Valentine’s Day is not heavily celebrated in this household, and never has been — our first year together I bought Matt a Mr. Potato Head and he went out on February 14 and picked up the last chocolate-covered jujubes in town. Since then we’ve traded notebooks, a stuffed dragon, and more candy. Truth is we’re usually pretty broke by the time it rolls around, and neither of us put too much stock into the Hallmark Holiday aspect of things.
Anyway, it’s sort of a tradition now to not expect anything traditional! I already have Matt’s gift picked out and I suspect he will be running out on V-day to find something for me, but I had fun putting this little list of fun, non-traditional Valentine’s Day gifts (probably geared toward the ladies, but I can see how a few items would also be good gifts for guys!).
Starting from the top…
1. Reese’s hearts — cheap, easy to find, and delicious. I would be psyched to get these (and then sad because I wouldn’t be allowed to eat all of ‘em in one go). If your lady loves grocery store candy there are plenty of options out there.
2. This Little Miss Scatterbrain mug is awesome. They have them in a few different characters but this one is the best one for me!
3. Stuffed animals are a classic V-day gift, but a stuffed Kissing Disease plush is hilarious.
4. Also hilarious but cuddly? The Nerd Domo In Love plush.
5. The Love Cats print is great for cat ladies (like me).
6. This massage bar from Lush is probably the least quirky item on here but I’m including it anyway. And it doesn’t have to be a massage-y thing — I use the massage bars as regular moisturizers for my legs in winter!
7. It’s not (expensive) fine jewelry, so it’s a bit more low-key, and this necklace is just plain pretty.
8. Like the Reese’s hearts, these milk chocolate covered chips are more fun than your usual heart-shaped box of chocolates (and also delicious).
9. I have been eying this clutch for awhile, but really, when am I going to use a clutch? The heart makes it Valentine appropriate.
10. Doctor Who fan? The Dalek in Love mug is perfect.
Anyone wanna trade awkward Valentine’s Day stories? One year Matt and I actually decided to do things right so we booked a dinner reservation in town, well in advance, and showed up to find out that they had crammed us cafeteria style, seated about half a foot away from a really unenthused couple who didn’t speak through dinner. We didn’t feel like we could talk because they weren’t talking and we were sitting too close to them… and the food was kind of yucky. Conclusion: cinnamon hearts and Netflix are cheaper and more fun!
On Valentine’s Day 2011 we got seated next to each other at a booth that looked out at the rest of the restaurant (so there was no option to sit across from each other). I kept accidentally making eye contact with other diners, and my neck hurt from looking to my left all night.
I also usually buy myself a box of chocolates for Valentine’s Day because my husband doesn’t. The Walgreens cashiers probably pity me.
P.S. I really want that pink necklace now!
Haha! Customer service is not really my town’s forte… at all. So I could see that happening here.
A friend of mine actually got a bunch of us girls those “STD” plushies as Christmas gifts in college one year! They are too funny.
One of my university roommates had the chlamydia plushie and always threw it at people, yelling YOU CAUGHT THE CLAP!! when they caught it, haha!
hahaha, fun list!
I love the little miss scatterbrain mug, it’s so fun.
I love it too! We’re starting to get a few fun mugs in our kitchen.
That V.D. doll is hilarious, and I love this roundup! We don’t really do anything, either, besides get tacos from our favorite place. My boys’ school does a “fancy” lunch (we provide the food), and they serve the parents, so I enjoy that.
Oooh, that does sound nice!
We aren’t big on Valentine’s either, but I love that Dalek mug
We had Dalek wedding cake toppers so it seemed appropriate!
Sorry, I’m a few days behind on my blog reading so I am just catching up.
First of all, I LOVE those microbe plushes! I have the common cold, chicken pox, and MRSA, and for my birthday this year my boyfriend got me a brain cell.
So adorable and highly appropriate for me, since I’m studying to be a doctor and all. 
Secondly, I totally want a Little Miss Bossy mug…but it looks like I’ll have to go with Little Miss Giggles instead.
Thirdly, I don’t really have any awkward Valentine’s Day stories b/c we are sitting on the couch watching Star Wars people anyway. One year we tried to make cinnamon rolls and the dough stuck to the counter something fierce…but when we finally got them up they were tasty!
I always look at those microbes and think they’d be awesome gifts for pretty much any occasion!
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