Valentine’s Day doesn’t mean what it used to when I was younger, but as a romance author, I can hardly ignore it.

I’ve been happily researching my family roots at Ancestry.com, and was reminded that my parents were married on February 15, one day after Valentine’s Day. My father wasn’t of a romantic bent, and rarely remembered Valentine’s Day. He was much better about their anniversary. I remember one Feb. 15 when he came home from work with a gift for my mom – a new broom! The memory still makes me chuckle. He never heard the end of that one.

Truth was, she needed a new broom, but his timing could not have been worse.

My late husband was better about remembering V Day, even though he could not in any way be described as a romantic. Our first V Day, he gave me a cute coffee mug with hearts on it. After we got married, I usually woke up on Valentine’s Day to find a box of See’s candy and a card in my favorite chair. After a while, I even had him trained to only buy dark chocolate. This year I will be buying my own, but that’s okay, too.

It’s pouring rain here, so I’ll be spending the day with my new little love, Callie, who likes to snuggle in the colder weather.

Wishing all of you a Happy Valentine’s Day.

Linda