J and I aren’t huge Valentine’s Day fans. While we do think that taking a day to celebrate love and loved ones is a nice idea, we also feel it has become highly commercialized. Plus we tend to be that nauseating lovey-dovey couple on a regular basis, so Valentine’s Day isn’t hugely different for us (a few days ago my neighbor referred to us as “still newlyweds” and I had to point out we’ve been together almost 10 years and married almost 8 – he was surprised!).
We generally don’t do much to acknowledge the holiday. If one of us happens to be at the store we may pick up a card and/or heart-shaped treat, but it’s by no means mandatory. I’m not one of those girls who says I’m OK with not celebrating and is then disappointed. I honestly mean it. J and I surprise each other with flowers and other treats on random occasions and that is more meaningful to us that getting each other gifts because a holiday dictates it’s appropriate.
Please don’t think I’m anti-Valentine’s Day. I’m not. A big to-do just isn’t for us. That’s not to say we don’t have our own V-day tradition. Our first Valentine’s Day together we had planned to go out to dinner, but didn’t plan well enough because we didn’t think to call ahead for a reservation. Everywhere we wanted to go was booked or had a 3+ hour wait. We said screw that and ended up going to Wendy’s (I shudder now to think of eating that crap) and to the grocery store, where we picked up supplies for make-your-own sundaes. Years later, we no longer eat at Wendy’s but we do still celebrate with sundaes.
In other Valentine’s Day-related news, I was excited to see this tweet from Starbucks:
Guess where I’ll be going today at 2 pm? My colleague and I are going to head to SB for our daily walk and I will treat her to a free beverage because I am nice like that.
Finally, the dining hall at the school where I work served tomato soup shooters with heart-shaped grilled cheeses. Is this not adorable?
Also delicious.
What’s your take on Valentine’s Day – cute or commercialized?
Do you have any Valentine’s Day traditions?
You lost me at not loving Wendy’s anymore. That place is awesome.
Ha! Maybe the Wendy’s by you are better than those near us. We had too many experiences with soggy, disgusting fries, and I don’t eat meat anymore but J says the burgers are now nasty, too. I used to LOVE their fries, too, but they are so gross now it’s not worth it.
We don’t really have any traditions, unless you count exchanging cards in the card aisle at the store. This year, M actually got me a card.
We got each other the same card one year. It was something inappropriate about squirrels and nuts. Reason #3,427 I love my husband: we have the same weird sense of humor.
Tomato soup shooters with heart-shaped grilled cheese are amazing! I had a friend who served that at her wedding a few years ago!
That is perfect for a wedding – love it!