Show 'em Some Love

That we did.  Due to a full schedule on Valentine's day itself we chose to celebrate together the morning after, with breakfast.  Stuffed French toast, bacon, fruit and OJ.  Is there anything that says love quite like bacon?  I think not.  Fairly certain that the other five would agree. 

 

My heart was a bit broken that our two eldest Things would not be with us on Valentine's day for our traditional family love dinner, but we all compromised with breakfast the next day.  Thing 1 was with a friend at the movies and Thing 2 and her girlfriends went to dinner together, all dressed up and giggly.  They were even privy to witnessing a proposal.  Cliché, I know and that is exactly what Husband Jared said when she retold the story here.  We are nothing if not brutally honest.  Anyhow, with the eldest two away for the evening that left Thing 3 and Thing 4 home with us for a relaxed dinner of sesame noodles and a little Duck Dynasty; Our latest "thing".  Oh my word, we laugh and laugh and stare at the TV in amazement.  Sometimes Husband Jared will even quote Mr. Phil Robertson with a little, "happy, happy, happy".  We've all been guilty as of late with walking around the house spewing one liners from season one.  We just can't help ourselves. 

 

It was a good night.  Husband Jared and I exchanged our love cards and he even surprised me with my favorite mug that I've been coveting from Anthropologie.  And well, Husband Jared, all he got was a dark chocolate candy bar with hazelnuts.  We had an agreement that there were to be no presents.  Hmm.  I was grateful though and in fact as I sit here typing my newest monogram mug is right beside me, filled to the brim with my morning jo. 

 

my coffee cup, filled with chocolate peanut butter hearts, my man knows my love language

* the quality of this photo is not the best and clearly does not accurately portray his excitement over the chocolate!

 

The Things did have a little package from Poppi and Nani that they opened the morning of Valentine's day, I couldn't let them leave empty handed.

 

So that was Valentine's day itself and our little love celebration began early the next morning.  Name papers printed, table set with a small token of love and French toast stuffed.  The Things meandered ever so slowly to the table on their day off from school, as we woke them early since the grown ups of the house still had to go to work. 

Love table

 

Showing their presents

 

Nutella stuffed French toast for the Things

 

Cream cheese stuffed French toast with homemade blueberry compote

for Husband Jared and myself

 

Then began my favorite part of our Valentine's tradition.  Love papers.  I print every one's names at the top of a blank sheet of paper.  We pass the papers around the table and we all write two things we love about that member of the family.  After we read what everyone wrote and soak in all the love and sweet, sweet words.  Or we laugh and  are mocked for something deep that we wrote.  Which may or may  not have been the case for me.  OK, it was.  That's alright I meant every word and I wouldn't take it back.  So there.  These special reminders are hung on a wall in our family room for all to see.  Maybe just for us to look at when we need to be reminded.  Reminded that we belong to something bigger.  That we are loved.  We are known.  Here we are accepted.  This family is all about LOVE. 

 

*not the best photographs with the shadow of my head and all but hey, I'm an amateur!

 

And this dog, let's just say he was probably licking his chops because he scored a piece of bacon from one of his people.  And this dog seems to have laid claim to our sofas, and the pillows and my favorite blankets.  How does that happen? 

Well just look at that face, that's how it happens, oh yeah I'm a softie. 

 

I'll leave you with that vision of dog perfection above.  Hope your love day was full of, well, love of course.  Keep showing them the love too, don't stop.