How to Survive a Situationship

Hi friends! Growing up in a home with a younger sister my parents always made sure we got gifts for Valentines day complete with our favorite candies, cards, and sparkly things. My father always believed us girls deserved presents from the boys and men in our life that love us and every year he has never made me doubt his beliefs. And even when my family survived pay check to pay check during the economic downturn in 2009, they still managed to make Valentines day special for us. When I started getting really involved in baking and found a real passion for it I started baking heart shaped treats my family and friends, chocolate lollipops in all the pinks and reds to my heart’s content. I loved any excuse for we to buy cozy sweaters hemorrhaging hearts and sparkles and wear pink bows in my hair. As I got older Valentine’s day took on a different meaning to me. I craved a Valentine’s day where I had a boy who wanted to make me his valentine and maybe take me out to dinner or buy me a flower.. But it never really happened. It would get to the point where I would feel the need to turn off my phone from all social media because it was too much for me to handle watching all these girls being spoiled by their partners and being shown how special they were to that person. Valentine’s day became this day that I began to loathe when you spend it alone year after year in your bedroom eating chocolate provided to you from your parents and although I am grateful to the love that they show me, but it stopped being cute by age 25. But I also couldn’t just sit there feeling sorry for myself either and knew I needed to redefine my idea of how it should be celebrated. I became a big supporter of “Galentines day” and started spending time with my girlfriends drinking too much red wine and charcuterie boards in our sweatpants and celebrating my love for my friendship rather than a partner. I now use Valentines day as an excuse to treat myself and buy myself flowers, those sparkly things, pretty much anything I can rationalize as a present to myself. I fell back in love with Valentines day because I realized it’s not about being in a relationship.. it’s about celebrating love with those that want to celebrate it with you in return. I encourage all of us to go buy a bottle of wine and share it with your closest friends with a meat and cheese plate this Valentines day and just celebrate everything that makes this life worth it.. because we all know we only get one to live.