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Finances & Money

Every Day is Valentine’s Day

February 14, 2008
By Clever Dude
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I’ve mentioned this before, but it seems more appropriate now that it’s Valentine’s Day. There’s no reason you need to wait for a “special day” to get your loved one flowers, a card, or to say “I Love You”.

When Stacie and I got married, without any prompting from her, I promised that I would always have fresh flowers for her in the house. From our first day of marriage (well, maybe the second since we moved on the first full day back from our honeymoon), I’ve had fresh-cut flowers in a vase on our table and I don’t empty the vase until I have replacement flowers. I’ve considered copping out and buying potted flowers that don’t die, but that wasn’t my intention when I promised, and neither were plastic flower arrangements. Nope, it has to be fresh-cut flowers.

Originally, I would buy a new bunch as soon as the old flowers started to droop a little, but then I got better at preserving the flowers longer. I’ve also learned what flowers to avoid because they droop and die quickly. Now I have flowers for 3-4 weeks before replacing them.

Granted, sometimes the flowers aren’t that “fresh”, and I’ll just drain out the water and let them dry, but they’re still pretty. But I’ve learned a bit about pruning them and freshening them up. I will admit, though, that I’ve been lazy a few times and Stacie has called me on it, but she’s never taken the gift of flowers for granted in the 4+ years since we were married. She looks at the flowers every morning while eating breakfast as they sit right in front of her.

If you’re thinking of making this promise yourself, I highly recommend it. Not only does it show your wife (or husband as I like certain flowers too) that you love her, but it also makes you look that much better in the eyes of your in-laws 😉

In my area, I tend to get flowers from Safeway or Giant, but avoid Bloom (an “upscale” Food Lion) because their flower selection is overpriced and pitiful. Who would have thought a store named Bloom would have a crappy flower selection? I tend to get flowers for under $8 per bunch, usually closer to $4. I stay away from the fancy “special” bunches as they run upwards of $10-15 or more, unless I want to splurge like on her birthday or around New Years when we had a party. I don’t recall all the flowers I get, but I’ve noticed that mums, tulips and marigolds are pretty hardy, but flowers with dainty petals usually aren’t.

Oh, and today on Valentine’s Day I didn’t even think about buying flowers. It’s time for a replacement, but I’ll wait until tomorrow or the weekend to get a bargain on flowers. No need to kill the budget when you can get the same beauty for half the price a day later.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Mrs. Micah says

    February 14, 2008 at 3:10 pm

    Every day has been Valentinesish this week. 🙂 Mostly because we keep coming up with ideas and just running with them right away.

    I agree that buying flowers, going out, all of that is really expensive right now.

    I’m not opposed to making a few days special, but it helps if we pick the days ourselves or do something inexpensive on the set ones. Saves a lot of money and makes it feel more special.

    Reply
  2. Frugal Dad says

    February 15, 2008 at 12:06 am

    This is a great idea – I think I’ll start adding a fresh bouquet to my biweekly grocery budget. Thanks for the idea, and the recommendation on flower types – I’m not much of a authority on selecting flowers, so I’ll stick to your “hardy” recommendations.

    Reply
  3. Four Pillars says

    February 15, 2008 at 12:31 am

    That’s really nice.

    I’m tempted to start something similar.

    Mike

    Reply
  4. Ivan says

    May 18, 2014 at 3:11 am

    Great choices for pthoos Linda. I really love the floral heart ..nothing quite like the flowers. But, ah, yes, those chocolates are always welcome.Enjoy the day and celebrate in the city of love.

    Reply

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