My Valentines...

One of my friends gave me the great idea of having Valentine's Day boxes. We had FHE at the first of the month where we decorated them and talked about who we love and how we show our love for them. It was a lot of fun and turned out to be really exciting. Xiana wasn't the only person in the house thrilled to see that her flag was up. It made every single day better and happier for me too. I could really get used to love notes every day. Plus, I found that each and every letter/card/note I wrote reminded me of how wonderful both Xiana and Brian are! About a week in Brian teased me that we had started too early as he was out of things to say. I disagreed and then found myself repeating everything from week one in week two. Oh well, a little repetitive complimenting can't hurt anyone. Xiana was so funny one day I had given Brian a card, and he had given me one, but neither of us had put her flag up. She woke from her nap elated yelling, "mommy, you have mail! Can you give me mail too?" So I got some suckers and put them in her box and put up the flag to which she squealed, " I have mail!!" Apparently she doesn't require the element of surprise.
Xiana got to go to 2 Valentine's parties and had to get 30 Valentines cards ready. She insisted that she wanted to write her own name. So she did.... 30 times. It was great practice for her. She is so talented and smart!!!
We made cookies for one party but worried there weren't enough so we bought some too. I didn't know if Xiana had a Valentine's outfit... then I realized 80% of her wardrobe is pink so....
She was a cute little Valentine!!!
The party was well attended and a great success. The kids got to make chocolate suckers in various heart shapes....
And decorate their very own bags for all their loot. Xiana goes through her bag daily (sometimes regifting the cards, others asking me to read them... again!)
Then she had preschool where they made Valentine's boxes and then came over to our house for a Mary Kay party. The girls were absolutely darling and so excited about their sugar highs.
This was coined her actual Valentine's Day dress. I'm glad it fit!
On Friday I bought two balloon bouquets and put little notes in each mailbox telling them where to go. It was fun! I tied Xiana's to a little monkey and Brian's to some candy.
Too cute this little Valentine.
I had to get a shot with the balloons and my ginormous emerging belly!
That night Brian took me to dinner and a movie and Xiana had a sleepover at Grandma and Grandpa's house. We had a wonderful time and enjoyed the hilarious movie.
The night before Valentine's Day I decorated the room a bit and left cards and candy for both. Brian came home from work with such thoughtful and eclectic gifts for both Xiana and myself. He gave us a wide range of things from dried fruits, to candies, to jerky, to stuffed animal, to candles. It was very sweet and showed how he knows us to be able to get the things that we love most.
I made seafood pan roast for the first time ever and it was DELECTABLE. Seriously, I'm not trying to toot my own horn or anything, but it was by far the best thing I have ever made in my life. I got sparkling cider and heart champagne glasses. It was really fun. Dinner was delicious, but the best part was spending our first Valentine's Day as a family together. It was really memorable.
The amazing creation! After dinner Brian volunteered to do the dishes (probably my favorite gift... minus all the sweet cards and notes of course) and I took a shower. We finished off with a game of words with friends.
And some dessert. A sweet ending to a very sweet day! I love you Brian!