Valentine's Day in US

Valentine's Day in US

Valentine's Day is an extremely popular festival in United States of America. People in US observe a holiday on this day to honor St Valentine and to express love to dear ones. Taking opportunity of the festival people express gratitude and love for sweethearts, spouse, teachers, parents or any other person close to them.

Valentine's Day history in US: Valentine's Day is said to have imported to North America in the 19th century by British settlers. First mass-produced Valentine's Day card with embossed paper lace are said to have produced in United States shortly after 1847 by Esther Howland (1828-1904) of Worcester, Massachusetts. (http://valentine-day-blog.blogspot.com/)

In the second half of the 20th century, the practice of giving gifts along with cards became popular. Roses and chocolates were the most commonly exchanged Valentine's Day Gifts and were usually given by man to the woman. Around 1980's diamond industry began to promote Valentine's Day as an occasion to gift fine jewelry. Today, the day has come to be associated with a generic platonic greeting of "Happy Valentine's Day."

Valentine's Day Celebration in US
Valentine's Day festival has been commercialized to a great extent in US. It is estimated that Valentine's Day is the major card and gift giving festival in US. Days before the festival markets wear a festive look to lure consumers. Popular gifts exchanged on the day include cards, fresh flowers- mainly rose, chocolates and candies. These days, people also complement these with other gifts of love to express affection and love. (http://valentine-day-blog.blogspot.com/)

Valentine's Day dinner and dance parties are organized all over the country to celebrate the occasion. Many couples hold private celebrations in homes or restaurants. Another interesting part of Valentine's Day in US is the celebrations organized by kids. Several schools organize Valentine's Day programmes where children perform songs, dance, skits and plays. Children also gift handmade gifts and cards to their friends and teachers.

To those staying in different cities, Valentine's Day greetings are exchanged with the help of e-cards and by sending gifts through online Valentines Day gift shopping sites.

Valentine's Day in New York

New York City is such an amazing city, it's no wonder that it's such a popular romantic destination. Whether it's Valentine's Day or you're just trying to impress someone special, New York City has so much to offer. Experience New York City's most romantic restaurants and places with these helpful guides. Valentine's Day in New York City - Your Guide to What to Do for Valentine's Day in New York City
When it comes to Valentine's Day -- it's the thought that counts -- and those thoughts should be romantic. Check out this helpful page with information on restaurants for Valentine's Day, romantic bars, romantic places in New York City and even some New York City gift ideas for Valentine's Day.
Romantic Bars in New York City - Impress Your Date or Valentine at one of these Romantic Bars in New York City
Want to impress your date or Valentine with a coktail at a romantic bar in New York City? These romantic bars in New York City are sure to put your date or Valentine in a romantic mood. Romantic Places in New York City
Whether it's Valentine's Day, your anniversary or just a special romantic weekend, New York City is one of the most romantic cities. Check out these romantic places if you're looking to impress your sweetheart any time of year. Romantic Restaurants in New York City
If you want to impress someone special, choosing the right restaurant can make all the difference. These restaurants offer romantic atmosphere, as well quality food and service that are sure to impress -- whether it's Valentine's Day, an anniversary or another special occassion. Best New York City Chocolate Shops
New York City is home to a wide array of famous chocolate shops -- including many that make their own chocolates in New York City. Check out this list of the best chocolate shops in New York City when you're looking for gift ideas or somewhere to enjoy a sweet chocolate indulgence.

A sample Valentine's day plan

This is a sample Valentine's day plan,These tips can help you dream up an approach to this year’s celebration that is both meaningful and economical.
Step 1
Send your lover a dozen long-stemmed red roses, the symbol of romance and passion.
Step 2
Recite a love poem onto your mate's voice mail at work while he or she is at lunch.
Step 3
Write a love letter or romantic valentine
Step 4
Give your valentine an assortment of chocolate truffles, wrapped up in elegant packaging.
Other romantic gift ideas: a weekend away at a bed-and-breakfast in the countryside, a silk or lace nightgown or silk pajamas, scented candles, a coupon book of self-conducted massages, or dinner for two at your valentine's favorite restaurant.
Step 5
Begin the evening with a Champagne toast to your love for each other.
Step 6
Go for a walk or drive along a favorite vista to take in the evening sights.
Step 7
Reserve dinner at a favorite restaurant or one you've both wanted to try. Or, take your valentine to the place where you first had dinner together. Re-enact that date for memory's sake.
Step 8
Plan an after-dinner adventure: a carriage ride through the park, ice skating, ballroom dancing, or sharing an after-dinner drink at a bar or nightclub with a view of the city lights.
Step 9
Tell your sweetie all the reasons why you love him or her. Give detailed examples and descriptions of these reasons where appropriate.
Step 10
Place rose petals in your valentine's bath or on his or her sheets.
Step 11
Kiss your valentine passionately throughout the evening. Linger on the kisses like you did when you and your lover were first falling head-over-heels in love.

what about a great Valentine's Day Surprise

what about a great Valentine's Day Surprise

Valentine's Day surprises can take many forms-from a weekend break for two to a
surprise gift of jewellery or even a marriage proposal. Most women love romantic surprises, and they're a perfect way to show her how much you care. But be warned-not every surprise is a pleasant one. Here are tips to ensure she'll love what you have planned.

