Sweet Valentines

Just had to post a couple of photos of the girls' valentine cards this year. 

Sarah made this cute Post Office Box for her valentine mailbox and for her valentine's for her friends she put hearts on crazy straws and wrote "Have a sip-pity do dah day!"

Morgan made a locker for her mailbox and made these adorable robots for her valentines for friends, with rolos and mint patties. I still find it hard to believe that this was her last valentine's day party with school, how'd she get so big so fast? I will miss this tradition with her next year.

Valentine Memories



1992. My 18th Birthday.
Our First Valentine's Day.
Valentine's Banquet - Church Youth Group



Summer 2010. Still friends all these years later.
and both still happily in love.


And if you could see my finger...I'm still wearing the amythest ring Mike gave me that very first valentine's birthday!! This birthday will include: volunteering, lunch with a friend, girl's school valentine parties and dinner out with Mike and the girls. Glad for birthdays and a chance to celebrate this amazing journey called life!!

Taking Time for Us

This weekend will soon include...no tv, no computer, no phone...and NO KIDS!! It's our annual Valentine weekend getaway (a week early!!). And though we've had fun the past 4 snow days at home, I'm REALLY glad my girls will be away this weekend!!

The way Valentine's Day falls this year on the calender, next weekend is going to be for celebrating Sarah's 8th birthday, picking up over 1600 boxes of girl scout cookies and getting them to my troop and delivering ours. It's also getting closer and closer to Darian's due date, so the sooner we 'escape' the better chance we have of being able to still getaway! 

We're trying to save money for both a newer car and our summer vacation to the Grand Canyon, so Mike and I decided to do a staycation this weekend.  There's lots we often want to do in our own town and don't take the time or spend the money to do, so we thought we'd try a staycation and see how it goes!  The whole point is togetherness...taking time for us, spending uninterrupted time together, for investing in our marriage,  for remembering why we fell in love 20 years ago...and I can't wait!!

But first, the reality of cleaning up the house that seems to have exploded from the past four snow days of being at home!

Valentine's Fun

Ok, Call me old-fashioned, but I still like to make our valentine day cards for school. In the past, we've made caterpillars with pencils, butterflies with smarties, and just plain ole' heart ones too. This year, we made 'lotto tickets'. The kids had lots of fun scratching off their ticket to reveal messages like "U R a-lotto fun!"; "U R a winner!"; "Friends like you are worth more than a million dollars!". To make them you mix 2T Metallic Acrylic paint and 1T dish soap. Spread on contact paper (with foam brush), let dry and repeat 2 more times. Then cut out your shape and place it over the message on the lotto ticket! Fun!

As for their valentine boxes this year, we made 'purses'. We used cereal boxes and decoupaged hearts all over them (1 part Elmer's white glue, 1 part water). I was the official 'heart-cutter-outer' and the girls were the official 'get-our-hands covered in glue' gals. We attached ribbon to the top and viola...valentine purses to collect valentine's in!

You can't see Morgan's shirt, but it says "I love my BFF". When I asked her who her Best Friend Forever is, she said "Sarah!". :) I also like how it looks like Daisy is trying to read Sarah's shirt in this picture! :)

18th Valentine's Day

This is the 18th Valentine's day Mike and I have spent together, but only the 2nd time we've actually gone away just the two of us.

When we got there, they had "upgraded" our room to a condo...we had a living room, full kitchen and bedroom... and we thought we were just getting a regular hotel room! We felt very spoiled (the rate on the door said it was $409 a night!)... that's not even close to what we paid! It was SO nice. We loved staying at Branson Landing and walking everywhere for the weekend. We unplugged from tv, computers and the phone (except for when the girls and my parents called to wish me a happy birthday! and we watched Fireproof), it was nice! For me, it was intimate on an emotional level, lots of fun (lots of laughter) and extremely replenishing! It was a great birthday! Oh yah, and I can't neglect to mention that the only reason I was able to relax so much, was because I knew my girls were having a the best time with Darian...as a parent, how great it is to go away and not have to worry about your kids for even one moment! That is a gift! (They went to gymnastics, coldstone, krispy kremes, made purses, baked and decorated cakes, went to Chuck E Cheese, and I can't even remember what else!)