Make It Sweet…Make It Unique…Make It Valentine’s Day Fun!

When Craig and I were dating, we started this completely silly game of passing an acorn back and forth. Each day’s winner was based on whether Craig or I was able to secretly plant the acorn somewhere on the other person for the night. That stupid acorn showed up in my purse, pockets, class folders, hat, mittens, you name it. The only time I actually remember winning a round (more about Craig usually winning in a moment) was when we went shopping and I managed to slip the acorn into Craig’s bag. Ha! You understand, too, that the acorn game ignited a lifetime of my rogue husband finding ways to hijack the system, the bum. (Resulting in my losing. A lot. The cheater.)

Sadly, we somehow lost that acorn; it would’ve been a sentimental keepsake if it were still around. And speaking of sentimental…that holiday is coming soon…the “it’s about romance and you’d better have a pretty awesome (and creative) (but not cost a mortgage payment) (and yet still be THAT special) blow-my-socks-off gift.” No pressure. Whoo-hoo for Valentine’s Day! Yeah, I hear the groans. Never fear, however. Craig and I are here to help you get those creative brain cells bouncing around and hopefully, challenge you to do something unique and fun for your sweetheart. We’ll warn you, though: Some of these are a bit…off the wall. Because what else would you expect from two nuts who passed an acorn back ‘n forth?

Seriously, though, that goofy sense of play and teasing and purposefully making life fun set a pattern to our lives. Turns out, childlike play can lighten our lives, help us feel younger, and infuse hum-drum everydays with fun. We’ve found dozens of ways to give each other a good laugh around here, and now we pass the acorn to you. Adapt and make them fit your unique, playful bent!

Oh, and of course, it’s a no-brainer: Buy him/her some chocolate, people! As Dave Barry once quipped, “Your hand and your mouth agreed many years ago that, as far as chocolate is concerned, there is no need to involve your brain.”

*Hidden notes

Objective: Make him/her feel special. A few days/week before Valentine’s Day, stuff notes into various places where they’re sure to be found, at least one a day. Make them sweet or funny or whatever you choose. Just be sure they make him/her smile or preferably, LOL. And just possibly, anxious to get home to you?!

*Toilet paper tubes stash

Objective: Be silly and have fun. Save up a few toilet paper tubes and stash them in creative places: his/her gym bag, trunk of his/her car, drawer of a dresser, pockets of clothes in the closet, in the extra pair of shoes sitting by the back door, etc. Your creativity is the only limit! (Craig and I have been doing this for months now. And neither of us has said ONE WORD about it. At one point I must’ve put around 50 tubes in his gym bag. The game continues!)

*Secreted underwear

Objective: Make him LOL. Husband going on a business trip? Plant a pair of your underwear in his suitcase—tucked down in a shoe or a pocket of a shirt or whatever.

*Some love left behind

Objective: Make your spouse know he/she’s missed while you’re traveling. Purchase a few loving/funny cards (or make your own); sign with loving notes; number them in the order they should be opened. Place on the mantel or any prominent place so that your spouse will have those to look forward to opening while you’re out of town.

*Journal while you’re apart

Objective: Give your spouse something special to look forward to when you return home—a “gift from your heart.” Purchase journals for both of you. Agree that—while you’re separated (business, family of origin needs you, short-term missions, etc.)—you will write a few lines to your spouse every day. You can share experiences or impressions or any topics that you choose. You’ll be amazed at what you would’ve forgotten if you hadn’t taken the time to jot down those experiences.

*Stealth attempts to be…cute/ornery/rotten

Objective: To drive him/her a bit crazy. I have a few OCD tendencies. I admit it. So when I mentioned to Craig that our coffee k-cup revolving tree bugs me when it has random empty places here and there…I (stupidly) guaranteed that Craig would purposefully do exactly that forever more. And then I noticed that my soap dispenser in our master bath was suddenly empty. No warning or last gasps. Just empty. Then I realized it looked just a bit different. A-ha! Craig had switched them out, giving me his empty one while he went merrily on his way. Well, two can play that game, bucko…

I truly am kidding about that last suggestion. Do that one at your own risk! But seriously, I know there are more of you playful couples out there with additional can’t-miss-creative ideas for Valentine’s gifts. Help us out, folks: Send us your suggestions to be posted on the blob (blog). And to all of you, Happy Valentines’s Day!