I want to do Valentine's Day with my kid. It's not because I'm a single mum

"Mum still gives me a card, and I'm 36."

If you’ve been to the shops lately you’ll have noticed that love is well and truly in the air. 

It seems as if Valentine's Day displays have been bombarding us since Boxing Day, stocked right between the hot cross buns and back to school items. 

But for some parents, the love bomb is a stark reminder of the lack of romance in their lives; so they have a different way to celebrate the day.

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"We love cutesy things"

A single mum took to Reddit to explain how she plans on marking the holiday with her six-year-old daughter. 

“I’d love to cook us up a lovely pink heart cake and maybe a little dinner,” she explained. 

“We love cutesy things and there’s lots of them in the shops around this time of year. I might buy her flowers too.”

Her plans sound adorable, but it’s led to self doubt. 

“Is it weird?” she asks. 

“I know Valentine’s Day is supposed to be for your significant other, but not celebrating seems a little boring.” 

The comment section was flooded with other parents intending to do the same.

“I’m teaching my kids that Valentine’s Day is for showing people that you care about them,” shared one parent. 

“Valentine’s Day is about love. It doesn’t have to be sexualised,” wrote another.

“My daughter is three and I can't wait to enjoy little treats and trinkets with her on the 14th,” a third revealed. 

Image: iStock

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"Memory-making tradition"

Other parents praised the single mum’s approach. 

“I think having her to believe that only romantic partners can participate in such acts of kindness is weird,” said one person. 

“Sounds like a lovely new memory-making tradition,” another encouraged.  

A third added her own mother still buys her a card each year, even though she's 36-years-old. 

As for the Kidspot team the approach to the day dedicated to love is a bit of a mixed bag.

“I would give Winston some chocolates whenever he'd make something at kindy/school,” Nama explained. 

“But in the later years, when they stopped doing Valentine's Day craft to bring home, I'd leave it. By then it felt like he was too old to get a romantic gift from his mum.”  

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For Emily, it’s not something she’d personally do.

“Look I wouldn't say it's weird, but it's not something I would do with my girls necessarily. God knows they get enough of my attention,” she said. 

Liz agreed that it’s just not worth the stress. 

“I think its an adult thing. I don’t see the need to get the kids involved. Most adults don’t fuss over the day, so why should it be different for kids?” Liz agreed.

Originally published as I want to do Valentine's Day with my kid. It's not because I'm a single mum