Don't make her believe the worst. Some people think it's a good idea to lead the person they're surprising to believing the worst-before surprising them with the best. For example, you might make her think you've forgotten about Valentine's Day entirely before surprising her with an extravagant gift. But it's never a good idea to make your sweetheart feel miserable on purpose. It's not a pleasant feeling to be disappointed or angry or upset for days or weeks before finding out your suspicions were just a trick, and it's very likely to backfire on you.

Consider what she likes. This surprise should be all about her, not about you. If she isn't an outdoorsy person but you love to fly-fish, don't surprise her with a weekend getaway to a bed-and-breakfast where you can go fishing. If you don't enjoy spas but she loves them, book a spa getaway for both of you anyway-and make her think you're having a great time. Naturally, both of you would probably prefer it if you chose a surprise you'd both enjoy-but make sure that if you can't find common ground, you choose something she'll love.(http://valentine-day-blog.blogspot.com/)

Make sure she's got time off. There's nothing worse than planning a romantic weekend away-only to find out last-minute that she has to work all weekend. Particularly if your surprise involves several days away, make sure she already has the time free. It might be a good idea to enlist the help of one of her friends. Have the friend tell your sweetheart she wants to spend some quality time with her on the weekend you have planned-this will ensure she doesn't make other plans for those days.

If you're out for the evening, make sure the staff knows. If you've planned a party or a major surprise in a public place, make sure the staff knows it's supposed to be a surprise. The waitress might be able to help you by delivering your gift at a key point in the meal. The hostess will definitely be able to help you by letting your loved one think she's taking you to a romantic table for two, and not a banquet hall full of your closest friends and family. Unless you plan to just take out a small gift from your pocket at some point and give it to her, you might need the help of the staff.

Prepare well in advance. If you leave things until the last minute, she's sure to notice all the rushing around you do as you scramble to get your surprise in place. For best results, plan your surprise in advance. Make sure you space out large preparation tasks so that she won't notice anything out of the ordinary, and plan to do them when she's out of the house whenever possible. This is much easier when you have a large amount of lead time to work with.

Enlist a friend. A trusted friend can be an invaluable help to your planning efforts. Friends can distract your Valentine so she won't notice what you're doing; they can plan a weekend with her to make sure she keeps the date free; and they can store unusual items at their houses so she won't wonder why you have party streamers or a mysterious wrapped box under your bed. Choose a friend she sees a lot of normally, so she won't think it's unusual if that friend suddenly wants to spend time with her. (http://valentine-day-blog.blogspot.com/)

Bring the right clothes. Are you picking her up straight from work to go to dinner? Are you sweeping her off to a romantic weekend getaway? If so, don't let her go in her work clothes if she normally doesn't get dressed up for the office, and don't leave her without a change of clothes or her toothbrush on that romantic getaway. Part of the planning involves ensuring that she's adequately dressed for the occasion. Have a female friend of hers help you choose an outfit for her, and if you're taking her somewhere special, don't forget her makeup bag.

Valentine's Day is a great occasion for a romantic surprise. Whether you plan to surprise her with a lavish gift, a gourmet dinner, or a weekend trip, make sure you do it right. Follow these tips, and she's sure to love what you have planned.

St. Valentine's Story

Let me introduce myself. My name is Valentine. I lived in Rome during the third century. That was long, long ago! At that time, Rome was ruled by an emperor named Claudius. I didn't like Emperor Claudius, and I wasn't the only one! A lot of people shared my feelings.

Did I mention that I was a priest? One of my favorite activities was to marry couples. Even after Emperor Claudius passed his law, I kept on performing marriage ceremonies -- secretly, of course. It was really quite exciting. Imagine a small candlelit room with only the bride and groom and myself. We would whisper the words of the ceremony, listening all the while for the steps of soldiers.
One night, we did hear footsteps. It was scary! Thank goodness the couple I was marrying escaped in time. I was caught. (Not quite as light on my feet as I used to be, I guess.) I was thrown in jail and told that my punishment was death.

