It’s easy to do something nice for nearby friends on Valentine’s Day — just make them something sweet! I wanted to do something for my faraway friends, too, but treats don’t travel so well. After a bit of brainstorming, I settled on a longer-lasting project that will hopefully help them feel the love long after Valentine’s Day.

I started with several sets of chipboard letters (3/4″ tall) from AC Moore. I spray-painted them gold, then hot glued them to some thin, vintage ribbon I had in my stash. The completed garlands got washi taped to a simple cardstock rectangle penned in gold sharpie. I already had the kraft boxes on hand, but padded mailers would have worked well, too!

I’m imagining them pinned to a bulletin board or taped to a mirror or refrigerator, but obviously the gals are free to hang them wherever they’d like. Hoping they go over as well as something sugary!

I’ve been meaning to write about John’s 26th birthday present since last July, and now seems as good a time as any: Valentine’s Day is coming up, and I know a lot of y’all are looking for sweet, low-cost, and thoughtful gifts for your significant others! (Me too.) Since his birthday fell on a week day last year, I wrapped up a few small packages — one for every two hours he would be at work — and marked them with the times they were to be opened. I kept the packaging discreet so as not to embarrass him in front of his coworkers :)

I can’t remember all of the gifts, but I know I included a can of his favorite limonata at 12:30 (lunch!), a gift certificate for a bucket of balls at our local driving range, a $10 Chick-fil-a gift card, an issue of a favorite magazine, and a can of tennis balls. The gifts kept rolling after he got home; I even put a late-night one in the freezer — a package of Dove bars! Yep, it was wrapped, too :)

I did get him a larger gift that he opened after work, but I think (hope) the best part of last year’s celebration was the hourly reminder that he was loved and thought of, even if we weren’t together.

P.S. Looking for Valentine’s Day goodies for friends? Here are a few I’ve made in the past: crepe paper chocolate, felt fortune cookies, clever cards, and wrapped chocolate.

February! The month of my birth and the birth of seemingly half of my friends — lots to celebrate for the next few weeks! :)

To recap, my January goals:
Make toffee. YES! All the recipes I looked at in advance looked intimidating (you have to stir THIS fast and pour it at THIS temperature), but I finally settled on this one and jumped in. It was a little finicky, but my first ever batch turned out delicious, so I have confidence you, too, could conquer it!
Install our new kitchen pendant lights. Check! We actually installed another new light fixture, as well!
Write another Marvelous Money post. Check! The most popular one to date.
Deep clean our refrigerator. Check! No post on that one :)
Donate our miscellaneous technology to Kramden. (When we went to gather everything up we realized we didn’t have what they’re looking for, so I skipped this one.)

My February goals:
— Finalize “Before 30” list and post.
— Celebrate Valentine’s Day with friends and husband
— Plan something fun with CT friends in the Triangle
— Work on guest accommodations before March visitors
— Plant jasmine around mailbox (likely – unless the garden center tells me it’s not the right month to plant! :)

What do you have planned for this month? If you’ve written a post about it, feel free to leave the link below, because I’d love to take a look!