Tag: valentine's day

Valentine’s Day is on fast approach, which means it’s time to ready our hearts, minds and wallets for the groundswell ahead. Relative to gifting for that special someone, a "surge" may be more descriptive as consumer spending for this holiday continues to trend upward in billion-dollar increments. Last year, the National Retail Federation forecasted that Valentine’s Day spending would reach a near-record $19.6 billion, up from $18.2 billion the year prior. These strong sales figures not only exemplify fruitful retail activity specific to buying gifts for others, but also holiday-driven shopping for ourselves as well. With this in mind, here are a number of thoroughly-vetted Valentine’s Day gifts and gets sure to ease, appease and unequivocally please.

Seeing those bright red cards and shiny hearts when I just finished celebrating New Year’s causes me stress, which can lead to anxiety, and then fear…yes, fear! After all, Christmas and New Year’s have barely ended, and I’m already pressured into thinking about creating yet another perfect day, which I may not do right (causing stress), which may cause hurt feelings (causing anxiety) and which could possibly lead to a fight about our relationship (causing fear that our day will be ruined by dredging up old, unresolved issues)!

Our society has sold us a lot of expectations around Valentine’s Day. You’re supposed to be and feel loving.

Valentine’s Day is fast approaching—along with all the romance, roses and chocolate traditionally part of the day's celebration. But here’s the thing... why should Valentine’s Day be reserved for romance alone? Why don't we celebrate love itself?

A Canadian resident, Karri Carberry, 19, was introduced to a band called "Three Days Grace" by her Dad a number of years ago, a passion they happily shared. So when the band was scheduled to play in Edmonton, Alberta, she immediately got tickets and invited her Dad to come with. There was just one hiccup; her Dad is deaf. This, however, did not deter either of them. Karri interpreted the lyrics in sign language for her Dad, so he too could enjoy the concert. When other members of the audience—at first annoyed by Karri’s signing ("What is that girl up to?!")—realized what she was doing, they were astounded, and ended up entranced by her interaction with her Dad.

There is no other time of year when there is more focus on the romance in a personal and intimate relationship than that of Valentine’s Day! The usual candy and flowers have become a ho-hum way of saying to one’s lover that he or she is loved and cherished. It’s predictable and stale. Keeping a relationship fresh and alive is critical to keeping a marriage or long-term relationship ever-new and thriving. Many marriages fail because a couple is not implementing change, instead they are sticking to the same old routines and that is quite evident when it comes to gift-giving. With that in mind, I strongly suggest each of us get creative in how we can make our significant other feel truly special on that designated day in February.

When it comes to romantic screw-ups, missing Valentine's Day is about as bad as it gets. But what if you miss it on purpose?

Kathryn Hauer does that every single year. Married to her husband for 33 years, she is not hung up on the actual date. Feb. 14 may come and go, but the post-holiday bargains are just too good to pass up.

"For us, it’s fiscally smart," said the Aiken, South Carolina, financial planner. "As a gal who loves the after-holiday sales, I’m all for scooping up deals for my husband."

Valentine's Day is a celebration where couples get to unapologetically reconnect and enjoy each other's company and embrace. These five items will make sure you have something in hand when you make that connection.

3D Valentine's Day Card

Company: Lovepop

Valentine’s Day—the holiday’s mere mention usually provokes flutters of romance or eyerolls and cynicism. The former often comes during the so-called honeymoon phase of a relationship. The latter? It’s easy to say that Valentine’s Day is just a reason for greeting card companies to sell their products or a seasonal push for stores to have major sales. It’s also easy to think that this puts unnecessary pressures on both people in a relationship to do something groundbreaking and exciting on a particular day, like it’s a competition against the previous year’s celebrations. Or the opposite, that a couple must take an "every day is Valentine’s Day" perspective, which creates its own set of pressures.