* Take time off. If you both have some vacation time built up, put in for a day off and spend it together.
* Make an elegant homecooked meal instead of hitting the town.
* Give a thoughtful gift. It's easy to just buy jewelry or chocolates for Valentine's Day, but it means more (and is less expensive) if you find a gift that truly has the recipient in mind.
* Write a note expressing how you feel to go with that gift. A little sentimental note means a lot more than some extravagance.
* Make a mix tape. Simply make a compilation CD of all of the songs that either mean something with regards to your relationship or express in some way the way you feel about your partner.
* Volunteer. If you're both socially conscious (and also adding in the fact that Valentine's Day is on a Saturday this year), why not spend the day involved with a volunteer project together instead of doing the typical date thing?
One central theme among all these ideas: it's often not the amount spent (for some people it is, but probably not the majority), but the heartfelt expression of love that means the most. So open your mind and be creative. There are tons of ways to say "I love you" without spending a bundle, and many of these meaningful gifts are the presents that will be remembered most in years to come.
Some Thoughts on Celebrating Valentine's Day [The Simple Dollar]
— FREE MONEY FINANCE (Photo: jhcuatro)
]]>@orlo: Now I feel compelled to check out this plant.... look what you did.
]]>This Valentine's Day, we're taking care of our friends' kids so they can have a nice night out together. Homemade pizza, cartoons and peach cobbler -- I hope their parents have as much fun!
]]>She liked this as I was able to incorporate her future dreams for us into the letter. It helped validate that I appreciated her and listened to when she discusses our future plans.
]]>Two of my friends popped my strip club cherry for Valentine's Day. You know you can move it if you've got a leatherface, bad tan, are 45, and still working at the best strip club in town.
(I'm engaged to the guy now, so it's all good)
]]>Make that:
Three Thirty-Nine Chuck :O
]]>All these 'Do Vday without breaking the bank!' stories do nothing but further the consumer whore clusterf*ck of Vday.
Let it pass with no coverage.
I know this is corny and nerdy as heck, but I downloaded Tetris onto my XBox 360 a few days ago. We started playing it immediately and have since spent hours together. It has been an absolute blast. When I arrived home from work this week she wants to start playing. I know its not Valentines yet, but I would suggest it for anybody who has an XBox if you two are into puzzle games. It was about $9 and worth every penny.
Of course, we could just be a really weird/strange married couple!!! =-)
]]>BWAH HA HA HA HA. I think I love you.
]]>The other thing we often do is babysit friends' kids so they can go out. Because we're certainly not going out! And I've always thought the better part of Valentine's Day is the family-and-friends oriented part, so why not do something nice for a friend instead? And I like to send cards to friends for it. :) But maybe I'm still mentally in third grade.
]]>I was thinking the samething until I read your comment.
]]>I'd invest $15 in a decent bottle of wine and a pint of ice cream and watch movies with explosions in (Lethal Weapons or Terminators or James Bonds) all day, personally.
]]>Also, Feb. 14 weddings are much, much more expensive. And if you live somewhere that has actual seasons (not like the south or the west coast, there cold means putting on a light jacket) February is nasty for people who need to fly in or drive in for your wedding. One of my friends was considering a winter wedding, and quickly changed her mind when she encountered ice, sleet and freezing rain all on one day.
]]>Plus, money's tight, so we're sticking to watching TV, cooking dinner and playing trivial pursuit.
]]>I'll tell you how to do Valentine's Day cheap...be your own valentine, like me.
]]>February 15th, I get. But NEVER February 14th! :(
]]>
V-day doesn't have to lead to STD-day!
Just go on the day before or after the holiday and the problem is solved. Also if you really love someone it shouldn't matter if you take them out to eat on a holiday or not, you should be able to do that any time of the year as just a special moment.
]]>My friends and I used to give each other blank cards as a joke for "recarding," (among other friends) but it's turned into a very sensible tradition.
]]>@Outrun1986: LOL I hate flowers. They always die.
]]>I do like the tradition of giving valentine's notes though, it's cute, cheap, and can brighten someone's day.
]]>No joke. Not only are restos PACKED on Valentine's Day, the industry considers it "amateur night" - when all the people who never go to upscale restos get dragged to one. Front of house and back of house both tend to bring their B game on Valentine's, since they know that the amateurs won't be coming back anyway, and tip for crap.
We're staying in, natch.
]]>@dddoistutter: Wait.... You actually DO something for your wife for Valentines day?? WTH, I haven't gotten anything in 6 years.
]]>The rest is up to you!
]]>Then again, I absolutely love buying greeting cards. I spend way too much time picking out the perfect ones. If you get a card from me, it isn't just a random card off the shelf.
]]>Also, scowling at couples is free if you feel the need to do SOMETHING.