I tried to stay cheerful. And do you know what? Wonderful things happened. Many young people came to the jail to visit me. They threw flowers and notes up to my window. They wanted me to know that they, too, believed in love.

One of these young people was the daughter of the prison guard. Her father allowed her to visit me in the cell. Sometimes we would sit and talk for hours. She helped me to keep my spirits up. She agreed that I did the right thing by ignoring the Emperor and going ahead with the secret marriages. On the day I was to die, I left my friend a little note thanking her for her friendship and loyalty. I signed it, "Love from your Valentine."

I believe that note started the custom of exchanging love messages on Valentine's Day. It was written on the day I died, February 14, 269 A.D. Now, every year on this day, people remember. But most importantly, they think about love and friendship. And when they think of Emperor Claudius, they remember how he tried to stand in the way of love, and they laugh -- because they know that love can't be beaten!

Learn about the Chinese Valentine's day

Today's Double Seven Festival,on 7th of July, Chinese Valentine's Day. The tradition of celebrating this event origins from the love story of Cow Boy and Weaver Girl, who fall in love with each other and was forced to seperate by The Heavenly Queen. They were only allowed to meet each other once every year on July 7th in Chinese calender. People will look into the heaven and try to evestrop their converstion under grape vine. This year has two Chinese Valentine's days because it has two Julys this year according to Chinese calendar, which happens once every 38 years. The first falls on July 31th and while the second on August 30th.

Learn about the valentine's day history

Valentine's day Roses
Valentine's Day - the popular festival of love and romances traces its origin to ancient Roman festival and has not been created by card companies as some people believe it to be. There are various legends associated with the festival along with the belief that birds began to mate from this day. Popularity of the Valentine's Day festival stems from the combined effects of all these legends, beliefs and of course the wish to glorify the unparalleled feeling of love.
Historians trace the origin of Valentine's Day to ancient Roman Empire. It is said that in the Rome of ancient times people observed a holiday on February 14th to honor Juno - the Queen of Roman Gods and Goddesses. The Romans also regarded Juno as the Goddess of Women and Marriage. On the following day, February 15th began the fertility festival called 'Feast of Lupercalia'. The festival of Lupercalia was celebrated to honor the Gods Lupercus and Faunus - the Roman God of Agriculture besides the legendary founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus.
An interesting custom was followed in the Feast of Lupercalia to bring together young boys and girls who otherwise were strictly separated. On the eve of the festival names of young Roman girls were written on a slip of paper and placed into jars. Each young man drew out a girl's name from the jar and was paired with the girl for the duration of Lupercalia. Sometime pairing lasted for a year until next year's celebration. Quite often, the couple would fall in love with each other and later marry. The custom lasted for a long time until people felt that the custom was un-Christian and that mates should be chosen by sight, not luck.

Beginning of Birds Mating Season
During the Middle Ages, people in England and France held a belief that birds started to look for their mate from February 14. This popular notion further helped to link Valentine's Day - celebrated in the middle of the February, with love and romance. Over the period of time, St Valentine became the patron saint of lovers and they began to celebrate Valentine's Day as a day of romance by exchanging love notes and simple gifts such as flower.

Popularity of St Valentines Day
Valentine's Day festival gradually grew in popularity amongst the masses due to the combined effect of all the above said reasons. To mark the day lovers began to exchange love notes called ‘Valentines' with their sweethearts. In the beginning the trend was to send handmade cards but this was changed in the beginning of 19th century and mass-produced greeting cards caught the fancy of the people. In the course of time, Valentine's day came to be regarded as the festival that celebrates love and not just romantic love. Today, Valentine's Day cards are gifted to teachers, parents, friends, siblings and sweethearts. Popularity of Valentine's Day has spread in countries across the seven continents and is still increasing by the year.

Valentine's Day gift piactures gift idea

Valentines Day 2009 Gift idea for your valentine.
the task of selecting gift can become easy with some planning, some thinking and lots of love.
The ideal way to go about Valentine's Day gift selection is to begin early.
paint a portrait, prepare a memorable photo-album with pictures of you two or some pictures are good gifts. This will work wonders and will be the most treasured gift ever.

Think about his or her interest, what would he or she like.
some flowers can be good.

Valentine's Day roses pictures

Valentine's Day means something special for everyone
A pale pink Valentine Rose signifies the grace, gentleness, and gratitude. You can give them to your sweetheart and to a person whom you respect a lot.
Valentine's day Roses
Valentine's day Roses
Valentine's day pictures
Valentine's day Roses
Valentine's day Roses
Valentine's day Roses
Rose means a lot in Valentine's day.

The Valentine's day Countdown Google gadget

this is The 2009 Valentine's day Countdown Google gadget .
you can put it on your igoogle homepage.
and have fun.

