Be my Valentine

Share the love: Five ways to celebrate Valentine's early

Yoga with a partner is a more fun way to pass the time.
Nothing says love like Crave cupcakes.
Photo by Julie Soefer
Dolce Vita seems to be everyone’s favorite pizza spot.
Photo by Ruthie Johnson Miller

Oh Valentine’s Day, the day of love, greeting cards, and overpriced chocolate-covered strawberries. Since it’s on a Monday this year, you have more time to share the love this weekend.

If you are looking for a gift or activity to do with your sweetheart, here are some things we’re excited about. And if you forgot about the holiday or choose to forget about it, you can sulk in a box of cupcakes instead of store-bought bon bons. We won't tell.

Yoga One’s Partner Yoga

Yoga by yourself is a workout and a checkmark on your to-do list. Yoga with a partner is a more fun way to pass the time. You come with a partner (recommended rather than going stag) and the instructors lead you through poses that rely on your partner’s hands, feet, and body weight. No date this weekend? Bring a friend, it would be just as fun and probably less awkward. It’s a great way to get your sweat on and have a unique daytime date. Saturday, 2-4 p.m. 3225 Milam. $50 per couple, $25 per person.

Central Market’s Chocolate Festival

Now really, do we have to explain this? The store features chocolate specialties at every corner, even in the produce! Find unique gifts like Vosges Mo’s Bacon Bar, or find chocolates to bake with like the Little Big Farm Brownie Mix. Not to mention the prepared Valentine’s Day dinner if you don’t want to cook, long stem chocolate covered strawberries or red and white chocolate covered pretzels (personal favorite for all year in various holiday colors). Just going to Central Market with your honey to shop and eat lunch would be enough of a date for me. Feb. 9-15, 3815 Westheimer at Weslayan.

Crave Cupcakes Breakfast in Bed

Hold your horses before forwarding this story to your man. Have breakfast delivered to your house on Valentine’s Day morning. Think not eggs and bacon, but breakfast cupcakes (!), two I CRAVE U coffee mugs, a bag of ground coffee, and a greeting card. If you want to share with the kids, order the Sweetheart box of six cupcakes including red velvet, dark chocolate, vanilla and chocolate. Nothing says love like a Crave cupcake all to yourself. Pre-order Feb. 7-14. Uptown Park and Kirby Drive. 713-62-CRAVE.

Houston Aboretum's Tapas on the Trail

If you want a more laid back Valentine’s celebration in sync with nature, food and wine, The Arboretum is where you want to be. Enjoy tapas with wine pairings throughout the grounds of the Willow Oak Trail and end on the Meadow Deck for dessert. Saturday. Must pre-register. $75 for members, $95 for non-members. Arrive between 5-7 p.m., finish by 9 p.m.

Pizza Night in from Dolce Vita

If you’re truly a homebody on Valentine’s Day, keep it simple and pick up pizzas, salads and cannolis and open some wine at home. It's plenty romantic, delicious, and with easy cleanup. Take out guarantees no wait at the bar, not that that’s a bad place to hang. 500 Westheimer.

If your activities aren’t on this list and are appropriate to share, let us know how you’re spending the weekend with your Valentine. If nothing else, let the city be your valentine.

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A+ for H-Town

Houston ranks 3rd among Texas’ best large college towns

University of Houston students at a football game

University of Houston/Facebook

Houston knows how to show out.

Houston has entered the spotlight as the No. 3 best large college town in Texas, and it ranks in the top 25 among the largest college towns in America, a new study has proclaimed.

To determine the best college towns, WalletHub analyzed 415 cities based on their "wallet-friendliness," social environment, and academic and economic opportunities for college graduates. Cities are ranked overall and are sorted into one of three population categories: large, midsize, and small cities.

Houston ranked as the 24th best large college town in the U.S., and it ranked 73rd overall regardless of city size.

Out of the three key dimensions, the Bayou City ranked highest for "wallet friendliness" — landing 89th nationally. This category examined local housing costs, student loan debt per person, the adjusted cost of living for young people, and other financial factors.

The city stands at No. 127 nationwide for its "social environment," which compared the number of students per capita, the share of single people, crime rates, and the number of cafés, breweries, food trucks, festivals, and shopping centers per capita, among others.

It may come as a surprise that WalletHub said Houston's academic and economic opportunities leave much to be desired. The city ranked 260th nationally in this category, which analyzed the quality of higher education, the earning potential for college graduates, unemployment rates, job growth rates, the share of part-time jobs and median income of part-time workers, and more.

"As student living expenses can reach over $39,000 per year, it’s important to find the most bang for your buck," the report's author wrote. "Therefore, it’s best to live in a city with a reasonable cost of living, along with good academic and work opportunities. The ideal city should also provide a fun social environment to help students deal with the stress of college."

Other top college towns in Texas
Austin once again topped the list as the No. 1 best college town in America, boosted by the city's wealth of local colleges and universities and the local economy. The Capital City has outshone obvious contenders like Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Ann Arbor, Michigan, for five years in a row, and it also tops the large cities list.

According to the report's findings, Austin has the 15th best academic and economic opportunities for college students and graduates, and the 16th best social environment. WalletHub commends Austin for having one of the lowest unemployment rates in the nation and the "34th-best annual job growth rate," while also offering students ample ways to "de-stress after class."

"On top of that, Austin ranks 22nd in the nation for the quality of higher education among more than 400 cities in our study," the report said. "It also has the 112th-cheapest in-state tuition (including room and board), at $34,651 per year."

Six other cities in the Lone Star State appeared on the overall list of America's best college towns: College Station (No. 37), Plano (No. 54), San Antonio (No. 72), Denton (No. 77), Lubbock (No. 83), and Fort Worth (No. 100).

In the rankings by city size, San Antonio ranked as the No. 2 best large college town in Texas and 23rd nationwide.

San Marcos, a college town between Austin and San Antonio, ranked as the No. 2 best small college town in Texas, and 54th best among the small colleges nationally. In the overall list regardless of city size, San Marcos ranked 132nd nationally.

The top 10 best college towns in America for 2027 are:

No. 1 – Austin
No. 2 – Ann Arbor, Michigan
No. 3 – Charlottesville, Virginia
No. 4 – Raleigh, North Carolina
No. 5 – Atlanta
No. 6 – Tampa, Florida
No. 7 – San Diego
No. 8 – Scottsdale, Arizona
No. 9 – Orlando
No. 10 – Charleston, South Carolina

college towns reports university of texas wallethub houston anderson