Since it's become National Date Night, it's very important to the ladies. And there's no better way to score points with the girls that to show you care about what's important to them. So I have 10 tips on how you can make this day extremely memorable.
Ten Valentine's Day Tips
1. Get flowers, but make it SPECIAL - We've discussed this before in our Stuffed Chicken Parmesan recipe. Don't just buy the generic red roses. Red roses are the sign of a moron who waited until the last minute, or someone who just doesn't care. Take the time to find out what her favorite colors and favorite flowers are. Some ladies really like other types of flowers as well, which can work really well since roses are outrageously expensive this time of year. Liz loves the light pink roses, the circus roses (a fire orange rose with red accents), and stargazer lilies. And since the office can become a sea of red roses at Valentine's Day, why not have her stand out with something customized to her tastes?
Which leads me to the next secret of flowers - Costco. It's a very inexpensive option, and you can get two dozen roses around $14.00 almost any other time of the year. Of course, Valentine's Day forces the prices up a bit, but it's still cheaper than the florists. And best of all, they're fresher. You never know how long those flowers in the florist's flower coolers have been sitting there. They could die tomorrow. But every batch I have purchased at Costco has lasted at least a week if I trim the ends with a pair of scissors and add the plant food to the water.
Finally, there's one other accent you can add. Go buy a special vase. Something beyond just a basic plastic vase. Something she thinks is pretty. I was lucky enough to find a vase that matched her china pattern for around $25. Why get one? Well, you give her the vase and then promise to fill it with flowers every Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Birthday and Anniversary. She'll keep that vase as safe as her wedding ring. Best of all, it'll look great in front of others when she shows off her flowers, which leads to....
2. Deliver the flowers to work or a public place - If your special lady works, the BEST thing you can do is deliver it to her office yourself. Why? Well, I was told by a few co-workers a few years ago that Valentine's Day is a cutthroat competition among the women, properly named "My Guy Loves Me More ". And trust me, you want your girl to win this game, or at least place in the top 5.
Points are allotted to each woman according to the public attention heaped upon her in front of "those bitches in the office". The girl with the most point wins. How can your lady score points?
Point Values
Card - 1-3 points - depending on the message on the inside
Decoration of desk - 1-5 points, depending on extent and cuteness of decorations.
Balloon bouquets - 2-5 points, depending on size and visibility to the rest of the office
Candy/Chocolates - 2-5 points, depending on size and quality of chocolate, ability to share with others that did NOT get any (flaunting) can score a few more points
Flowers - 5-15 points - depending on visibility, color, and beauty
Gift - 1-20 points - completely dependent on what the gift is
Lunch - 5-10 points - epending on location and price
Jewelry - 1 to 100 - depending on carat size, metal, and he ability to show it off to her coworkers
Performance (singing telegram, stripper-gram) - -10 to 10 points - completely dependent on her comfort with the idea and how it may effect the office.
Other factors effecting final score:
Embarrassment (-1 to -15 points) - Anything like dead flowers, deflated balloons, or an extremely bad singing telegram can become office legend. And can rack up negative points quickly.
Size (-10 to +20) - Size matters, but it matters more today. The larger the better. It's best if you can see your gifts from across the office. And woe be unto you if you undershoot. Hell hath no fury like a woman who was mocked all day by that skinny little witch in the cubicle next to her because you gave her three less flowers.
Personal Appearance (possible 2-30) - Possibly the safest and most profitable thing you can do. Sure, you can have flowers delivered to the office, but there's a certain sense of awe about a guy who will deliver them himself. And if you have multiple items (flowers with candy/balloon/gift) in hand and plant a big ol' kiss on her before saying a word, trust me, she'll get max points.
Significance - (No defined range) - Biggest wild card and possibly the most beneficial. It can turn the smallest gift in the world into the most valuable.
So if you want your special lady to score well, plan on a long lunch. Buy two dozen of the special flower type at one of the warehouse stores (15 points for flowers + 10 size bonus), arrange them in your special vase (+ 10 significance), attach a card (2 points for card) with a special message (+2 significance), deliver it yourself (+20 appearance bonus), and then take her to a nice lunch for her lunch break (+10 lunch points). Guess what? You've just scored her at least 70 points. She may not win, because some schmuck may play the marriage proposal card, (1,000,000 points, so an automatic win for the girl, but a pretty lame way to propose..). But you can guarantee she's in the running.
