Love and stuff..
Happy Valentine’s Day!!
I hope you all are having a wonderful day today with your loved ones. I have never been a huge fan of Valentine’s Day. I think it’s all a bit silly really. But…. I am a fan of love! I love thoughtful gestures, homemade cards, drawings and paintings, a special meal, lovely poems and stories, hearts, and pink, believe it or not. I just wish we were able to get away from the commercialism of the holiday. To express love we don’t need to give jewelry, or candy, or flowers. What a message we are sending our kids.
So today I urge you all to express your love in a much more creative way (to your kids, your spouse, your partner, your grandkids, whoever) and then come back and tell me about it before midnight PST on Feb. 20! The best answer is going to win a $25 gift certificate!!
Winner Update: Your responses were all so lovely. Some really struck my heart… I couldn’t decide between them, so I had to choose a random winner instead (using random.org). I want to thank you all so much for sharing your stories. Congratulations to Mary! She wins the $25 gift certificate!
February 14th, 2010 at 3:28 pm
My son & I made cut out cookies together today. He kept requesting flour (he’s 19 months), so I gave it to him. What mom could deny “I need fower peas.”
In the end, the flour ended up all over him, the floor and our dog loked like he had been out in the snow! 
What lovely memories.
February 14th, 2010 at 3:53 pm
My 3-year old and I had a date at the Scandinavian bakery and then took our ladybug cookies to the park and swung until the rain drove us out. Now we’re in sweats, post-mini-pedicures and waiting for butter to soften for making sugar cookies. I have the NYT crossword and she’s making a valentine for her grandma. Perfection.
February 14th, 2010 at 11:55 pm
My husband and I drove a half an hour out to a nature reserve with our almost 3 year old, we took a long (and uphill!) nature hike, stopping to explore and marvel over the brown Newts, to collect leaves and other samples for my son’s “field journal” (I know it may sound strange, but he uses an old aquarium filter to collect his “samples”, he talks into it, as if leaving himself field notes, and he lifts the filter case and presses his leaf samples below, he also uses it as pretend goggles, through which he can apparently see extraordinary forest animals). It was our first Valentine’s after our second son died 6 months ago, and we just spent it together, marveling at the utter perfection of the woods around us and our spot within them. Our dog Kebo came along too, and he drank from the streams and ran himself ragged running ahead and then running back to check on us. In the car on the way home I asked Finn who his Valentine was, and first he said Henry, his brother, and then he said “and Mommy, and Daddy, and Kebo” — and then he went through the whole list again as three year olds are apt to do, and laughed. He was alseep about 5 minutes later. It was a lovely day, and one I will always remember.
February 15th, 2010 at 9:45 am
I made cookies for my whole family.
February 15th, 2010 at 6:05 pm
My boyfriend and I made dinner together. Normally we alternate nights, but last night we wanted to show that we value teamwork, and being with each other. We made roast chicken with baked potatoes, and we loved every bite.
February 15th, 2010 at 10:27 pm
my girls and i make valentines for eachother and for daddy, lots of glue and glitter, a bit of a mess, but lots of love. i make a special treat for hubby, since he’s diabetic and celiac it’s not easy to find something for him. and then we all make dinner together. topping it it off by exchanging backrubs.
February 16th, 2010 at 6:52 am
My husband took care of both the baby and our 3 year old in the morning to let me sleep in!
When I woke up, he had breakfast ready. Afterwards, our baby and my husband both took a nap, while our 3 year old and I made valentine’s crafts for the boys. Then, my husband took our little girl on a father/daughter date. When they got back, I had made my husband’s favorite dinner. After dinner, we exchanged handwritten notes and cards. We all then cuddled and played with the kids in bed until bedtime.
February 16th, 2010 at 2:05 pm
We had a very special Valentine’s Day…our first as a family of 3! We made special homemade Valentines with our baby’s footprints (in the shape of a heart of course). It was very messy, but they were very much appreciated! We then went out on the frozen lake for a beautiful walk and pulled our daughter in her sleigh. We topped the night off with a special homemade dinner in of steak and stuffed peppers! Delicious!
