As Valentine's Day approaches this week, you might also be hearing or participating in the secondary holiday known as "Galentine's Day." "Galentine's Day" is an unofficially official holiday made popular from the TV Show "Parks and Recreation," to be celebrated on February 13th for a day where women celebrate women. It is a fun way for girls to take time to just have a fun and relaxing night celebrating each other and the friendship that you all share.
While I love this holiday and enjoy celebrating it each and every year with my friends, I truly believe that this holiday should be something that happens more often. I believe everyone should take time to have a fun night with their friends just purely focusing on friendship, an excuse to spend time together for a reason other than a birthday, holiday, studying, etc. The beauty of the holiday and having a girls night out or even a girls night in is that there are absolutely no rules on how it should be celebrated. You can do ANYTHING you want and you can even change it up every time.
The de-structuring of this so-called "holiday" compared to others can often be the reason why many find difficult to plan or even fail at successfully coming up with a plan that everyone agrees on. Personally, as someone who loves coming up with creative plans for hangouts with my friends, I definitely can relate with the struggle of everyone's interests, schedules, and cost of materials or supplies. While this may cause others to fail, it can cause others to thrive. Friend groups often have different TV shows, food, movies, activities, etc., that they have in common which are perfect starting points for coming up with new and creative ideas!
Also, it is always a good idea to go with every girl's holy grail place for cute ideas, Pinterest. Pinterest has the best outing ideas, fun things to do on a night in, creative and easy recipes, fun outfit ideas, and so much more. Pinterest is my go-to place anytime and every time that I feel that little DIY spirit in me coming alive. But be wary, that not all projects are as easy to replicate as they may seem so proceed with caution.
For me, having a girls night in or a girls night out has been so pivotal in my friendships. We all lead very busy lives with tight schedules, and while we all understand when we have prior commitments, homework, studying, etc., we have found that we can always find a night or a team where we are all free and can just kick back and relax together. It allows me to spend time with some of the people that I love the most in a non-stressful environment, just be myself, and be able to love and cherish them for who they are.
Take the time this Valentines Day season, this week, this month, this year, to appreciate your friends and celebrate all of you for the beauty of true friendship that you share.