The Valentine’s Day weekend brings us the happy conundrum of having lots to do and just 48 hours in which to do it.

Hmmm … Will you find out just how much chocolate you can eat at the Salishan Lodge’s Chocolate Classics? Or do you try a Dragon’s Tooth stout at the Astoria Visual Arts Dark Arts Celebration?

Perhaps painting Valentine’s Day pots at the Astoria Children’s Museum is more to your liking, followed by babysitting(!) and an evening of theater with the Astor Street Opry Company or The River Theater or the Tillamook Association of the Performing Arts. In between, you might take in a kite exhibit on the Long Beach Peninsula, haggle for antiques or plan for your best vintage ’50s dance wear and practice your jitterbug in anticipation of a Cannon Beach sock hop.

Peek around the edges of the weekend, and you’ll notice that some events are taking place Thursday, while others move into the President’s Day Weekend – your Valentine’s Day cup runneth over.

Read on for a sampling of the activities taking place in our region:

Theater

The Astor Street Opry Company presents “Halfway Home,” a full length dinner theater production. Sponsored by the Seafood School at the Seafood Consumer Center and New Northwest Broadcasters, “Halfway Home” is a full-length drama/comedy written by Diane Bank. It runs Friday and Saturday nights, Feb. 13 to March 6, with two Sunday Dessert Matinees Feb. 7 and 22.

Directed by Ken Chapman, this stage show opens during one of the hottest days in New York City where a local tour bus driver, in a desperate attempt to escape her life, decides to hijack a taxi cab (along with its driver) and drive to the Midwest to her estranged and eccentric family. “Halfway Home” features Dorene Schmitz, LaMar Blackner, Sandie Mathews, Nancy Claterbos, Pam Stoutenburg, Ann Tierney, Lynn Hout and Neva Barker.

Fulio’s Restaurant of Astoria offers dining as part of the package Fridays and Saturdays, including Valentine’s Day. Seating will be limited and reservations are encouraged. The cost for the evening, which includes dinner, dessert, coffee and the show, is $25. The doors open at 6:45 p.m. for the hour-long dinner, and the show starts at 8 p.m.

Doors open for the Sunday Dessert Matinees at 1 p.m., with the show starting at 2 p.m. Tickets for the matinee, including desserts, are $15 for adults and $12 for seniors.

Show-only tickets are available for $10 for any performance. Space is limited; reservations are required and must be placed by noon of the performance date. Performances will be held at The Finnish Meat Market, 279 W. Marine Drive. For information, call the ASOC ticket line at (503) 325-6104 or visit the Web site www.shanghaiedinastoria.com

The River Theater manages to host not one, but two dinners and productions Saturday, Feb. 14.

Along with the Seafood School at the Seafood Consumer Center, the River presents “Coffee House,” a production written by Leon Kaye and directed by Kimberly Kyle. “Coffee House” is a contemporary, one-act fantasy about coffee and life. There are three characters who laugh, joke, and tease each other about love and soulmates. Their meeting at a coffee house begins amusing and fun, but soon has many surprises and turnarounds giving us a “mind-bending” play. Local actors Andrea Mazzarella, Megan Torske and Jeremy McCoubrey will be performing in reader’s theater style.

The 7 p.m. dinner and 8 p.m. performance take place at the Seafood School, 2021 Marine Drive.

The menu, prepared by Seafood School Chef Eric Jenkins, is rolled salmon stuffed with prosciutto, provolone cheese and fresh basil, served with a toasted pine nut couscous, fresh vegetables and artisan bread. Dessert will be chocolate cranberry torte and beverages are included. A no-host bar will be provided by the River Theater and will serve beer and wine. Tickets are $25.

Meanwhile, Cafe Uniontown pairs up with the River Theater Saturday night to offer a 6 p.m. dinner, followed by the theater company’s performance of “Hedda Gabler” at the River. Tickets for that offering are $65. The dinner menu features a choice of prime rib, hazelnut encrusted halibut or chicken Alfredo fettucini.

Reservations can be made by calling (503) 325-7487. Visa and Mastercard are accepted. Or drop by the River Theater, 230 W. Marine Drive, during box office hours, noon to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Friday. The deadline for reservations is 5 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 12.

Down the coast, the Tillamook Association for the Performing Arts presents “The Front Page,” a comedy about covering the news in 1920s Chicago.

Performances take place Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through Feb. 29. Friday and Saturday showtimes are 7:30 p.m. and the Sunday matinees start at 2 p.m. The show is held at the Barn Community Theater, 12th and Ivy streets in Tillamook. Tickets are available at the door and at The Bootery.

