Valentine's Day can be a great time to enjoy, appreciate and celebrate your partner and relationship. Or, it can be a stressful time of trying to anticipate what your partner is looking for and eagerly trying not to disappoint. Expectations can definitely be the thing that kills the romance and excitement that can come from a great Valentine's Day celebration. So, how to you keep the heartfelt fun of the day without any of the stress? These 5 tips should help you and your partner make the most of February 14th.

1. Discuss with your partner what their perfect Valentine's Day would look like.
Statistics show us that, on average, women do have a little more invested in this day than men do. Surveys show that 25% of men and 19% of women feel that the whole day centers around women and their wants and needs. But, that doesn't mean that every woman is expecting jewelry and flowers while every man would be content to skip the day all together and just spend the evening watching television with some takeout.

The only way you're going to know what your partner wants out of your Valentine's Day together is by asking them. Try to do this at least a few weeks in advance so that you have some time to plan if you do agree to do something special. And make sure this is a discussion rather than one half of the couple dictating how you will celebrate. If you differ in your opinions, try to come to a compromise.

2. Understand why this holiday is or isn't important to your partner.
37% of women and 5% of men believe that Valentine's Day is not important to their partner. If you find that one of you is totally into Valentine's Day while the other is not, one way to resolve this issue is by really taking the time to talk about why you feel that it should or shouldn't be celebrated. Some people feel that the day is too commercial, expensive, crowded and disingenuous but still would like to have a special day out with their mate to celebrate their relationship. If this is the case with your partner, for example, you could plan to have a day out together the week before or after February 14th.

3. Talk about the budget.
When it comes to planning events together or buying gifts, there is going to be money involved and many couples get stressed out trying to match how much their partner spent on them. One quick solution to this is to just openly discuss how much you think is reasonable to spend on festivities or gestures of love during this day. Remember that there are ways to make this day special whether you set the budget at five dollars or five thousand.

4. Valentine's Day is an opportunity to treat each other well.
Valentine's Day doesn't have to involve dinners in fancy restaurants, presents and red lingerie. What it should include, whether you're "celebrating" or not, is some thought to how you can appreciate and show your love to your partner. 29% of men and 11% of women believe that it's important to have sex on Valentine's Day. Adding a little something special to your nighttime activities could be enough to reinvigorate your love and passion for each other. Or, you could just go out of your way to pay your partner some extra compliments and thank them throughout the day.

5. Remember that a relationship is much more than just the events of one day.
Even if you talk it through beforehand and set guidelines for what you want, there is still the chance that your partner won't deliver exactly what you're looking for when it comes to Valentine's Day. If this is the case for you, keep perspective that you're in your relationship for more than just having someone to celebrate this one day with (hopefully). Continue to spread love and happiness throughout all of the days of your relationship and you are sure to come out feeling appreciated and secure with your partner.

Have a great Valentine

Tokill