How to Spend Valentine’s Day Based on Your Relationship Stage
Some people view Valentine’s Day as a nuisance; others look forward to the holiday months in advance. No matter where you fall on the V-Day spectrum, your relationship status certainly plays a role in your celebration rituals (or lack thereof). Relationships come in all different shapes, sizes, and lengths — and on a day that celebrates the uniqueness of love, it makes sense to customize your V-Day plans to the relationship you’re in (and, let’s be honest, the outfit you want to wear).
1. Zero to Six Months: If you’re in the beginning stages of a relationship, it’s important to check in with your new boo about your Valentine’s Day plans and expectations. If you both love celebrating your relationship/love in general, make a day of it; if you’d rather be low-key, spend your time Netflix binging your favorite show. The key is being on the same page!
2. Six Months to One Year: Perhaps you and your S.O. have been dating for a little longer, but still haven’t spent Valentine’s Day together. If this is the case, use the holiday as an excuse to celebrate your relationship. Especially if you’re coming up on a year of dating, you don’t have many “firsts” left as far as holidays go — so why not go all out?
3. One to Two Years: At this point in your relationship, you know how your partner responds to celebratory events. Maybe they’re not the cupid-obsessed type — but nevertheless, it might be worth thinking about using Valentine’s Day as an excuse to celebrate you two as a couple in a unique way. Choose a day during the month of February to check something off your mutual bucket list, or invite some friends out for a fun double date.
4. Two to Five Years: After being together for some time, you and your boo probably have your Valentine’s Day routine down. They know what flowers you like; you know the kind of wine that tops their list. While traditions make relationships steady, it can also be fun to mix things up from time to time. If you’ve been together for a number of years, you and your S.O. can count on being in each other’s lives in the future — which means you can count on being there for future plans. This Valentine’s Day, consider planning a trip to celebrate. Anticipation is a powerful emotion in relationships, and planning a vacation together will allow you to capitalize on it.
5. Five+ Years: Every relationship is different — however, being together for five-plus years implies that as a couple, you’ve amassed your fair share of habits. At this point, it’s likely that you two have committed to being together for a long time. With this in mind, a great way to spice things up to celebrate Valentine’s Day might be to surprise your partner. You know what they enjoy to do better than anyone else —and if things go wrong, you have the assurance that they’ll stick around!
How do you and your boo celebrate Valentine’s Day? Let us know @BritandCo!
(Photos via Getty)