For Valentine’s Day, you can get two tickets, two glasses of champagne and a red rose.

Music

Shellyene Scofield and the rest of the Astoria High School Flag Team, including Trista Brewer, left, Amanda Jones, right, and Rachel Johnson, not pictured, prepare for the Valentine’s Cabaret Thursday. Photo by Lori Assa. The Astoria High School Music Department stages a Valentine’s Cabaret at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 12, in the high school commons.

Performers from the choir, band and orchestra program will serenade guests with vocal and instrumental pieces showcasing love and romance. Students will play or sing as soloists and in small groups, and instructors Dan Johnson, Tracy Hafer and Monica Belzer have agreed to share their talents as well. The Astoria High School Flag Team will be performing a special selection choreographed for this occasion. Local bakeries have donated desserts for the event, which is a benefit for the school’s music department. Tickets are $8 each or $14 per couple.

Guests may also purchase raffle tickets for chances to win several prizes, including a night’s stay at the Hotel Elliott. Donations to the music program will be gratefully accepted. For information, call AHS band teacher Tracy Hafer at (503) 325-3911.

Clatsop Community College Arts & Ideas holds a pair of concerts over the Valentine’s Day weekend, in addition to featuring a month-long lobby show by Becky Hart, “The Secret Life of Ordinary Things,” with jewelry by Sally Lackaff. All events take place at the Performing Arts Center, 16th Street and Franklin Avenue.

Katherine MatschinerOn Friday, Feb. 13, the Con Amici Players and Katherine Matschiner present “Soiree Romantique!” (“Romantic Evening!”) Tickets are $5-$12.

The 10-member rock and funk band Red Venus Love army sizzles in concert Saturday. Submitted photo.Valentine’s Day brings a concert featuring the Red Venus Love Army with their performance “The Whole Sky,” and the Heather Christie Band. The show starts at 8 p.m. and tickets are $5-$10. For information, call (503) 338-2473.

Dances

The Astoria Parks and Community Services Department is taking registration for its annual Elks Father-Daughter Valentine’s Dance. Fathers and daughters of all ages are invited to attend this evening of music, fun, refreshments and door prizes Saturday.

The dance takes place from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Elks Lodge Ballroom, 453 11th St. Tickets for the event are available only at the Astoria Parks office, 1095 Duane St., second floor. Tickets cost $10 for a father and one daughter, with $3 for each additional daughter. Admission includes a flower for each daughter, a free picture in Cupid’s Corner and refreshments. Pre-registration is required – no registrations can be taken at the door. For information, call (503) 325-7275.

The Cannon Beach Chamber of Commerce holds a ’50s dance Saturday to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Partial proceeds go to the American Heart Association. The Sock Hop themed dance takes place from 7 to 11 p.m. at the Cannon Beach Chamber of Commerce, Second and Spruce streets. Tickets cost $10 a person. The event includes a dance contest and prizes for the best 1950s outfits.

Attendees interested in participating in the dance contest must sign up at the door. The contest will begin at 8:30 p.m., with three heats. The winners of each heat compete in a final dance-off where judges will select the champion couple. Winners of the dance contest and best 50s costume will receive dining certificates to Clark’s Restaurant & Bar.

Food and beverage will be available. Pizza, dessert, root beer floats, beer and wine will be served. Music will be provided by disc jockey Charlene Strauch. For information, call the Cannon Beach Chamber of Commerce at (503) 436-2623.

Looking for an excuse to dress up and have fun? The Astoria Eagles Lodge 2189 welcomes members and guests to a Valentine’s Social and Dance from 7 to 10 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 14 at 894 Commercial St. Vie for the title of King and Queen or enter the Hot Lips Contest or Love Song Contest. Don Kelly and Friends will provide music and refreshments will be available. Best of all, admission is free.

Youth Activities

The Astoria Children’s Museum and the Astoria Parks and Community Services Department offer a Flower Pot Stamping class Saturday for children ages 4 to 12.

The 11 a.m. class takes place at the Astoria Children’s Museum, 2968 Marine Drive, in the space it shares with the Uppertown Firefighters Museum collection. The fee for this Saturday Spectacular program is $6, which includes admission to the museum. Astoria Children’s Museum members pay $3. Register through the museum, (503) 325-8669, or by calling the Parks and Community Services Department, (503) 325-7275.

