Thoughts on Valentines Day

I'm a romantic at heart. No denying it. Celebrating Valentines Day this past week makes me think about romance in general. Did I marry a romantic? Not really. Would I want him to be that super romantic guy? Sometimes I think I would, but other times I think he'd drive me nuts if he were super romantic. I guess that's my place in our relationship. So what is romance and what makes Valentines Day the perfect time to be romantic? A friend of mine on facebook had a quote that said,

"I don’t understand why Cupid was chosen to represent Valentine’s Day. When I think about romance, the last thing on my mind is a short, chubby toddler coming at me with a weapon."

-- Unknown

I love this quote!!! As a person who has experienced toddlerhood in the not-so-distant past, this is particularly funny to me. But isn't it crazy that we all scramble around like crazy people on one designed day per year to show love and romance to those most special to us? Now, don't get me wrong, showing love and romance to those we love is definitely a worthy goal. But what makes the 14th of February so special??

Now, I did my part to make Valentines special. I made Neapolitan Creams - a three layer candy cut out into heart shapes that my grandma always made for us until a few years ago when she was no longer able to do it. I made it for my kids and for my husband (who thinks this is the world's best candy) and also delivered some to my 90 year old Grandma and my Dad. For dinner, I decorated the table with paper hearts, candles, and gave each of the kids a Valentine. I made pepperoni bread for dinner in a heart shape, and finished the meal off with heart shaped red velvet cake.

It was a fun day, but not particularly romantic. And, I am certainly not blaming my husband. I personally think that there are many other days that are so much more romantic to me than Valentines Day. There's the day we met, the day he proposed, our anniversary, the day of our first kiss. That's romantic to me. No one else had those exact same experiences on those exact same days. Do I love getting flowers, sure! Do I love going out for a nice dinner, sure! But I can love those things any other day, a day when most of the population may not be getting flowers or going out for dinner. I have a wonderful, loving, helpful husband who is willing to work 7 days a week to support our family. He supports me whole-heartedly in staying home to raise our children. He is the kind of man who comes home at night and if supper isn't quite ready, his question always is, "what can I do to help?" He is my support, my listening ear, and my day to day companion. Now, isn't THAT romantic??