Ok Moms...I need some help! I am clueless as to what to get my wonderful husband for Valentine's Day. I know...I'm really running out of time. I would really like to do something special and romantic this year. We both have one child each from a previous relationship and in November we had our precious baby boy. Since the baby has been born, we haven't had any alone time which is desperately needed, but I'm not ready to leave my baby overnight anywhere yet. A little background as to why I would like to make this year extra special. Right when our son was born, my husband got laid off. We had planned for me to not return to work, so I could stay home with our baby for at least the first year. He had a great job! It was a complete shock when he got the news that they were closing the entire location where he worked. He has yet to find another job. I know that he's probably a little depressed as am I, but we have to be thankful for what we do have. The middle of last month I had to return to work, and he stayed with the baby. Then the first of this month, we had to start paying for daycare for him or we'd lose our spot. We decided to go ahead and take him for most of the day, so my husband could more actively look for a job as well. I couldn't ask for a better daddy for our kids, and I just want to show him how much I love him and to let him know, despite what's going on right now I'm really proud of him and proud to be called his wife. Thanks in advance for any and all advice!
Thank you Moms for all of the great ideas! I'm off on Monday due to President's Day, but daycare and school is still open, so I think I'm going to kind of postpone Valentine's Day to Monday. I'm going to have him take the kids to school/daycare, and I'll slip into something pretty and be waiting for him when he gets home. After a nice romantic morning, we can go eat lunch and I've made us reservations to have a couple's massage at 2. How does that sound? I'm going to take some of your advice, and place little notes around hinting and getting ready for the day. I'll start that this weekend, so by Monday morning we'll be crazy ready for eachother. I hope it works out as planned and will let you all know. Oh...and I got him a really nice card, but not too mushy or long....guys usually don't like that, but I'm working on a "why I love you so much" list to print on pretty (but manly) paper to put inside the card along with a home made coupon for the massage and a special coupon that says something like "do what you want with me" or something like that.
I did all of this yesterday, and we had an AMAZING day! He really loved the little letter I wrote and placed in his card about why I love him and am so proud of him as well as his coupon. haha...It was such a great day! Thanks for all of the advice.
The best present any wife can give her husband is sex! Ask any man, what he wants most from his wife? SEX! If you want to make it really special for him, wear something sexy, you be the initiator, and do whatever his favorite thing is. The only thing a man wants more than sex from his wife, is for her to want it as much as he does! Be a little agressive. Let him know you want it! That's my advice!
I have to say it's very refreshing to hear about a strong healthy marriage. You are being a great example of what a good wife should be. As for your question, basically men are pretty simple to please. This is my suggestion, have a romantic dinner (out or in), send the kiddos to bed, lock your bedroom door and put on something sexy (new or old). By now you probably know what your husband likes so select something that will put a huge smile on his face! God bless you and your family!
Is there anyway you could send your children away for about 5 hours during the day? Or 5 hours in the evening? You could do a romantic meal, then a nice bath or shower together with a few glasses of wine or champagne. You can do this in your own home. Ignore everything else. Turn off the cell phones close all of the curtains and just spend romantic time together.
Maybe you could swap with another family that has children so they can watch yours and then you can watch theirs?
You could kidnap him during one day and take him home and have romantic time together.. Or give him a card telling him all the things you want to do with him and then tell him to pick the day....
This was actually not my idea, but when I heard of a newlywed with little money who did this I remembered it: He got a foil heart shaped cake pan from the grocery store for only 89 cents and made a little lasagna for two in it. It wouldn't have to be lasagna... it could be anything.
Then,and this is really the most important part... make a list, a long list, of what you treasure about your husband... all the things you mentioned in your post and everything else. It would be great for his self esteem right now to know how much you notice and appreciate every little thing about him and what he does for you.
A good husband is such a gift. We who have them are blessed.
You could get some really nice nightie and surprise him with it. I don't know of too many men who don't enjoy that!; Also, you could make him his favorite meal and just get him some little things you know he really really likes. My hubby likes this certain reeses candy and he rarely ever gets it for himself, so I always pick it up at valentine's or at christmas, and he loves that I just know that about him. My guy likes stuff that shows that I know who he is and what he likes. He would rather his favorite candy, food he loves and an x-box game than some other more expensive things. So if your hubby likes the thoughtful touches, then that is the way to go. Have a fun time together!!:)
Have you thought about cooking his favorite meal and serving it under candle light maybe even in the bedroom. You could even wrap yourself in valentine paper and put a big bow on your head. He'd probably appreciate something like that rather than you spending money you don't have. You can even buy red light bulbs to make the lighting more valentineY.