3. Shower, shave, and smell pretty - ESPECIALLY if you're going into her office. This shouldn't have to be mentioned, but you gotta get any stink off of you. Yes, you may think you look great, but take the extra time to look ultra-presentable. Spend the extra 15 minutes in the bathroom to style your hair, scrub off the dirt and for god's sake, use deodorant and her favorite cologne.
4. Do one daily task for her - Yes, you may have certain daily tasks that each of you do around the house. Maybe it's the dishes, maybe it's feeding the kids in the morning, maybe it's vacuuming. Whatever it is, do one for her for the few days leading up to Valentines Day. It's a nice gesture, it gives her a break and maybe some free time to relax. Trust me, she'll really appreciate it.
5. Spend a little time with the kids - If you want to have some private time on Valentine's Day, you need to spend some time with the kids ahead of time. Take them out to the park, bowling, mini-golfing, etc. It shows that you care about them, you get to have some fun with the little ones, and there's no better aphrodisiac than a dad happily playing with his kids.
6. Do the small things - OK, some of these things can seem tedious to the average male, but they're important. When you plan your date, go beyond just dinner and a movie. There's nothing wrong with that... but if you're going to have a basic game plan, throw some enhancements into the mix. Open the car door for her. Have a flower for her to carry around as you walk. Hold her hand or present your arm. Kiss her every chance you get, especially in front of others. Compliment her every chance you get. Any of the small things can make it that much more memorable.
7. If you give her a gift, give here one that means something - There's a reason why the Significance variable in the "my Guy Loves Me More" game above is an open-ended point spread. A present tied to a memory, inside joke or a significant part of your life will mean much more than something she may need. It doesn't have to be expensive at all. You could include a small stuffed animal with another gift if one of your first dates was at the zoo to remind her of that day. You could give her a really good piece of costume jewelry if she used to play dress up as a child or plays it with her girls today. Maybe you'll play dress-up with her later. And if you give her something functional, like a kitchen appliance or a work item, without her specifically saying "Get me this"... well, dude, you're on your own.
8. Re-enact a memorable day - Women are much more cerebral and emotional animals than men are. The smallest little hint of a past event can spur the great feelings of that day that day. So why not give her a day she'd love to remember. For one of our anniversaries, Liz and I went back to Fiddler's Elbow, the location of our first blind date. We agreed to try to act like we did that day. We were able to keep in character for a while, but eventually we just reminisced about that great day and everything we were thinking. And that night ended much differently than the first date did, in a very good way. Just think back to the most memorable days of your life and do what you can to relive that date. Trust me, she'll love it.
9. Cook her a meal - If you're not going out, then cook her a meal. Cooking a meal is a great way to show your love. Why? Well, in preparing a meal is providing sustenance for someone, and in the most basic sense, you're keeping them alive. But more importantly, you're taking the time and effort to prepare something special for her. That dedication can come through in your cooking and make it taste that much better. It doesn't have to be extravagant, it can be just spaghetti, hamburgers and fries or a steak off the barbecue. But take the time to do it.
And make sure you set the mood. Put the flowers on the table. Serve it on the china you received for your wedding that you never use. Break out the wine glasses, even if you're not serving wine. Light the candles and lay out the rose petals (destroy one rose) as decorations. And when you're eating, make sure the TV is turned off so the attention is on her
10. DESSERT! - This is the one time of year that dessert is mandatory. Some people say that chocolate is an aphrodisiac. Or that the sugar in the dessert give them you a sugar rush to be a little bit more ambitious. Or maybe it's just a special treat. But no matter what it is, get a dessert and SHARE it. So when you reach across for a bite, you can look longingly into her eyes.
My choice for a dessert for a special vacation is a Chocolate Fondue, because you can dip all sorts of things into it... and use the remaining molten chocolate for other purposes later. And my recipe for this will be posted on the site in just a few days.... WATCH FOR IT!!! You'll thank me later.
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