Ahhhhh the weekend. The thing we count down from Sunday night for, the thing that’s usually stress free and fun, the thing that lets you just live your life without having to go to work at school. But I’m sure you’ve had it happen from time to time. You clock out of work on Friday or you walk out of classes and come to the harsh realization that you don’t have any plans for the weekend. You were so caught up in whatever the work week threw at you that you forgot to plan out the thing you’ve been looking forward to for the past week! Trust me I know this feeling all too well and to be quite frank this is the worst weekend that could happen to you. I mean we got Valentine’s day today, then of course the classic Saturday Sunday duo and then yup it’s a long weekend so you got Family day Monday too, it’s a big weekend. Yikes, don’t have anything planned? Well, don’t dress out yet, you’re in luck cause I’ve got your weekend planned out from today all the way to Monday. And as a weekend expert myself I think I’ve crafted the perfect way to long weekend. The first tip is to not burn yourself out too quickly. And what I really mean is not party too hard tonight so you’re hungover in bed and ruin the whole weekend (we save that for Sunday). But let’s keep it simple and go through this day to day.

So obviously today is Valentine’s day, I mean it’s pretty obvious my social media feeds have been flooded with couple posts and there’s been Valentine’s themed things all over the grocery store. But there’s 3 main ways I think you can celebrate valentines. 

1. Have a friends night – if you and your friends are all single, celebrate that together. Maybe you guys want to head out for happy hour or stay at home and have a movie marathon, either works in my opinion.
2. In a relationship? Go out for dinner. I mean it is Valentine’s so take out your partner for a yummy dinner and celebrate the day.
3. Hate Valentine’s? Well then you’re in the same boat as me, and I’m in a relationship! My plans for the night are staying in with my boyfriend and making some nice steaks. To me, Valentine’s is just a hallmark money grab holiday. 

At the end of the day, whether you’re celebrating Valentine’s or not, my advice is to take Friday easy. After all, it’s a marathon, not a sprint. 

For me, the perfect long weekend Saturday is all about getting outside, taking it easy, re-setting, happy hour and all of that good stuff. But the only downfall this weekend is the forecast is showing rain for tomorrow. Usually I’d say Saturday’s are the perfect day for a hike in the North Shore mountains, or maybe a walk on the seawall, and then head to a patio for a Saturday day happy hour drinks, but with the looks of this weather, maybe you just want to skip right to the happy hour part. But I do have some good indoor Saturday activity ideas so you don’t just let the day go to waste. 

1. The Invictus Games – an international adaptive sporting event for wounded, injured, and sick service personnel and veterans, founded by Prince Harry in 2014. And the cool thing is, the games are in Vancouver this year. Saturday you can catch a sitting Volleyball game in the heart of downtown Vancouver! 
2. I’m all about taking in the winter sports while you still can before spring comes and I think the perfect way to do that is going ice skating. Robson Ice Skating rink is still open and guess what? It’s covered. So no need to rain check this idea! And if you want to continue the skating team, head to your favourite sports bar after the rink and tune into the Four Nations to see our Canadian boys face off to our friends down south. Puck drop is at 8pm and if you’re a Canucks fan this could be your opportunity to finally cheer for Connor McDavid instead of cheering against him (as an Oilers fan I’m not sure how to feel about this). 

Then it brings us to Sunday. Me and Sunday have a love hate relationship, but on a long weekend, Sunday is for sure in my good books. So how do you handle a Sunday that’s technically like a Saturday, i’ll tell you. Hopefully you followed my advice with the whole. It’s not a marathon, it’s a spring thing cause Sunday is the day where we are close to the finish line and we need to drive it home fast, so this is how it’s gonna look.

1. Brunch. Brunch it up. Bottomless mimosas, caesars, eggs, bacon, the whole 9 yards. Do brunch right. Fill up, get boozy, and get the day started off right. 
2. I don’t know about you, but a couple mid morning mimosas make me want to nap, and that’s perfectly fine, it was a long week you deserve it, but just know you gotta be up and going at 5.
3. So then 5 rolls around, get your friends over, order a pizza, and get the party started. This is the pre for my favourite long weekend Sunday activity which is….. Drumroll please…. The Roxy!! I Mean how could it not be? The Roxy + Country music = Country Sundays, and let me tell you, it’s an absolute blast. And the vibes are great. Everybody has the day off since it’s a stat so it’s straight good vibes and tequila shots, what could be better than that?

Uh oh…. Monday rolls around. You might have a headache, you’re probably tired but the weekend doesn’t stop here. I think the best cure for a hangover is fresh air (and a ceaser) so maybe you walk to breakfast? I mean the possibilities are endless. Prefer something cozy? A movie marathon, board games, or baking together are great options. But here’s how my Sunday is going to look. I’m going to get up, force myself on a walk, grab a coffee and a bite to eat, walk home, clean my room, and then just movie it up. I mean ya, it’s family day, maybe I’ll see if my family wants to get in on my Harry Potter binge watching but it was literally a long weekend, your tired, you got a big week ahead, just lean into the Sunday vibes on a Monday and get yourself ready for the week.

I hope I was able to give you some ideas on how to get your long weekend to be the most perfect weekend you could ask for. You worked hard so now it’s time to reward yourself with a great weekend, leave your problems still Tuesday! So whether you’re spending your weekend with your partner, your family, your friends, or maybe doing it solo, cheers to a great one, you earned it.