The dozen roses. The premium chocolates. The fancy dinner date. The money?

Yikes.

Valentine's Day shouldn't be about how much you spend. It's all about how much you love your sweetie. (Duh!)

Besides, who has that kind of moolah to shell out in these trying economic times?

With a little time and creativity, it's possible to shower your loved one with all those goodies, but on a very reasonable budget.

Here are cheaper alternatives to some of the holiday's more common gifts and activities. Remember, it's truly the thought that counts. And that's priceless.

• Homemade Hallmarks

Fancy-shmancy greeting cards can cost as much as $5. Why not make your own? Think back to grade school and those fun Valentine's Day art projects — then channel that crafty kiddie inside you. Search the house for scraps of construction paper, fabrics, stickers, buttons, photos, wrapping and tissue papers or doilies (anything red, pink and white), and come up with a perfectly personalized card for your special someone. Bonus points: Create a funny or romantic poem — take the pressure off with a simple four-liner — to include inside.

• Budget-friendly bouquet

Daddies take note: Forgo fresh flowers for this bouquet that mommies will go crazy for. The project, courtesy of www.enchantedlearning.com (search "handprint lilies craft"), involves the kiddies. So ask your lovely lady to run an errand and get crafting.

Trace your child's (or children's) hand on construction paper and cut out the tracing. Curl each of the fingers around a pencil. Using the palm of the handprint, form a cone (with the fingers curling outward). Glue or tape the cone together. Staple the flower to a pipe cleaner or a drinking straw. Draw some leaves on green construction paper, then cut them out and staple or tape to the straw. Make a few of these flowers for a beautiful bouquet. And these WILL last forever.

• Sweets for your sweet

Forget the pricey gourmet chocolates, which can set you back up to $10 or more. For just a few bucks, you can buy easy-to-bake — and just as yummy — mixes for cookies, brownies or cake for your little cocoa lover.

• Dinner …

This one will take a little more work, but you'll save tons cooking up your own candle-lit dinner. It could even be fun if you cook the meal as a couple. If steak and lobster are too fancy a fare to prepare yourself, just make your sweetheart's all-time favorite meal. (Pancakes are just as delish in the evening.) Find quick and easy recipes at www.foodnetwork.com or www.kraftfoods.com.

• … And a date

These happenings tonight won't break the bank:

• Mermaids Hawai'i Aquatic Show, underwater ballet performance, 5:30 to 6 p.m.. at Sheraton Princess Kaiulani, poolside; free. 922-5811.

• Evening concert with the Crooners Inc., 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Ward Warehouse amphitheater; free. 387-5618.

• "Romancing the Stars," an imaginarium show that explores love stories related to the stars, moon and planets, 7 to 8 p.m. at Hokulani Imaginarium, Windward Community College; for 16 and older; $3, reservations recommended. 235-7433.

• Valentine Dance with swing, ballroom and salsa, with DJ Rod, 9 p.m. to 12 a.m. at Dream To Dance; $5. 372-5574.

• Valentine's Day Ladies' Night, 9 p.m. at Indigo Eurasian Cuisine; no cover for ladies. 537-4164.