For many couples, celebrating the romantic holiday that is Valentine’s Day is a given.

Buying dozens of roses, candies of all sorts packed into heart-shaped boxes, candle lit dinners at over-rated restaurants as well as all those night-in rendezvous are among the list of Valentine’s Day customs.

But when is the appropriate time to make such a big deal out of the holiday? If you celebrate it too early in the relationship, you may scare off the other half. While if you don’t celebrate it after a certain length of time, you may piss your loved one off.

“I think it varies between couples,” Kristin Ramm, a junior child development major, said. “Some couples can pull off the one or two months, while some feel it means more when you’ve been together for a longer period of time. It’s nice to have a day to emphasize your love for one another, but there shouldn’t be so much pressure to buy something. Being together is a gift all in itself.”

Ramm has been with her boyfriend Colin Boyd, a senior accountancy major, for one year and four months. They celebrated their first Valentine’s Day after being together for four months. The two went out to dinner for the evening, and returned home to watch movies for the rest of the night. As for this year, the agenda has yet to be set.

“Nothing is planned for this year yet,” Ramm said, “except for us being together.”

Three-year relationship veterans, Jennifer Albert and Chris Ford, feel that while they love each other very much, Valentine’s Day is merely a cheap way for couples to profess their love for one another, something they should being doing 365 days a year.

“Yes, I think some couples go overboard for Valentine’s Day,” Ford, a junior engineering major, said. “I think Valentine’s Day is a woman’s holiday. I do love Jen all year long, but I think Valentine’s Day is stupid.”

Albert, a junior elementary education major, agreed.

“I think some couples go overboard,” Albert said. “Just as long as I’m with Chris that day, I’d be happy. I love Chris all year long, not just one day out of the year. Valentine’s Day is when you put everything aside and be with the one you love.”

Boyd feels that nowadays it’s tougher to celebrate the holiday.

“I think Valentine’s Day had a nicer meaning when I was younger,” Boyd said. “It was a break from school, and I got a lot of candy. Now, there is a lot more pressure to it.”

When asked to describe what their ideal Valentine’s Day would be, both boyfriends had never thought about it, while the girlfriends had detailed plans of what would get them warm and tingly.

“My ideal Valentine’s Day was last year,” Albert said. “We went to Mill Rose Restaurant in Barrington and stayed at the Embassy Suites in Chicago.”

Ramm said her ideal day could be anything, as long as she’s with Boyd.

“I would love to go out to a nice dinner and afterward, one of those horse and buggy rides at night,” Ramm said.