Thursday, February 14, 2013

Happy Valentine's Day!  I hope you are enjoying this fun day.  I love special events and traditions that happen throughout the year.  And after all the wonderful decorations and festivities of Christmas, the winter seems bleak when the holidays are over.  Valentine's Day adds some fun to the normal everyday routine.

I love the love notes that my kids write.  Haley, in particular, writes them all year long.  It's so sweet. I love the picture of me and Lee. It was so sweet because her blue Valentine for us came via the mail from school!
Feb 13, 2013 Haley Love Notes

Feb 13 2013 Haley Picture

Here are Shanna's. Her white one on the right also came from school.
I received it in the mail yesterday. So fun.
Feb 13 2013 Shanna Love Notes

Cal made this at art night last week.  I love how he did the lettering.
Feb 13 2013 Cal Love Note

So Clark's isn't necessarily a "love" note, but it was very thoughtful of him to think of me while scratching out the letters at art night!
Feb 14 2013 Clark Love Note

This morning the kids awoke to some fun little gifts.  It's amazing how FAST everyone gets ready when there is a surprise waiting....  Hopefully starting next year, I'd like to give all my kids books each year for Valentine's Day.  We had hot chocolate and pumpkin muffins with chocolate chips for breakfast. I got Lee some chocolate and a Valentine of course! I had 5 heart-shaped York peppermint patties. For the Valentine I wrote five different notes to Lee, trying to link them with mints.  I used words like refreshing and cool. I folded the hearts up and hot glued the mint (in the wrapper) onto the heart. I put them all into a glass container. You can actually see it to the left of Clark's head. I also put out the candy that their friends had given them.
Feb 14 2013 Haley Cal Clark

Feb 14 2013 Shanna Elden

Feb 14 2013 Elden

Feb 14 2013 Clark

Feb 14 2013 Cal

Every year my dad would write each of us kids a personal Valentine and leave a Little Debbie treat with them.  He would ring the doorbell and run away, leaving the Valentines on the door step.  It was a very fun tradition.  Thanks Dad! Now that we are "grown", my mom sends us Valentines each year.  I love it! Lee started doing the same thing my dad did and will do the same thing tonight for the kids.  One year the kids thought the postman had left the Valentines from Lee.  That was funny.

Last Saturday 4/5ths of the kids worked on Valentines for school and Elden worked on them for friends.  Yesterday Elden and I delivered two of them.  We delivered the rest today with Lee's help. (Actually, there are two more to deliver which we'll do tonight.)  Shanna has been counting down the days to Valentine's Day.  Last Valentine's Day the boys brought home a lot of goodies from school--the girls are excited to do the same this year.  (Especially Shanna!  I love how she giggles and squeals with excitement...literally too!)

I made a chocolate truffle pie for tonight. It will be a chocolate truffle pie with chocolate pieces as I didn't melt the chocolate properly with the cream.  I was going to make this for just me and Lee, but decided that I will be nice and share it with the whole family.
Feb 14 2013 Chocolate Truffle Pie

Because Valentine's Day was this week, Lee is going to do the date again.  When we got home from the school this afternoon I noticed a heart taped on my handmixer that I had left out.  Lee created a little clue hunt for me regarding our upcoming date. There was a message on the back of the heart. Then I saw another heart on the microwave.  I kept walking around, finding one by the bathroom door.  I had a harder time finding the last heart.  Lee said that if I just did my everyday things I would find it.  I looked in the fridge and freezer, the washer and dryer.  (Though I don't do laundry everyday.)  I found the last clue on my scriptures. We are going to a play tomorrow night!  I am not sure which one, he wouldn't tell me. 
Feb 14 2013 Lee Date Clues

Yesterday I received a delivery--a pretty rose from Lee.  I do get flowers from Lee, but past Valentine's Days I haven't received flowers from him because I told him not to (because of money....ha ha).  Thanks Lee!
Feb 13 2013 Shanna

This afternoon Elden wanted me to take a picture of him with his chocolate bar.  They had Milka bars at Sharp Shopper for $0.50 each!
Feb 14 2013 Elden (2)

Have a fun-filled day today! Hope you enjoyed the Valentine over-loaded post!


Rich Chocolate Truffle Pie
By: Marbalet...???  It's from allrecipes.com
Original recipe makes 1 pie

Directions

  1. In microwave dish combine chocolate chips and 1/2 of the cream. Cook on high for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds until smooth. Cool to room temperature. Stir in sugar & vanilla. Set aside.
  2. In small bowl, beat the rest of the cream until soft peaks form. Beat in chocolate mixture on high speed 1/3 at a time. mix well and spoon into crust.
  3. Refrigerate at least 8 hours before serving.

2 comments:

Lois said...

So many fun things. Nice that Lee is picking up Dad's tradition.

Thanks for the great photos.

Lena said...

Happy Valentine's Day Ruth! Looks like you've had a very sweet day.