how to have a great valentine's day, part one

I will be doing a three part blog series over the next week or so, guaranteed to give you all the tips you need to enjoy Valentine's day.  Part One of the series will be dedicated to setting the proper attitude.  Because having a great Valentine's day is all about the attitude. 

#1: This is not a romantic day.  Repeat after me: This is not a romantic day.  Expecting a certain day to be full of romance takes all the romance right out of it.  Let's be a little less predictable. 

This is a day to spoil and surprise the people you care about.  Think cards, letters, baked goods, cozy scarves, art supplies, movie tickets, new socks.  Think outside the flower and chocolate box.  Flowers say "It's Valentine's day and I know that lots of other people bought flowers today, so I did too."  Socks say, "I know you really like fancy socks and I was thinking exactly of you when I bought these." 



#2: Get your hands on some Charlie Brown Valentine movies and watch them.  There is no way to feel anything but uplifted and popular after watching Charlie Brown.  And they're hilarious.  And you may even find some catchy lines that you want to reuse, like yelling "YOU LOOK REALLY CUTE TODAY" at one of your coworkers.  Or your spouse.  Or the mailman. 

#3: Any holiday decorations that you forgot to take down have suddenly become seasonal again.  So now, instead of appearing lazy, you're at the cutting edge of holiday decor.  Anyone glad they painted their coffee table red?  Why yes, yes I am. 

#4: Heart-shaped pancakes.  Just try to have a bad day after eating heart-shaped pancakes for breakfast.  And no, you don't need a fancy mold or even a cookie cutter.  Just pour two diagonal lines of batter that meet at one end and it will spread out into a nice heart.  The magic of pancake batter. 

Next week I will be posting some recipes and suggestions for goodies to make and share.  Plus, I have ordered new scarf fabric and am excited to share what's coming. 

Have a happy weekend and don't forget your booties 'cause it's cooooold out there*......

*Does anyone else watch "Groundhog Day" every year?  Some movies just never get old.