Your best and worst valentines day

[MollyHopps]

Lighthearted - I would love to hear about your best and worst valentines day experiences, just for a bit of fun. I haven't had any fantastic, out of this world Valentines* , but equally I haven't had any terrible experiences.

• I did learn't a couple of years ago that the tradition of giving gifts and cards Originated in Norwich - so not just a gimmic thought up by greetings card companies as I once thought.

I got officially engaged on Valentine's Day one year so that was pretty good.

One recent Valentine's Day DH had been called away overseas at short notice about a week before, and he was still away. He arranged for some flowers to be delivered. But (1) I really don't like cut flowers full stop and (2) they delivered a type I particularly dislike and (3) they were horribly wilted/browning when they first arrived. I didn't feel I could speak to DH about it because he'd had so few options at such distance and short notice, and I couldn't throw them away until he got back because I'm so superstitious. It was fine in the end but I was miserable on the day itself. I would genuinely have been far happier with nothing, partly because I don't get hung up on dates and partly because I'm not particularly high maintenance where gifts are concerned. But I do get oddly upset by crap gifts and despite his best efforts it was crap and only served to emphasise how far away he was.

Valentine's Day otherwise is just a day. I certainly wouldn't dream of trying to go out anywhere any more. Tiny table, limited overpriced menu, rushed sittings ... NOPE. DH likes to receive (and forever keep) a nice card otherwise I wouldn't bother at all!

I had my ds on Valentine's day 4 years ago. Best present ever. I've split with his dad but I got the best gift !

Yesits my friend is born on valentine’s day and her middle name is Valentina

I'm not sure I've had a worst. Well, I'm sure I've had it, but I honestly can't really remember many that stick out to be fair. I wouldn't say it was the 'best' but it was the most memorable and interesting would be the first that my now dh and I had when we were dating. We met working abroad so we were overseas (in a developing country where valentine's isn't really traditionally celebrated). It was our first so he wanted to plan to take me out somewhere new and fun, other than our usual places we always went to. We found a pizza place that had wine (neither pizza or wine all that commonly consumed in said country). He drove us there on his motorbike (picture me, riding pillion, carefree pre-kids, hair blowing in the wind). The restaurant was completely decked out for Valentine's in a really cheesy way (over the top, I think, because the day is sort of a new thing there) and it was pretty much just us, drinking wine and eating pizza, and another table of about 20 which turned out to be a work Valentine's day dinner. This boss was so excited by the prospect of Valentine's that he treated his whole office to a romantic dinner out of pizza and coke (not wine, only westerners tend to drink in mixed company there). It was just a really strange thing, but they seemed to be loving how kitschy it was. Anyway, nothing more exciting than that, but that's probably the one I remember most clearly (maybe I've consumed a lot more wine on the others).

One year we were getting ready for IVF after years of trying for a baby. Lots of weird hormones and injecting my stomach wasn’t great.
The following year we had our little baby - that was the best present ever.

Wino - ds middle name is Valentino!

First with DP, it happened to fall on our first W/end break together. I'd gone to toilet/put kettle on and came back to a card and roses on my pillow and then he had framed the lyrics of a song he wrote for me

I was dumped by the lovee of my life on Valentine's Day. 😰

Received a Tesco Value valentines card. We split up six months later.

My DD2 was born on Valentine’s Day. Best present ever!