Chocolates and flowers and love, oh my! It’s that time of year again when Cupid has struck everything in sight red and pink, constantly reminding you of how you won’t be celebrating Valentine’s Day with your boyfriend since you don’t live in the same city. Before you start canceling restaurant reservations for couples planning to go out to eat for Valentine’s Day or throw an anti-Valentine’s Day party like Jessica Biel did in “Valentine’s Day,” take a deep breath and smile. You didn’t really think we at Her Campus Texas were really going to let you pull an Emma Stone and eat a tub of ice cream while listening to Adele’s “Someone Like You” like Emma did when she hosted SNL, did you? We know. It’s hard to celebrate Valentine’s Day long distance, especially since February 14 happens to fall on Tuesday this year, and it’s unlikely that you could pull off a surprise visit. What’s the next best thing? A care package filled with laughs, lavish goodies, and love, of course! Sending and receiving many care packages myself (my boyfriend goes to the University of Portland!), I’ve selected some fabulous ideas, so feel free to mix, match, and get creative!
Food Care Package
The way to a boy’s heart is through his stomach, right? So why not indulge his hungry heart by sending him something delicious? Tiff’s Treats are tasty, and homemade goodies even better, but baked goods are iffy unless you overnight them. Luckily, you can create a personalized sweet treat without going near the oven! Gone are the days of cliché candy hearts. M&M allows you to customize M&M’s colors and inscriptions so you can create your own specialized M&Ms for your boy.
If he doesn’t have a sweet tooth, you can still surprise him by having his favorite restaurant deliver to him! Think “The Princess Diaries” when Anne Hathaway sends the cute guy in the band a pizza with “SORRY” written in M&M’s. Lauren Murphey, a sophomore whose boyfriend lives in Houston, said, “He’ll love the unexpected food, your thoughtfulness, and that you know him so well!”
Adventurous Care Package
If your guy likes to solve puzzles and seeks adventure, a Valentine’s Day scavenger hunt is perfect! While you could conspire with his buddies to create a real life one, you can create a virtual scavenger hunt online. It doesn’t have to be National Treasure scale! First, tweet him a clue that leads him to Facebook, which leads him to Tumblr, which leads him to a picture of you two on Flickr, which leads him to the YouTube video of ‘Your Song.’ We rely on technology to keep LDRs going strong, so why not use it in your present!?
Practical Care Package
f you want to give your boyfriend something that he can use, Whittaker Odom, a junior, suggests sending him coupons to use when you are together! Like ‘one movie night, his choice,’ ‘you choose the restaurant for date night tonight,’ or even ‘one free back rub!’ Whittaker did this for her boyfriend, who lives in Kansas, and said, “He loved it! It creates even more excitement for when we finally see each other!” And remember all those times he said he needed new razors and sighed as he broke his water bottle? You can definitely get him those! Just because Valentine’s Day is a romantic holiday doesn’t mean you can’t get him stuff he’ll actually use! He’ll be appreciative that you remembered and will think of you every time he uses that item.
Romantic Care Package
Even though guys are always being criticized for not being romantic, Valentine’s is the one day they can let their sappy emotions show without having their bro-card taken away. So why not send him something as adorable and cute as he is? It’s the perfect chance to reminisce about your relationship! You can create a lyric scrapbook by bringing together mementos from your relationship to represent song lyrics. For my boyfriend, I chose “Better Together” by Jack Johnson. For the line, “There’s no combination of words I could put on the back of a postcard,” I found an old postcard that I was going to send him and wrote the lyric on it!
If he digs the romantic style, he’s probably a snuggler, and there is a perfect gift just for him! There are plenty of websites that offer pillows for LDRers– another way to be connected throughout the night besides being in their dreams. Check out PillowTalk, Always Fits, or Bold Loft! Make sure to spritz the pillow with your perfume!
No matter what care package you decide to send your boyfriend, Valentine’s Day can still be hard. So why not make a Skype date with your boyfriend? Or watch a movie together on the phone, so at the very least you can be connected and share some special moments. And don’t forget to ask the most important question– ‘Be mine, Valentine?’