Valentine’s Day is one of those over-commercialized holidays where everyone feels obligated to buy a card, flowers & some heart-shaped chocolate to show their loved ones they care. While it definitely feels great to be appreciated, we think Valentine’s Day should serve more as a reminder to tell the people you love that you love them. And the best part? You don’t need to spend any money in order to do that. Oh & if you’re single? Treat yourself & do the same.

Try doing something different this Valentine’s Day! Sit with your significant other & comb through new recipes that you would like to make together, then go grocery shopping for the ingredients as a team. We promise, it will be fun! Come Valentine’s Day, you can both hop into your comfies (or lingerie if you’re feeling sexy!), light a candle, pour a couple glasses of pricier wine than you’d normally buy & get cooking.

Enjoy your meal at the dining table sans phones & really listen to each other. Talk about your days, your hopes, your dreams & what you’re looking forward to over the next year together. Then, head to the couch & watch a love story. There’s nothing like a good cry or laugh to bring you two even closer together. We suggest the movies below depending on what you’re feeling that night!

our favorite Tear Jerkers

The Notebook
This is the perfect movie to watch with someone you want to grow old with. Allie (Rachel McAdams) & Noah (Ryan Gosling) are the cutest pair & we wish we could sit on a porch sipping sweet tea with them. The message of the movie will remind you to tell your partner that you love them as much as you can. We cry every time.

Titanic
There’s nothing like losing a loved one thanks to a sinking ship that will really get your tear ducts acting up. This short-lived love story (oops, spoiler alert!) is a classic for a reason. Kate Winslet (Rose) and Leonardo DiCaprio (Jack) have amazing chemistry throughout the movie & we are not surprised that they both went on to become huge stars. Prepare yourself – the music interludes are enough to make tears well up in our eyes & don’t even get us started on those fearless musicians.

Life Itself
This movie starring Oscar Isaac & Olivia Wilde is a series of heart-wrenching stories that all seem to intertwine in the end. It’s hard to explain without giving anything away, but just know that I have not cried as hard as I did watching this in awhile or said ‘I love you’ to my boyfriend more than I ever have in a single day. It is a story that makes you want to cherish the moments you have together & truly make the most of each day.

A Walk To Remember
Are you and your significant other an unlikely pair? Well so are Shane West & Mandy Moore in this high school love story. This movie teaches you to love selflessly & be open to possibilities, no matter how unlikely they seem.

P.S. I Love You
If you’re a softy like us, you’ll be crying five minutes in. The story revolves around Hilary Swank following a trail of letters left by her now deceased husband, Gerard Butler. Have a thing for Scottish accents? Watch it for that alone – oh, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan as a handsome chap & not a stone-cold killer (like his character Negan in The Walking Dead).

our favorite Rom-Coms

The Wedding Singer
This is one of those movies that we can watch time & time again. It’s all about a heartbroken wedding singer, Adam Sandler, who falls in love with soon-to-be married Drew Barrymore.

Pretty Woman
Richard Gere plays a rich guy on a business trip in Beverly Hills & Julia Roberts is a down on her luck escort that’s in for the week of her life. We also love the messages throughout the film about acceptance, not judging a book by its cover, and the fact that everyone has their own story. If you love the chemistry of these two, you’ll also love Runaway Bride – one of our all-time favorites!

How To Lose a Guy in 10 Days
Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson star in this funny love story based in NYC. Not to give anything away, but both of them place bets with their friends, leading them to make life difficult on each other & weary of their feelings. If girls at your high school wore a yellow, backless dress at prom, this movie is why.

Notting Hill
Hugh Grant falls in love with famous actress, Julia Roberts, in this romantic comedy complete with British humor. It will make you want to visit a small bookstore in the Notting Hill neighborhood of London next time you visit. Don’t worry, you won’t be the only one there for the photo op.

Hitch
Will Smith plays a matchmaker in New York City who falls in love with his biggest skeptic. The love stories shared are all super cute! Our favorite story is when confidence-lacking Kevin James woos his gorgeous client by failing at all of Hitch’s best tricks.

our favorite Comedies & Musicals (That Have to Do With Love)

Mamma Mia!
We saw Mamma Mia! the musical before seeing the movie. It’s a fun movie to watch & the views of Greece are gorgeous! It’s also fun seeing Meryl Streep sing, dance & have the time of her life (at least by the looks of it). We still can’t believe how many hits ABBA have…the musical features only ABBA songs!

Bridesmaids
Eight years later & it still hasn’t gotten old! Featuring an all-star cast of bridesmaids to Maya Rudolph’s character, Kristin Wiig, Ellie Kemper, Rose Byrne, Wendi McLendon-Covey & Melissa McCarthy have a hilarious dynamic throughout the whole movie. It’s a tale of friendship, love & self confidence. Being a passenger on a plane will never be the same again…you’ll see.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Jason Segal is heartbroken after his break up with Kristen Bell, so he goes to Hawaii to relax – only to wind up having to watch his ex hang out with her new boyfriend Russell Brand for a week. With appearances by Jonah Hill & Paul Rudd, we’d be surprised if you didn’t laugh at least a few times during this movie.

I Love You, Man
This comedy is all about the budding bromance between Paul Rudd and Jason Segal & everything that goes along with it. It all begins when Paul Rudd’s character goes out in the search of friends that he can have alongside him at his wedding to bride, Rashida Jones.

Wedding Crashers
Vince Vaughn & Owen Wilson play two wedding crashers that live for wedding season. Usually unattached, things start to change for them when they fall in love with the bridesmaids at a high-profile wedding in a bougie east coast town.

What’s on your list? We’re always down to watch a good love story, even if it’s not Valentine’s Day.