February 17th, 2010 at 9:32 pm
My husband and I started the morning by making a homemade pirate costume for our five year old – complete with plastic cup and tin foil hook. Then, he and I went to his friend’s “Princess and Pirate Valentines Party”. We got home and my husband packed up the car and the four of us went to our beach place for the night. We picked up some fish and chips at the local fish place and sat in our condo eating together. Then, we exchanged cards and ate some chocolate together (which my one year old thought was fabulous!) Capped it off by watching the Olympics together and then putting the kids to bed so my husband and I could watch a movie. Relaxing and fun!
February 18th, 2010 at 11:14 am
spouse and i, we went down into our creepy basement, and out into our piled up junky garage, and i decided i was staying, and we worked out a plan of how to make our house a home so that we’d have many more valentines days together, here, without any more up in the air-ness or wondering.
it was actually very very good.
February 18th, 2010 at 12:22 pm
the kids & I started Valentine’s Day off by baking cookies (proof: http://lolastable.com) and that honestly took up the whole first half of the day. my 2.5 year old spent most of the time stacking the measuring cups & spoons and “mixing” dry ingredients, while my 5.5 year old son helped out by mixing the real dry ingredients and then helping with the icing & sprinkles. It took us hours but the kids had a great time and we ended up with a ton of yummy cookies! then we made cards for my parents who were going to watch the kids that night. my kids love making cards. poor hubby wasn’t feeling well, but rallied to go out to dinner and we made it through dinner and dessert but then we both felt sick and headed home without watching the movie. Want to know which movie? That ridiculous Valentine’s Day movie. How cheesy of us, right? Our bodies were probably rejecting the cheesiness of that movie and that’s why we got sick
all in all, a great Valentine’s day filled with lots of love, laughs and memories.
February 18th, 2010 at 1:06 pm
I made pistachio pudding for my wee ones, spread it on a cookie sheet and let them draw Valentines hearts in it! They loved playing with their food! Afterward, we all made valentines for the grandparents. Really though, the pudding was the highlight for them. Nothing says love like Mommy letting you play with your food!
February 19th, 2010 at 10:12 am
We had a great Valentine’s Day. We started out the morning going to church. Came home and ate lunch leftovers and then hubby and I got some time together while the kids napped. Then that evening we just hung out together and made a pizza. It was relaxing and great to spend the day with those I love!
February 19th, 2010 at 10:17 am
My daughter and I drove to NY from PA to pick up my father for his 76th bday which is on Valentines day. Lately he has to watch my nephews because i have a sister who can seem to care for them because she is too ignorant to see that the man she is with will never change. Long story, she supposedly has ADD and he is 20 years older but is a loser. My poor daughter of nine wanted to have my father here for his birthday so he could have a break from all the fighting that goes on there and a break from watching 3 little kids whom we love very much but cannot deal with my sisters drama. My daughter is so wonderful and worries so much about her grandfather it is unbelievable the love she has for this man. If I win I would buy her something like the lotion for her because she loves things like that. She is so into fashion and worrying about her skin and plans to be a fashion designer when she grows up. She worries about the disabled and animals and will one day help out this world in one way or another. I love her so much.
February 19th, 2010 at 11:06 pm
My husband grew up in a horible situation his mom was a young teenage mom who was not fit to be a mother. She ditched my husband for weeks and he stayed with friends his entire childhood and never had a place to call home. I am the first person that has ever given my husband uncondional love. We met when we were both 18 and now ten years later we have three beautiful boys ages 6 months, 2 and 4. My husband never had a dad to teach him how to use tools, fish, or even BBQ. My husband and i take time to learn and teach our children new things everyday. We now go fishing together, bake together, and play games. My family loves each other so much we have the most amazing bond. Everyday in my house is Valentine’s day because every day this house is full of so much love.
February 20th, 2010 at 6:56 am
I love little surprises all day. The kids and I made cards for daddy (full of pictures of him with them) and mailed them to his work. We surprise each other with favorite foods or wine. I made heart shaped pancakes for the kids. My son picked out a heart shaped Elmo balloon for his one year old sister. She was thrilled! Nothing was expensive or extravagent we just try to show each other a bit of love all day, all year long.
February 20th, 2010 at 9:20 am
Today, I let my love for theater and for our community shine by distributing fliers calling on my town to save the drama program at our local high school. I have written letters to our school board and to editors of local papers, and my daughter was interviewed for one local paper on the issue. The arts are so important, and they have to be saved!
Cassie
cjm92995@yahoo.com