Why Valentine's Day is not Overrated

If someone would have told me a few years ago I would write a romance novel, I would have laughed at them. I never thought of myself as a romantic. I was more of a tomboy growing up, not into girly things. I still know very little about hair and make-up, and I'm fine with that.

Then I met a boy, who was like no one else I'd ever known before. There are some things that happen to us by a strange twist of fate I suppose, and meeting Brian was one of them. I had a date fall through, and met him at a party for the first time. A few weeks later, I saw him somewhere else, and we got to talking (ok, and kissing too, much to my brother's dismay). The next week we talked every night for hours at a time. It was strange for me, but apparently there was something between us neither of us could ignore. He brought out the romantic side of me I didn't realize I had.

Our first Valentine's day was unique. He had a dozen roses delivered to my parent's house- not cheap, I'm sure. We had plans to go sledding in the afternoon and reservations for supper. When we got together that day, I think I gave him a huge oatmeal raisin cookie in the shape of a heart. He also gave me a teddy bear and a necklace he made just for me. Back on our first date, we went to Perkin's in St. Cloud before a movie, the night before my birthday. He found a dime at the table, and we joked about it. Brian saved it, and drilled a hole in it. He found a chain, and gave the dime to me as a necklace. I still have it in my jewelry box (he made that too).

The reservations fell through that night, but after trying a dozen restaurants, we found one we could get into. We had a great time that night. Young and in love is a fun place to be.

We're busy people, and it's hard to make time to show our appreciation and love of each other. That's why I think it's important to take Valentine's day seriously. Brian still gets me flowers every year, and they always make me feel special. I don't care what some women say, flowers are nice. We don't always do gifts, and don't go over the top with going out to celebrate. But we still do something. And now we have two boys to share the day with too.

I love quotes, and there are tons out there about love and relationships. The one on the side is great. We've made the choice to show each other our love and respect on Valentine's Day.

And on a side note, my next book has a scene that ties in with my first date with Brian.