I knew my husband for five years before we decided to date and we dated for about five seconds before we set a wedding date. We were engaged for two weeks when he took me to a quiet little Italian restaurant on Valentine’s Day. As we looked over our menus, he made it a point to tell me that he doesn’t believe in Valentine’s Day. If he wants to tell me that he loves me or if he wants to buy me something, he’s going to do it because he wants to, not because it’s Valentine’s Day and he has to. It was at this very moment that I realized that the man I was going to marry had no sense of romance whatsoever.

Sad and angry as I was, I reached into my bag and pulled out a blue Tiffany box and put it on the table in front of him at which he replied “Oh shoot”. He rubbed his temples and mumbled to himself as he opened the box. When he took the silver money clip out of the box, all he could say was “I didn’t think you were into these things.” I left my salad untouched on the table, told him I had a headache and asked if we could go home. Once we got back to my place, I gave him two more very expensive presents just to prove that I do like to exchange gifts and I do want to celebrate Valentine’s Day with the right person after all the wrong ones.

Embarrassed, he ran into the car and got a huge box out of the trunk. I opened the box with high hopes, only to find a bath robe with my name sewn on it. Is this a joke? I went out of my way to buy him things that he needed or that I thought he would like and he got me a bath robe? As I was about to throw a fit, he said, “So that I can be close to you even when I’m not there.” Like I said, I knew that I was marrying a romantic, sentimental fool.

Fast forward five years, and Valentine’s Day has no meaning in my house. My husband doesn’t get me roses, jewelry or chocolate. He doesn’t even get me a card in which he tells me that he loves me and is lucky to have me. Valentine’s Day is nothing but February 14th in my house. A day of no importance any longer, but the rest of the days of the year, he tells me that he loves me and shows me by doing little things that I wouldn’t even think to do for myself. He also burps, farts and puts me in a headlock in order to take the remote just to show me how comfortable he is with me. It is common to see this type of valentine’s day story for many women. So my one tip to you girls: enjoy all the sweet gifts while you can because soon they will be nothing more than sweet memories.