I walked into a conversation at work a few years ago, in the week leading up to Valentine’s Day. There were a lot of strong opinions shared, against the holiday and the “dumb gifts that we’re expected to buy”. At the time I worked in an office where the majority of my coworkers were men. So me, someone who is passionate about making efforts in your marriage and doing what you can to show love to your spouse, walked into a heated discussion going on in a group of men who had very strong, negative feelings toward a holiday that’s completely focused on showing love to your significant other. I walked through the discussion, to my desk, keeping my mouth shut and just listening.
Later I found out that the discussion was prompted by one of the newlywed men in the office. He’d asked for suggestions on what to get his wife for their first married Valentine’s Day. And instead of suggestions, he got anti-Valentine’s gifts opinions. He and I talked later and I gave him some ideas specific to him and his marriage. And I continued to think about the conversation I’d overheard, and how I truly felt about it. In a way, I agreed with my coworker. The expectation of candy and flowers and jewelry and stuffed animals on Valentine’s Day feels a little silly. Because even if your love language is receiving gifts, those aren’t going to be things that you necessarily appreciate.
I created this list of gift ideas for Valentine’s Day because I wanted to provide you with some ideas that will really show love to your spouse for the holiday. All of these gifts show love, and show your spouse that they mean something to you, without being too cheesy or cliche. Sure, flowers are nice and chocolate is yummy. But those things fade, and they don’t always say, ‘I love you’ in the way that you want them to.
We really love the connecting questions book put together by Marriage 365. The book is dated, with one question per day, and an index of questions by topic in the back of the book. You can work through the book by topic or by the dates of each question. I love the way this book gets us talking about things outside our norm. This is a great resource to help you connect daily.
I’ve loved the idea of Loom Journals for a long time. but until recently, I haven’t been able to put them to use because my kids aren’t old enough to write yet. When they released their Loom Love Journal this past year, I jumped on the pre-orders because I knew it was something I would love. The Loom Journal provides you with a prompt and a page for each of you to write about the prompt. They collaborated with a licensed marriage and family therapist to ensure that this journal will be extremely beneficial for your marriage.
We love being able to get away together for a night or two. It allows us to reconnect away from all of our adult responsibilities. It’s like one long extended date. And it’s always a lot of fun to spend time completely focused on each other and our relationship.
Related: How to Save Money on a Romantic Getaway
I will always love Mentionables and their dedication to model-free photos and high-quality lingerie. When I shop, I shop comfortably and my husband can as well. When the pieces I order show up in my mailbox, I love every single one because of how gorgeous they are. And I don’t have a picture in my head of how they should look on me based on how they looked on the model on the website. You can purchase something from the website that you know both you and your spouse will love. Or give them a gift card so they can pick a piece out on their own.
Tony and Alisa of One Extraordinary Marriage share their intimacy lifestyle on a regular basis on their website and their podcast. Their goal is to help couples increase their intimacy in all aspects of their life. If intimacy is something you’re working to improve in your marriage, the 7 Day Sex Challenge might be perfect for the two of you! This book is a quick read and can be purchased for your e-reader as well as a physical copy.
If you’re making date night a goal in your marriage, a book filled with date night ideas can make a great gift! Work your way through the ideas in the book. Click here to purchase Prioritizing Date Night in Your Marriage. It includes over 300 date night ideas for couples in every stage of life.
Get someone to watch the kids, book a hotel, and plan an activity and a meal. Then surprise your spouse with a date that lasts through to the next day. We love overnight dates because they give us a little more quality time together than we would normally get. We always come home feeling more in love than ever.
I love using the money that we’ve budgeted for gifts to purchase gift cards we can use for future dates out. This allows us to go on a few extra dates out of the house while still sticking to our budget. I’ll grab gift cards to our favorite restaurants, a fun activity (like Top Golf), or something that I know my husband will love doing.
I always say that one of my favorite gifts, for any occasion, is a date night. When my husband plans a date with me in mind and takes me on it to celebrate something, my heart sings. Plan a date that you know your spouse will enjoy, make all of the necessary arrangements, and take them on it!
This one is a little Valentine’s cliche. But it’s a great date any time of year and perfect for your marriage. You can pick a romantic dinner date location out on the town. Or make a meal and set the scene for a romantic meal at home. One of my favorite Valentine’s memories and gifts to date was when my husband surprised me by making dinner for me while I sat and watched him cook and we talked.
Related: 6 Ways to Gift Your Spouse with Date Night
I came up with this idea years ago, and have loved it ever since! Put together a gift bag or basket with a few items that fit your spouse’s top love language or one thing for each of the five languages. Click here for a tutorial to help you create the perfect love languages gift basket.
The great thing about using someone’s love language to pick out a gift is that it lets them know that you care about them and know who they really are. I like to try and get my husband one thing for each love language, even if it’s just something small. Click here for an entire post filled with gift ideas based on each of the five love languages.
I think that everyone, no matter how long they’ve been with their significant other, appreciates a good love note. Write from the heart and let your spouse know exactly how you feel about them right now. Click here for tips on writing the perfect love note.
Nobody is going to turn down a delicious breakfast delivered to them in the most comfortable place in the house. I love being able to sleep in and have someone feed me my favorite meal of the day. Whether you make it yourself, buy prepared pastries and fruit, or grab takeout breakfast from your spouse’s favorite place, they’re sure to appreciate this gift.
It’s a fun thing to do on the holiday of love! Show your love by feeding your spouse foods in the shape of a heart! I love looking on Pinterest for “heart-shaped food” and getting creative from there. I’ve seen heart-shaped meats, fruits, vegetables, desserts, all the things!
This is when I encourage gifting your spouse candy for Valentine’s Day. Pick up a package of their favorite snack or treat. Whether it’s cookies or candy or chocolate or a drink or something salty, etc. You could take it a step further and pick up their favorite takeout meal. Then surprise them for lunch or an afternoon pick me up.
I love gifting my spouse with gift cards that I know he’ll use to go out for lunch or to grab a drink. I also love receiving similar gift cards that support my love of breadsticks and alfredo sauce, smoothies, etc. Think about what your spouse really loves and let them know that this gift is for them to treat themselves.
Give your spouse time to relax on their own. Maybe they don’t like to take a bath but they’d like to go get a massage, take a nap or go on a mid-day walk. Make their favorite way of relaxing possible and allow them to enjoy it to the fullest.
This list could go on and on. I know the stores are filled with life-sized stuffed animals, heart-shaped boxes of chocolate, and sappy cards. If those are the types of gifts that you and your spouse appreciate, don’t feel like you can’t continue your tradition. I hope that this post will encourage you to think outside the box when it comes to picking a romantic gift for your spouse this Valentine’s Day!
What’s the most memorable Valentine’s gift you’ve ever received?