lots of things I love this time of year, though, but I love them all the time...not just on February 14th. I think the greatest gift you can give each other as a couple is time. That is fleshed out in so many ways. It may vary for you, but Jeff and I can never say enough about taking time to date one another. It is so important. It is great to have time to talk to each other without interruption from the kids, and we try to not answer our cell phones while we are out either. We have always made a commitment to date, but recently we've upped the ante to stick to this date night no matter what. There are times we have to change, like this week for instance with me being sick, but on those times, we date after the kids go to bed. We may fix our living room up like we're at the movies and have popcorn or candy, or we may do a picnic on the floor and eat a late dinner. There are so many options to choose from that will give you quality time. I can go through the week knowing that I was important enough to Jeff that he chose to take me out and spend time with me. That doesn't let you ladies off the hook though. I plan many a date, too. Your man needs to know that he is special enough to you, too, that you want to spend time with him. I stay home and have no source of income, but Jeff and I have budgeted together for me to be able to plan things like this, too. Sometimes it's stressful finding something to do, but I never come home saying I wish we hadn't gone! So, I jest about Valentine's Day, but I really do want to encourage you to make everyday a Love Day. I mean, after all, didn't Forrest say it best, "Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know which one you're gonna get." It's kind of like what everyday can bring to our marriages if we let it. And really, who doesn't like chocolates?