Everyone has given some really good ideas. I suggest you take from all of them. Have a nice dinner at home. Those have always been my favorite because they seem more romantic. I decorate the table with hearts, the color red, and candles. Dress up and enjoy some time together. Talk to him and let him know how wonderful you think he is. Definetly don't talk about anything other than the love that you have for each other and how blessed you are. You know your husband and know just what to do to make it special.
My one suggestion for you is to keep showing him how much you love and believe in him after Valentine's Day. Leave him encouraging notes thru out the house and with his things. For example on the refrigerator, next to his keys, on the bathroom mirror, a text or email. A quick "I love you" or "Kisses" will brighhten his day and let him know that you are thinking of him.
Have a wonderful Valentine's Day!
my husband is a writer and i am an artist. he writes me poems and i draw things for him, those are always the most treasured gifts. niether of us are shoppers anyway. store-bought gifts never impress the way something that takes time and love to make does! You don't have to be an artist. you might be a good cook or a story teller or a gifted seamstress. Even if you don't consider yourself artistic at all, a simple list of all the things that you find immeasurably wonderful about him would boost his ego and show him how much you think of him.
For Christmas this year, my Father In-Law actually sewed me re-usable grocery bags with the words "super mom" embriodered on them. He can't sew! But he did it for me and it meant the world. (Did I mention that he is extrememly wealthy and could have bought me whatever he liked?)
All of those kinds of things would probably feel better than a store-bought anything when money is tight. Or when it's not. It's the love.
Happy V-Day and congrats on your beautiful family!
Plan a night for him to remember at home. Some of the things I do for my wonderful husband are, Full body massage(mix olive oil with body lotion to make a nice massage cream), sit him down and do a sexy dance around him ( you know the type), treat him like a king, feed him fruit by hand or mouth, wait on him give, him what he ask for. Light candles have sexy music on Enigma is one of our favorites. Just be! So many times we are so caught up in what society tells us to do we forget the basics, write a poem, a letter do a photo slide show set to music even a scavenger hunt with little notes left all day that leads up to one of the above.
I say after the kiddos are in bed, Valentines begins, Make a Heart shaped pizza dinner with cookie cutters for family dinner for your 5, 9 and hubby. Buy ready made pizza dough and biggest heart cookie cutter. Bake crusts and let everyone decide on own toppings. Ham, veggies just cheese.
Then after kids are in bed, give your husband a top ten list of why you love him and as you read each one give a kiss in different places (forehead, neck, hand, etc. getting warmed up. Then pop in 1 hour and 30 min romantic comedy (rent from store something rated R for a prelude) the shortest movie you can find so you can snuggle and talk during the movie about how special he is. Then surprise him with whatever lingerie you have Doesn't have to be special just a surprise dress up and then see what happens from there. Hope its a nice occasion for you and your hubby.
Have a picnic in the park if weather permits. Take in the scenery and enjoy alone time together. A change of atmosphere and fresh air go a long way and don't cost a thing. You can make him a homemade card. It doesn't have to be fancy, just from the heart.
You need to write him a letter including all the wonderful thoughts you just wrote here - on pretty paper, scented with your fragrance and sealed with a kiss. See if you could get someone to watch you r kids at their home - on Sunday even -
and then both of you fix a candlelight dinner or lunch together and have some precious alone time in your own home/bedroom. If that doesn't work out, remember Valentine's Day can be celebrated any and every day!
Unless yor're making a ton of money at your job with him out of a job an expensive, romantic evening is out of the question. Feed the kids early and ship them off to bed (the 9 year old will complain, but that's OK because she's entering that complaining stage anyway, so this will just be good practice for her. You can pick up a pre-cooked chicken at any grocery store along with a package of steamed vegies that take only 5 minutes in the microwave, a nice, special dessert and serve him a candle light dinner along with a card that containes a personal note telling him just how much you love and appreciate him. Something from the heart is always special.
If you're not ready to leave your little one with the babysitter, why not have a babysitter come to your house while you and your husband have a romantic dinnner in the bedroom or some other private room (picnic on the floor or just a get a small table and chairs for the two of you; candlelight and a bottle of wine go a long way). I usually make my husband's favorite meal, but you can always order out from his favorite restaurant and serve the dinner on your good china. Another favorite of my husband is a nice long back and/or foot massage, though you might want to send the babysitter home and put the kids to bed beforehand, in case that gets a little too romantic!
Do you have a lot of pictures of the two of you?
For our 5th anniversary I found some pictures of us on our wedding and then some recent pictures and put them together on a card for him. You could do this with an inexpensive collage frame or a smaller frame with three pictures in sequence or something like that if it's a gift rather than a card. Find a few pictures, put them in, and you have a meaningful gift that shows your love.
