Man, if you guys all just step back and LISTEN to yourselves you'll see a vast difference in mindset.
I spent my first marriage with an idiot who picked a fight our first Valentines and gee whiz, he never had to celebrate Valentines again -- he just orchestrated a fight. Problem solved!!
Ain't doing THAT no more. Ain't putting up with you being a snot to me either! No way... not once, not ever. So frankly, I made darned sure David knew BEFORE Valentine's Day I expected no fight, no discord, and if you don't want to spend money FINE -- just frigging REMEMBER ME!!!
First year we were so darned broke -- but we ******TALKED****** about it. What we get means nothing without fun. FUN. A stupid toy is our favorite gift for each other. I mean a gorilla that sings "Wild Thing". So I bought him a stupid gorilla the next year that had a pillow that said "You're Sweet". Why? Because it was funnier than heck. THAT is why.
I've already bought him his Valentine. It's a stupid $15 mechanical toy from Walgreens that sings "Only Youuuuu-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO" -- it's completely stupid, silly and He'll crack up, play it to plague the dogs with and we'll laugh our butts off."
the year he came dragging the big gorilla that plays Wild Thing down the aisle at the grocery store .... six women looked at me like they'd love to trade places with me. Me? Tears ran down my face.
he get stupid stuff because *I* get stupid stuff.
First year we were too broke for cards. So I took magazines, newspapers, and ads from the newspaper. Got some plain paper and a glue stick and scissors. Cut out stupid headlines like "crystal" "spring" "natural" and any overtly witty sayings I can find.
Spread out all the crap and start gluing stuff on paper. Just run amok.
It's "crystal" clear ... I can just "spring" into action and it's "natural" for me to say I LOVE YOU.
You can cut out the stupidest stuff on the planet -- be a total wise aleck -- just paste it on and fill in the words. Be 'dirty' be clean be funny be serious ... but spend an hour on it and then punch a couple of holes in the sides of the papers and tie them with curling ribbon.
I've never known a man yet who didn't get a complete charge out of it. Why? Because YOU THOUGHT OF THEM.
Make his favorite cookies. What candy bar does he like ... get one and glue or tie it to the top of the card.
One time back when I was in college at a MAJORLY strict "Christian" college -- shoot, we couldn't even TALK to a boy after 8 p.m. Kids used to send 'messages' to each other with M&Ms -- red M&Ms were hugs, green ones were kisses.
I had a friend (guy) who was all depressed because he had so many demerits he was near getting kicked out. It as a completely platonic relationship and he was totally bummed. I took a piece of poster board and covered it with aluminum foil. I took sugar wafers and frosting and made them 'stand up' with frosting for "mortar" -- then I took a piece of cardboard and bent it in half for a 'roof' and frosted it and covered it with GREEN M&Ms and sent it to him. (read above for the meaning of GREEN M&Ms - this in a college where you couldn't 'touch' a fella - it wasn't allowed).
He laughed his foolish behind off -- and it encouraged him enough that he got himself back on track and decided that if I thot he was worth THAT much time, then just maybe he oughta spend some time on himself and do his homework.
He's a pastor now somewhere in Tennessee.
TIME FOLKS. It can be the most stupid thing on the planet -- and that's what will make them happy.
Give him a booklet of homemade "tickets" -- "I'll wash your car some Saturday when you are tired", "good for a free backrub with no expectations behind it", "good for coffee IN BED while I do the laundry".
And honestly -- if you treat a guy like that and he still treats you like crap and can't 'think' of you or 'remember' you ... then ditch him and find someone who will.
10 years was too darned long to be married to an idiot who picked a fight every single February 12th so he didn't have to do anything on February 14th. It was MY fault that I stuck around for the 2d thru 9th!!! (and by the 10th I WAS BLISSFULLY RID OF HIM!!)