Ways To Say “I Love You” Without Buying a Gift

As wedding photographers, Jon and I love a day that is dedicated to saying “I love you” to those you care about, so we are fans of Valentine’s Day, but, more than Valentine’s Day, we are fans of saying, “I love you” in the every day. Last year our family decided to take a year off of making purchases. We will share more of this in another post, but the primary reason was to regroup where we placed our importance and wanted to focus on experiences over things.

This time of no spending aided in compiling this list of ways to show love to each other without making a purchase. In honor of Valentine’s Day here are our top 5 ways to love on your special someone:

1. Make them breakfast. Served in bed is always a lovely way to wake up, and when paired with a mimosa and fresh coffee, it feels extra special.
2. Do a chore that your spouse usually takes care of. Nothing makes me feel more loved than a clean kitchen or a basket of freshly folded laundry. I know Jon loves to come home to an empty trash can or the back porch swept.
3. Write them notes, left in places they can find them. I love finding little notes that say “Have a good day” or “I’m praying for your meeting” when I least expect to.
4. Make their favorite meal. My favorite meal is any one I didn’t have to cook, so this is an easy way to say “I love Amber” (Hint, hint Jon!)
5. Take a walk together. It is easy to get caught up in being busy, but taking time to get away from your day to day stresses so that you can talk and reconnect is a great way to say that you care. Plus…walking increases endorphins and those are always good for feeling close to your Valentine.

These are all things that feel extra special, but there are every day habits too that you can incorporate into your day that help put your spouse first. Part of saying “I do” every day is loving your person better than you love yourself. Taking time to ask about their day, and really listen goes a long way. We have some rituals that probably seem silly to anyone else, but to us, they are what makes us, US. We always kiss three times in a row. We won’t leave the house without a hug and kiss goodbye. We always call each other on our way home to see if the other needs anything while we are out. I hope you all have little rituals that you can hold on to that make you guys who are you are as a couple, those little gestures that say “I love you” without having to utter the words.

Happy Valentine’s Day friends! I hope your day has lots of little moments that make you feel special and adored.

xoxo,

Amber (& Jon!)