]]>If you love someone do something nice for them like cook dinner or buy something for the house that you can both use and enjoy, flowers die after a while so that is pointless and a waste of money. You could write a love letter instead of buying a card. Buying your boyfriend/girlfriend something related to one of their hobbies or something that they want but haven't purchased for themselves yet would be much much more thoughtful.
If someone bought me flowers after knowing my feelings about wastefulness of money I would likely throw them out of my life quickly since I wouldn't want a boyfriend that likes to waste money.
]]>I vote for that - between working and mothering a toddler and a teenager (with one on the way!), I rarely have hours free during the day to get my car detailed. The best gift my husband ever gave me (and he's normally a jewelry/flowers gifter) was taking my car to the local wash for a thorough cleaning.
]]>@ZoeSchizzel: : have a few --
Have a fight and break up on Feb 13. Get back together on Feb 15. ;)"
I have a friend named Timm who does that for all the holidays! Never spends a dime!
]]>Entertaining and free.
(No comment on my own plans; my fiancé works Saturdays and anyway my birthday is the following weekend so I never cared as much about Valentine's Day.)
]]>@Shoney77: There's a lot of debate over the actual meaning of Valentine's Day. But that's one of the better theories.
]]>@SadSam:
Ugh, typos. My point is that although we are going to spend a chunk of money on Valentines day, we've got money set aside in our fun account that we put aside for fun wihtout budget busting.
]]>@Shoney77:
Awesome and according to the Wiki gods - Claudius took a liking to this prisoner -- until Valentinus tried to convert the Emperor -- whereupon this priest was condemned to death. He was beaten with clubs and stoned; when that didn't finish him, he was beheaded outside the Flaminian Gate.
]]>Boy, did I read that wrong the first time. It sounded like she didn't deserve more.
]]>I have a few --
Have a fight and break up on Feb 13. Get back together on Feb 15. ;)
If you're getting married, get married on or around Valentine's Day so that every year you can buy one present that covers two events. Our anniversary is Feb 15 -- we didn't plan it as way of being frugal, but it does seem to work out that way.
Go for a practical gift. DH once got me ten pairs of nice white socks (not the ones that come in a huge pack) because I was cussing one morning about not being able to find a matching pair of my favorite brand of socks. I was touched that he remembered and thought of a way to ease my stress.
Do the grocery shopping so that she doen't have to go.
Give the dogs a bath if she usually does it.
Clean her car or have it cleaned (leave a few sweet notes hidden here and there).
Pack her lunch. I used to pack DH's lunch when I packed the kids. Now that they are grown, I don't...but every now and then I'll pack him a lunch and put his name on the bag. (Come up with a cute "name" to write on the bag. "Captain Longdong" looks good in the office fridge. I used to write random names on the bags for the kids. When they'd ask "Who's Steve?" and I'd say, "That's the kid we hoped you'd be, but...." Hey kids, why don't you call?)
DH and I saved the Valentines and Anniversary cards from our early years when we were still courting and nesting, and now we just go through the stack pick out a favorite, add a new sentiment and give it again. It's fun each year to go through the cards.
]]>I'm taking Mr. Sam fishing (we live in So. Fla.) as a surprise treat (we have $300 saved in our ING fun account, we put $50 a pay checking into the fun account which will cover the cost). I like fishing too so its a treat for me as well, always enjoy getting out on the water. And we are supporting a local business person.
]]>Valentine's Day on 2/15 is always 50% off. :)
]]>@dddoistutter: For serious. I appreciate a simple gesture like being cooked for, or some flowers (not a bucket of roses, just some flowers for the kitchen table.)
Needed items are a great gift, too. St. Valentine's Day two years ago my husband got me new underwear. Not lingerie, just the everyday underwear that needs replacing every year. That was a sweet thing to do and wasn't about emptying your wallet for a made-up holiday.
]]>Similarly, my significant other and I decided years ago that OUR valentines day was the first weekend AFTER 2/14. It is remarkable how cheap flowers are, and how easy it is to get a table at a nice place.
]]>That way we get the cards and cheap valentines crap 90% off. If we decide to go to a restaurant it wont be packed. And if going the flowers route the prices wont be jacked up. Basically everything is cheaper and easier.
Plus its not some lame commercialized day. But a day special to only you and your S.O.
]]>I never understood all the Valentine's Day crap. Seriously, all the stuffed animals and whatnot, it's so useless and cheesy. Blech.
]]>During the Roman Empire, Claudius the Cruel was having a hard time getting people to join his military because they did not want to leave their loved ones. So he canceled all marriages and engagements in Rome.
A Christian priest named Valentine soon began to marry people against the emperors orders. When the Emperor found out, he sentenced Valentine to prison for the rest of his life. He died in prison on February 14th in the year 270.
]]>