A Guide to Spending Valentine's Day at Home

There are some of us who are usually homebound in the evenings for different reasons (difficulty getting a baby sitter, short on funds, legal), but that doesn’t mean that you and your special someone can’t make the most of Valentine’s Day at home. Who wants to go out on a weekday, anyway (other than people who are still in their twenties)? Though some of the suggestions do involve leaving the house in preparation, they are light on the wallet.

Cook a meal together

A nice meal does not have to be expensive. Get fresh pasta and sauce from Bombolini Pasta (available at these locations). Buy a well-raised chicken from the Belmont Butchery or a similar place and roast it for an uncomplicated weeknight meal. There are plenty of good wines for under $10 at locally owned places including River City Cellars and Once Upon a Vine. If you’re paying more than $5 for a fancy loaf of bread then you’re doing it wrong.

You can also make the dinner the evening’s entertainment. Try to make pasta from scratch, or use wonton wrappers to make ravioli. Pick up a kit from Pizza Tonight (available at these places). Go easy on dinner and work on a complicated dessert together. If the cook of the house is fussy about help in the kitchen, then the other should pick the evening’s entertainment or just be good company.

My go-to resources for meal ideas to suit any type of diet are The Kitchn and the Everyday Food branch of the Martha Stewart world.

Power Out

Remember when most of Richmond lost power last August? We were forced to not be attached to our cell phones or rely on electronics to provide entertainment. For a couple of nights – before the novelty wore off and the crazies set in – we were off the grid, learned to be resourceful, and probably went to bed earlier. And maybe some couples enjoyed not having all mod cons to distract them.

I’m not suggesting that you cut the power, but your significant other can tell that you’re scrolling through your Twitter updates while he/she is telling you about their day and they’re not happy about that. Give the present of your full attention by making RomanceLand a dead zone for your cell phone and Internet connection. Instead of zoning out after dinner with TV, play a board game, work on a project together, or bundle up and take a walk. E-mails, status updates, and evening news will be there in the morning.

Movie Night

If I were the reader of the above and not the writer I would definitely ask myself “how can you watch Netflix if you pretend the power’s out?” Good question, me. You can’t, but at least put the smart phone in the other room and enjoy a romantic film.

Here are a few of my picks that are available to watch instantly: “Last of the Mohicans” (starring Richmond’s Own Daniel Day-Lewis); “Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge” (an excellent three-hour Indian musical and love story that looks like it was filmed on the MGM lot in the 1960s); “Dirty Dancing,” (I know that Daniel Day-Lewis isn’t actually from Richmond); “Sense and Sensibility” (the Emma Thomas-directed version); “That Thing You Do!” (did anyone find out if Daniel Day-Lewis bought that house in Church Hill?); and, if you’re not really into the whole romantic movie thing, there’s always “Die Hard, ” which can count as a love story if it also counts as a Christmas movie.

Your Love is Not Alone

So you’re not going to spend your evening reenacting the spaghetti dinner scene from “Lady and the Tramp?” That doesn’t mean that quality time with people in addition to your partner has to be a bust. Whether it’s a game night with friends or you have kids who don’t go to bed before 7:30, use your company to showcase your strengths as a couple. Maybe you’re awesome Trivial Pursuit partners or tell great stories. Maybe you need a chance to show your friends or kids that you’re like Tami and Coach Eric Taylor from “Friday Night Lights” when you’ve been feeling like Janice and Chandler from “Friends.” Sometimes a relationship needs a good showing off to make you remember why you’re good together.

No Money for Gifts

If we aren’t careful, all holidays will become over-the-top spending events. I do not want to have to give people gifts for President’s Day or get ads for Macy’s Groundhog’s Day sale. Toning it down needs to start at home. Make a pact to not give gifts (and keep it). It’s easy to show your gratitude to your partner without having to make a trip to a jewelry store. May I suggest doing the dishes for a change? I mean, seriously. I didn’t eat four bowls of cereal by myself.

You don’t have a special someone.

Valentine’s Day is on a Tuesday night. Who cares?