Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is everywhere right now. From the lacy lingerie sets in shop windows, to heart-shaped helium balloons, to the pink-and-silver displays in Pandora. Not to mention the queue of men outside on the 13th who have clearly forgotten. It's as if we've barely packed away our Christmas trees before the shops are filling up again with huge bouquets of roses and teddies with cheesy messages on them.

I've had lots of different types of Valentine's Day. From the odd one where I've received one of the aforementioned teddies, to ones which I've wanted to climb under a rock and ignore due to my completely tragic single state.

My personal favourites include Valentine's Day two years ago, where I was single for the first time in five years, and very publicly insistent that I was to hide in bed all day and cry at my impending spinsterhood. Luckily one of my best friends wasn't having that. She turned up on my doorstep, M&S Dine In for 2 in hand, and we drank wine from 1pm, then went out and got hideously drunk on cocktails. And it was wonderful.

Another favourite was last year, when I got a lift home from work from an incredibly flirty taxi driver. Who apparently couldn't believe that I was on my own on Valentine's Day, and ordered a pizza to my house after dropping me off with his phone number on the receipt. No, I didn't call him. But if that isn't modern-day romance, I don't know what is.

What I don't really get about Valentine's Day is the gimmicks and the expectation. The older I've got, the more I've realised that relationships aren't hearts and flowers and over-the-top statements of love. The relationship I'm in now definitely isn't. As a general rule, I roll my eyes at him approximately 50 times a day and have to try my very best not to suffocate him with my pillow when he snores like a freight train. Don't get me wrong, he never fails to tell me that I look pretty on a daily basis (even when I don't) and we laugh so much, but if we were to have a gimmicky, cheesy Valentine's Day, it would just feel kind of unnatural.

And then there's the expectation. The expectation, especially on guys, to do something extravagant for their significant other on the day, whether that's an expensive gift or a lavish dinner, or a day of surprises around every corner. And do you know what, if you can do that, then fab. But a lot of people can't. I know that Dan certainly couldn't, and nor would I want him to. We both work incredibly hard but still always seem to be having to watch the pennies, so any ideas of flamboyant gifts on Valentine's Day just aren't a reality. But that's fine! I don't want him to feel the pressure of it, and I definitely don't want him to feel guilty as we both find posts of '#luckygirl #spoilt' all over our social media. It's one day. 

I've experienced lots of different kind of Valentine's Days. This year, I'm going to be cooking dinner for us both, like always, and if he's very lucky, I may put working on hold for an evening to watch a film. It'll have to be Disney though. Obviously.

How will you be celebrating Valentine's Day this year, if at all?

Love,
Sian xo