Aaahhh, Valentine’s Day ... The day for sweethearts and lovers to reinforce how much they love their significant others. Research tells me that nearly $26 billion is spent on Valentine’s Day, $2.3 million of that is on flowers, $250 million of that is roses, $3.1 billion on candy, $58 million pounds being in chocolate, and $145 million sweet cards. I also learned that the average person spends $165 on his sweetie.
I have always known that my husband is not an average person, and this supported my thoughts. My husband has very rarely or maybe never spent $165 on me at one time for the day.
I remember our very first Valentine’s as a married couple. We were 17 and 18, and we had been married for four months. We lived in a tiny little camper trailer on the outskirts of town. I was in my senior year of high school, and he worked for Sunflower. I was working for State Farm Insurance after school and on Saturdays, and I had saved up some money to buy him a small box of chocolates and a beautiful Valentine. As the day drew near, I kept watching for him to bring my happy in and hide it, but it never happened. So, I decided he would wait til THE day. Well, the day came and no happy. I was young, and it broke my heart. He had forgotten his sweetheart! I cried and carried on like I’d lost my puppy. He was wrecked that he had let this slip by. I remember finally getting over myself and forgiving him after our romantic dinner of hot dogs and beans, with a candle.
The next day at lunchtime, he came in with a huge box of chocolates and a very romantic Valentine’s Day card. I was so excited for him to have gone to all the trouble, after the fact, as I would have been the night before.
I had a friend that worked at the drugstore he had gone to the day after, and she told me they were marking down all the boxes of candy and cards that were left and he came in and explained to her what had happened. He got the candy for half price as well as the card. I sometimes wonder if that might not have been his plan all along.
Now I sometimes get a card, if he remembers, and sometimes I don’t. I know I’m his sweetheart; he tells me every day, so I don’t need the reinforcement anymore but ... diamonds would be a nice Valentine’s Day gift just to back up that fact!
If he “reinforces” our devotion this year, I might make him these delicious cookies.
RED VELVET COOKIES
1 box of red velvet cake mix
1/3 cup of oil
2 eggs
1 cup of white chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all together in a large mixing bowl. Drop tablespoon size onto a parchment covered cookie sheet, leaving room between each cookie to spread. Bake 8 to 10 minutes, and move to wire rack. (Sometimes I just make about six really big cookies that taste like a cake.)