The Astoria Parks and Community Services Department, along with Astoria High School Alternative School, sponsors a countywide high school dance. Clatsop County high school students are invited to attend a Valentine’s Dance from 9 to 11:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 14, at the Astoria Elks Lodge, 453 11th St. Refreshments will be provided. The cost is $5 a person, and you can have your photo taken for another dollar. For information, call (503) 325-7275.

Family Fun

Pacific Coast Antique Mall in Seaview, Wash., holds its second annual “Haggle Day” to test the negotiating skills of collectors, antique buffs and wheeler-dealers alike.

The bargain bonanza is planned for 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 15, at 1206 47th Place. Rumor has it that some of the close to 50 dealers who tend booths there will opt to choose a blanket percentage-off sale for every item in their booth, while some others may choose to have specific items marked low.

The World Kite Museum & Hall of Fame in Long Beach, Wash., offers a John Freeman/Lynn Lary Kite Workshop. Come build a Double Delta Conyne, with about a 12-foot span. For those who don’t know what a DDC is, it is like two triangular box kites side by side with a panel between, with a delta wing on each side. The cost is $80 to cover the materials. For additional information, call the World Kite Museum, (360) 642-4020. Meanwhile, the museum features “Chinese Kites: Their Art, Myths and Legends,” an exhibit celebrating the sister relationship with the Weifang Kite Museum in Shandong Province, China. The museum is open 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily on Third Street N.W. For additional information, call the World Kite Museum at (360) 642-4020.

The Clatsop Weavers Guild and Chinook Spinners will be demonstrating weaving and spinning at Tapestry Rose Yarn Shop, 1024 Bay Ave., Ocean Park, Wash. The demonstrations are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 14 and 15.

Tastings

Poster by Sally Lackaff Astoria Visual Arts brings us a “Celebration of the Dark Arts,” a fund-raiser for the community arts organization featuring 10 craft stouts for tastings, donated by local and Pacific Northwest breweries.

The event takes place 3 to 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 14 at the Astoria Visual Arts Gallery, 160 10th St. An adjoining exhibit kicks off Saturday and runs through Sunday, Feb. 22.

Local brewer Jack Harris is one of the featured beer crafters who are helping to celebrate Stout Month. This AVA fund-raiser will feature stouts from Dragon’s Tooth to Ginger Raspberry to marry up the art on the walls with the art in your glass. Local breweries Pacific Rim Brewing and Bill’s Tavern and Brew Pub will offer stouts. Also, the following breweries will be featured: Elysian Brewing, Pike Brewing and Big Time Brewing, Skagit River Brewing, LaConner Brewing and Boundary Bay Brewing, all of Washington; and Laurelwood Brew Pub, Portland.

For entertainment, you can take in belly dancing, Tarot card reading, music by Mesmer, and, weather permitting, a sunset fire dance. There’s a fire-dancing clinic at 2 p.m.

Admission is $12, which includes a one-of-a-kind Dark Arts glass designed by Sally Lackaff, to be filled with six tasters or three full glasses of the stouts of your choice. For information, call (503) 325-4589.

John Lindstrom, owner of the Danish Maid Bakery, frosts a heart-shaped, raspberry filled cake. Lindstrom says the days leading up to Valentine’s Day make for a busy time for him, but the holiday doesn’t compare to Christmas and Easter. Photo by Lori Assa. Bite into something sweet at “The Chocolate Classics: An Affair to Remember,” held Sunday, Feb. 15 at the Salishan Resort Lodge, Gleneden Beach.

Leif Eric Benson, the executive chef for the Timberline Lodge, leads the judging team for the event, which takes place from 2 to 5 p.m. and is a fund-raiser for the Lincoln Council on Aging’s Retired Senior Volunteer Program of Lincoln County.

The admission price is $20, which gets you all the chocolate desserts you can eat, champagne, coffee and entertainment. A silent auction is planned, and gold boxes will be sold for $10 apiece. One contains a gold piece worth approximately $40.

Chefs from throughout the Pacific Northwest have been invited to compete in several categories, including cakes and tortes, cold desserts and confections. One winner will be chosen from each category, with an overall Best of Show champion.

For information, call Mike O’Donnell at (503) 574-2684.

Fulio’s Restaurant, 1149 Commercial St., offers a taste of Italy’s best wines during “Make Your Valentine Blush: Italian Roses,” from 4 to 6 p.m. Friday, Feb. 13 and 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 14. A $3 tasting fee includes samples of three Italian roses and vin santo, which are the featured wines on Fulio’s Valentine’s Day weekend menu. For information, call (503) 325-9001.