As a single parent, Valentine’s Day can be a difficult holiday. While the rest of the world is expressing their love and affection for one another, you are alone. My first Valentine’s Day on my own was tough. It was only two week after my husband had left and I was going through a painful divorce, but I tried to make the best of it. So I made a tradition of taking Logan to the zoo. It was a special time for just the two of us to celebrate our love for each other. The next year was a little easier. I looked forward to our trip to the zoo and we had fun spending the whole day playing together.
This year we have school during the day and we won’t be able to make it to the zoo before it closes. Instead we decided to celebrate with a special Valentine’s Dinner tonight and an extra trip to the zoo this weekend. We enjoyed making little Valentine’s together while talking about all the fun things we did at school that day.
My Valentine’s Day is far from traditional. My significant other happens to be a rambunctious four year old, but I think I’ve enjoyed my Valentine’s with him more than anyone else. It’s a day that I get to celebrate my love for my son, a love that gets stronger every day.
I could have chosen to focus on the fact that I no longer have a man in my life to celebrate this holiday of romance with, but I find that my life is far better when I choose to focus on the good in my life, which happens to be my son.
If you find yourself feeling a little lonely tomorrow, remember the loving faces that surround you. Your children love you unconditionally, celebrate that rather than focusing on your “have nots.” In the end, there’s really nothing better than the love of a child anyway.