Sadly, not everyone has the funds to get a sitter often, even on Valentine’s Day, and usually less people have the opportunity to call family members to come babysit while you and your spouse venture out into a night on the town. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t celebrate with your love!
Valentine’s Day snuck up on Joel and I last year, and instead of getting down about not getting a babysitter and planning some romantic adventure, we just went with it. So this got me thinking that many of you probably don’t have any grand plans for the big heart day either (but if you do, then yay! ) – but for those of you who don’t, let’s make the best of the opportunity to make memories in our own living room!
So here are a a few ideas that I gathered from fellow moms that will help put some focus back on each other; and hopefully, will remind you how lucky you are to be in love with such a wonderful person.
1. Have a Candle-lit Indoor Picnic. We did this last year and had so much fun that we decided to do it again this year. Place a to-go order from your favorite restaurant and get out your picnic blanket and spread it across the living room floor. We even broke out our nice tableware, added a few candles, pillows, and turned on some tunes. Bonus: if its cold, light a fire. It was such a fun time and we talked about it for days after.
2. Create Your Own Chocolate and/or Wine Tasting. This is such a fun idea! A friend of ours and her husband also tend to spend Valentine’s Day at home, and every year they buy all sorts of different chocolates to sample. They even make it fancy by sipping tea between bites to “cleanse the palate.” You could also do this with types of wines–or both!
3. Make Each Other Handmade Valentines. Break out the construction paper, glitter, crayons, and glue, and get busy doodling hearts and arrows sitting across from your sweetheart. Take some time to address those qualities about your partner that you love or highlight things about them that you are thankful for. Or just write them a love note. You may have already gotten a dozen roses, but this take away is one of those treasures that you can break out on tough days to remember that you are in this together.
4. Paint a Portrait of Each Other. Buy a couple small canvases, paint, and brushes and spend the night painting each other’s portrait. Take a quick snap shot on your phone of each other and then lay it down beside you and get to painting. You can even get the kids to vote on whose painting is the best in the morning. Plus, it would be a fun addition to a picture wall in a playroom or living room decor. I can’t wait to do this one with Joel!
5. Learn How to Tango from Your Living Room. The Baton Rouge Library has lots of instructional dancing videos to check out, so decide on a dance, dust off your library card, and get your dancing shoes ready. Your living room is also a safe environment to learn new moves without feeling like you have to display your two left feet for an entire class to see. Plus, you get to dance with your own partner all night!
I hope these are new-to-you ideas, and if you find yourself “stuck at home” on Valentine’s Day, then I also hope you get excited about all the possibilities!
Love this! We’ll be spending V-day at home too but we hadn’t come up with a plan yet. I love the idea of a fancy indoor picnic and tasting!
Thanks Charlotte! It was such a great time last year–I’m gonna add the tasting to our list too!
Love this! Such fun ideas. I think the portrait idea would be hilarious for those of us are artistically challenged!