Valentine’s Day, Schmalentine’s Day…

Valentine’s Day. The word can cause pink hearts to float circles around your head or evoke your gag reflex.

As a mom, Valentine’s Day can be a time to make your little ones feel loved. Or it can pose a serious threat.

I am a Pinterest mom.

There I said it. I love pinning all of the cute holiday ideas, creative recipes, unique DIY home projects and amazing outfits, of which MAYBE 30 percent will ever be glued, baked, distressed or worn.

Don’t get me wrong…there are some adorable ideas. But c’mon, who has time for all of that? I would love my son to wake up to red heart-shaped pancakes, wash his hands with heart-shaped soap, take 26 homemade valentines to school and collect 26 valentines in the perfect Valentine’s Day box. I am not mocking any of these ideas…honestly, I wish I had time for ALL of them. But I don’t—I can usually swing one or two.

The threat comes when we play the comparison game. I am guilty. Sure, I want my boy to hand out cool valentines…but if I’m being honest, I want the other moms to say “Wow! Beckett’s mom is super creative!”

We talk all the time on WMAG about letting go of guilt, relieving ourselves of the pressures that motherhood can bring, and focusing less on the nasty comparison game.

I’m giving you permission to defrost Eggo Mini Pancakes and cut them with a heart-shaped cookie cutter (or pour a bowl of regular colored cereal) and buy store bought valentine.

I am giving you permission to make homemade heart-shaped marshmallows, decoupage a Mason Jar with pink and red tissue paper and burn your own Valentines Day CD, complete with customized CD jacket.

Either way…YOU’RE AWESOME! Seriously, get creative, go all out, but have fun doing it. The minute you start cussing at the valentines box because it looks less like an Army tank and more like a turtle, you’ve gone too far.

Bottom line: If you have time and enjoy it..DO IT! If you don’t…THEN DON’T!

Lastly…treat Valentine’s Day as an opportunity to make your husband, boyfriend or SELF feel loved.

As a woman, you either love or loathe this holiday. This likely depends on your dating history…and how many Valentine’s Days you have spent alone or with the wrong person. I have had my fair share of those.

My favorite of which was with my now ex-husband. He thought the best way to make me feel loved was to take me to the ice rink to “let me” watch him play pick-up hockey for two hours! You can imagine how upset I was when only one other pathetic, balding man showed up to play…ON VALENTINE’S DAY—hence no game. I digress….

I have spent Valentine’s Day with a boyfriend, only to be broken up with the following week. SUCK.

I have spent it alone, opening a UPS box sent by my mother, filled with all things red, pink, tasty and cozy. AWESOME.

I have spent it with my son, getting crafty and creative. FUN.

I have spent it with my husband…feeling more loved than I knew possible—not because he gives a rip about Valentine’s Day, but because he cares SO much for me. SPOILED.

However you spend it, I hope you love authentically, and feel loved completely.

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