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Thursday, February 17, 2011

"Ten Things I Love About You!"

So I've never really liked Valentine's Day - I feel it's a holiday all about commercialism and consumerism. I feel if you really love someone, you should tell them everyday, not just one day. But, this year, since we didn't do anything for our very first anniversary as a married couple, I decided that I would do something this V-day to make up for it. The catch is - he didn't know. See, my husband shares my viewpoint of Valentine's Day - for most it is a depressing show of materialism, reminding one how very single they are - so we have never really celebrated it. Though, to make it as "green" and as heartfelt as possible, I came up with the following idea, inspired by a Christmas gift I received years ago:

When I woke up that 14th, I ran to the grocery store to get my fresh ingredients and two single pink roses (I bypassed the $20 one's in the front of the store, and went to the floral section. They were sitting in a tub in the fridge, without any wrappings, in personal tubes of water that I will save for another use) while my husband still slept. I heated up some pre-home-cooked, frozen pancakes and set the table with one tiny addition - an envelope tied with a black bow. Inside was a "treasure map" that I customized using Gimp (it's like Photoshop, but free!) - specifically it was a "Ten Things I Love About You" Valentine's Hunt map.

I had printed and hidden ten cards around the house with things I love about him, like his smile, his green eyes, etc. On the cards were clues to find the next card, and so on. I hid them in movies and books, in the kitchen, in the car - all over the house. I stretched the hunt over the day, interrupted only by school and a lovely candle-lit, home-cooked Italian meal, my husband's favorite, consisting of lemon-pepper chicken breast, white chedder shells, caesar salad with homemade croutons, Welch's Sparkling Red Grape juice ('cause I don't drink) and personal pink-frosted heart cakes (picture above).

This next idea was inspired by Gifts.com - and sorry if this is TMI, but I thought it was a creative "green" gift for a guy, plus it didn't cost any money - the hunt continued into the candle-lit bedroom where I laid cute, lacy panties with a printed funny, suggestive little clue, surrounded by rose petals in the shape of a heart. He got such a kick out of that!

I apologize for the "lateness" of this edition, but I had to wait 'til after the holiday passed to blog about so as to not spoil my surprise for my honey. We had such a lovely day and he repeatedly thanked me for my thoughtfulness, and saved each of my love clues. I was so happy it all went off without a hitch and I got to spend a special day with the man I love.

How have you made your Valentine's Days "green" or thoughtful? Or do you chose to celebrate a different special day with your loved ones? If you're single, what are some alternate ways to celebrate? I'd love to hear about it!

'Til next time, Dear Reader!
~*Nicole

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