Valentines Day Countdown.
This Google gadget helps you count the hours and minutes until Valentine's Day 2009.
the gadget is useful for you lucky people with big plans this February 14th. So you can actually watch the time ticking until the big day arrives.

Chinese Valentine's day story

The Double Seventh Festival, on the 7th day of the 7th lunar month, is a traditional festival full of romance. It often goes into August in the Gregorian calendar.
Valentine's Day in China, the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, falls on August 7 this year. That is, on Thursday evening, Niu Lang(牛郎) and Zhi Nu（织女） will meet on a bridge of magpies across the Milky Way. Chinese grannies will remind children that they would not be able to see any magpies on that evening because all the magpies have left to form a bridge in the heavens with their wings.
A love story for this day is about the 7th daughter of Emperor of Heaven (Zhi Nu) and an orphaned cowherd (Niu Lang). The Emperor separated them. The 7th daughter was forced to move to the star Vega and the cowherd moved to the star Altair. They are allowed to meet only once a year on the day of 7th day of 7th lunar month.
The story began from the good-looking poor orphaned boy living with his elder brother and sister-in-law. After his parents past away, his brother inherited the house and the land. The boy owned an old ox. He needed to work on the farm's field with the ox everyday. So he was called a cowherd. His daily life was just like in a Cinderella story.
The 7th daughter of Emperor is good at handcrafting, especially weaving clothing. So she was called a Weaving Maid. The Emperor likes her skill to weave clouds and rainbows to beautify the world.
The ox was actually an immortal from the Heaven. He made mistakes in the Heaven and was punished as an ox in the Earth. One day, the ox suddenly said to the cowherd, "You are a nice person. If you want to get married, go to the brook and your wish will be come true."
The cowherd went to the brook and saw all 7 pretty daughters of Emperor came down from Heaven and took a bath in there. Fascinated by the youngest and also the most beautiful one, he took away her fairy clothes secretly. The other six fairies went away after bath. The youngest couldn't fly back without her fairy clothes. Then the cowherd appeared and told her that he would not return her clothes unless she promised to be his wife. After a little hesitation and with a mixture of shyness and eagerness, she agreed to the request from this handsome man. So they married and had two children two years later.
One day, the old ox was dying and told the cowherd that he should keep his hide for emergency purpose.
The Emperor found the sky's not that beautiful as before without the 7th daughter weaving clouds and rainbows. He wanted his daughter's grandmother to find the missing daughter and to bring her back. . While the 7th princess was flying to the Heaven with her grandmother, the cowboy wore the ox hide, took his children in two bamboo baskets with his wife's old fairy clothes and chased after his wife in the sky.
The grandmother made a milky way in the sky with her hairpin, which kept them separated. The 7th princess was moved to the star Vega (The swooping - Eagle) in the Lyra (Harp) constellation. And the cowherd with his two children stayed in the star Altair (Flying one) in the Aquila (Eagle) constellation. The star of Vega is also known as the Weaving Maid Star and the star of Altair is as the Cowherd Star in China.
Magpies were moved by their true love and many of them gathered and formed a bridge for the couple to meet in the evening of the 7th day of the 7th lunar month, which is the day the Emperor allowed them to meet once a year.
They said that it's hard to find a magpie on Chinese Valentine's Day in China, because all magpies fly to make the bridge for the Weaving Maid and Cowherd. The one thing to prove that is the feathers on the head of the magpies are much lesser after the Chinese Valentine's Day. If the night Chinese Valentine's Day rains, the rains are the tears of the Weaving Maid and Cowherd.
That the seventh evening of the seventh moon sits looks at Altair Vega, is that popular convention is handed down, such on every year is heavens in night, when girl weaver and cowherd in an old legend meet at Magpie Bridge. The girl weaver is a clever, clever and deft beautiful fairy maiden, the mortal world woman begs for wisdom and the clever skill in the evening to her just in this day, also stop asking without end bestow the Seventh in July on a happy marriage, reason why to her that the festival of the 7th day of the seventh lunar month festival is also called.
Girls evening being full of romantic breath in this, has swayed season melons and fruits, Chao Tian to bright the sky bright moon, hold a memorial ceremony for bend down, the goddess begging for heavens can give to their bright soul and daedalan both hands, makes self knitting needlework technical skill adept, The happy fate which bring lovers together begging for love marriage more is matched for as it happens.
The marriage going over is a great event in one's life , reason why deciding a lifetime happiness or not as for the female , society is uncounted have feeling men and women may in this evening, late quiet night person moment , the happy fate which bring lovers together praying for self to the starlit sky are happy.