Throwing a Teen Valentine's Day Party

Your teenager wants to throw a Valentine's Day party, are you up for the challenge? Here are a few games, crafts, ideas and tips to make it fun and safe.

• Make sure you make all rules clear from the very beginning
• Establish a list of who is invited and how many are allowed to come. Allow very few exceptions to these list should things change a couple of days before the party. Allow no excepts the day of the party.
• Do not hold an 'open house'. If your teen's friends are coming for the party, they should stay until the end of the party. And 'party crashers' normally start trouble.
• Dimming the lights is ok to do, but shutting them off is a no-no. Try using white Christmas lights strung around the room, with more lighting at the food table.
• No drinking or drugs should be permitted.
• Say it loud and clear, you will call the parents, (or the police should things get out of hand), to pick them up should they show up drunk, or should they bring alcohol to the party.
• Establish that you more than welcome other parents calling you about the party and they can come too. This is a great way to meet the parents of your teenager's peers, and get some help at the party.
• Don't hover, but do make frequent trips to the food table to refresh the chip bowl.

Valentine's Day Weddings

A Romantic Theme Wedding

Getting married on Valentine's Day? You must be a true romantic. Have your Valentine's Day Wedding reflect all the romance of your love story with special details. Even if you're not getting married on Valentine's Day, consider incorporating some of these touches for a truly inspiring day.

Attire: On Valentine's Day, an old-fashioned look is always romantic. You'll want to wear a classic style dress and tuxedo. Look to old movies, including Funny Face and legendary weddings including Grace Kelly's and Jackie Kennedy's. A second option is to go for a white dress with red accents. Wear your hair pulled back with red roses pinned into your chignon.

Wrap a vibrant red shawl around your arms, and carry an overflowing bouquet of more red roses. Have your bridesmaids wear the same dress in varying shades of pink and red, and have groomsmen wear red ties with different red and pink boutonnières.

Setting: Make sure you book your location early, as Valentine's Day is a very popular day to tie the knot. Wed someplace that will allow you to light lots of candles to really set the mood for a late evening ceremony. Alternatively, look for a place warm enough in February to be in a secluded garden or a Victorian greenhouse filled with lush flowers. Decorate as you would for a romantic dinner- soft lighting, gauzy fabrics, flowers, candles, and plenty of atmosphere.

Ceremony: Ask married couples to stand during your wedding and reaffirm their love for each other.

Music: A string quartet or Italian opera singer will help set the mood. If you want to have a DJ, create a song list full of love songs.

Flowers: Flowers are by definition romantic, so use almost any flowers in abundance. While roses are the classic, roses in February are extremely expensive. So look to other pink and red flowers, including tulips, hydrangea, and freesia.

Menu: Why not fan the sparks between your guests by including some aphrodisiacs in the menu, including an oyster bar, asparagus, almonds, chicken with mole sauce (a Mexican chocolate sauce), and chocolate covered strawberries and bananas.

Invitations: Set the tone with your invitations by writing something like "Come celebrate love and romance on Valentine's Day at the wedding of Jessica Lynn Baker and George Nicolas Pilitsis"

Favors: Give your guests tiny heart-shaped boxes of candy with a note attached saying "Thank you for being our Valentines. Love, Jessica and George."

Special Touches: Instead of table numbers, name your tables after famous romantic couples. These can be real: Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn, fictional: Fred and Wilma Flintstone, contemporary: David and Courtney Cox Arquette, or ancient: Antony and Cleopatra. Other famous couples: Grace Kelly and Prince Ranier, Katherine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy, Robert and Elizabeth Browning, Romeo and Juliet, Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward, Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick.