Valentine's Day 2019

Mid-February has come and gone! I find Valentine's Day a great distraction from mid-winter and a way to add a little hope to the dismal days.

We enjoyed having a valentine party last Sunday after church. We had a simple lunch of soup, salad, and bread, followed by a decadent dessert of waffles!

It was very easy to host this gathering since everyone brought something! I provided the soup, the Grandmas provided the salad, a friend brought bread, and everyone pitched in with the waffle toppings.

We all brought valentines to share. The table looked so festive before dessert after everyone had "delivered" their valentines to the respective plates.

It's so fun to show love in this simple, almost child-like way. My heart was especially warmed by a friend who took time to create valentines with watercolors -- she attended one of our summer watercolor workshops and although she is quite new to this art medium, and painting is not something she does often (yet), she took time to paint each person a personal valentine.

Here's a look at the waffle bar and the delicious toppings we had:

I sewed the little girls hearts out of repurposed cashmere -- so cuddly and soft.

And a close-up of the waffles are needed:

Lunch provided a wonderful opportunity for conversation and getting to know each other better.

Monday was my chance to participate in the Valentine flower fever at my Monday job. The shop was fit to burst with all the flowers. I made 40 bouquets before I left.

The flowers were just so beautiful.

And those roses were exquisite -- I felt compelled to smell almost everyone I used! With my eyes closed I could imagine myself in a far away rose garden.

And there just happened to be a red brick wall outside the flower shop! Perfect!

 My sister tells me the flowers sold out!!!!

Thanks to the snow day we had a few weeks ago I had time to make some homemade valentines of my own this year. I enjoyed them so much.

As I grow older the cold of winter becomes harder to bear and I am eager for the warm weather to return, though just not quite ready to let go of these few weeks that seem somehow quieter and less busy.