Happy Heart Day! ~ Valentine's Day ~ 2013

I will be the first to admit, I'm a sucker for hearts, love and all other cheesy Valentine's decorations.  It wasn't always this way...I remember not really liking Valentine's Day, feeling it was kind of a made up holiday that put a lot of pressure on people to buy the perfect gift or give the perfect card.  The day has definitely taken on a new meaning since we've had kids.  It's less about the romantic dinner out and more about fun little things that we can do to show our enormous love for Carter and Kennedy.

I had a lot of fun thinking of special little things to do during the month.

We started out on February 1st, with these cute little mailboxes...

one for each, sitting on the entry way table.

My plan had been to put little gifts and love notes in them each night and then the kids would have something fun to open in the morning.  Unfortunately, after the first couple of days, the gifts were greeted with expectation instead of appreciation.  Also, it was really hard to find fun, small things for Carter.  Girls are easy - lip gloss, jewelry for dress up, stickers, etc.  I confess that the presents didn't always fit in the mailboxes. 

I think next year I will stick to writing little notes only ~ more about the love and less about the "stuff".

I had found several different Valentine ideas on Pinterest and then had the kids choose which one they wanted to make for their classmates.  Carter chose to give mini cereal boxes with a cute tag.

We set to work putting together 25 special treats!

He loved the glue gun.

We also had to decorate a box for Carter to bring into school for his Valentine's party.

I found some letter stickers and he picked out all blue for his name and then added some heart stickers too.  He hot glued (again) some festive ribbon around the lid.

I thought it turned out great!

Here are the kids' finished Valentine's

I love the idea of making them instead of buying them at the store.  They both seemed so excited about passing them out to their friends and really took ownership of putting them together.

Since Kennedy's class is so small, I thought it would be okay to make 2 Valentine's ~ this idea was just too cute to pass up.  Wonder if any of her little friends ate them?

As they slept, I covered their doors in heart shaped love notes.
They love this tradition and Carter even asked a few times if I would be doing it again.

All of the hearts said different things:

"I love your laugh"

"I love the way you say girls"

"You are a great reader!"

"You have beautiful eyes"

"I love to watch you swim"

"I love to read with you"

I attempted to make homemade Nutella pop tarts for a special Valentine's Day breakfast.  I found the recipe on Pinterest and they actually seemed rather simple.  And they were.  Kind of.  They would have been simple on a Saturday morning when we had nothing else to do.  I having a special holiday mid-week really threw me off.  It was a mad dash to get out of the door on time.

BUT, they were cute and tasted delicious!

be still my heart

my loves

I helped in Kennedy's classroom during her party and couldn't resist this cute little prop for a photo

hugs and kisses, indeed!

Lyla and Kennedy

Playing in the gym

A special bouncy house was put up as a treat for the kids ~ can you tell that Kennedy loved it?

darling little Valentines

sweet gumball class

Then it was off to Carter's class to help with his party

talk about sugar over load!  I think each and every valentine came with some sort of candy plus they had ice cream sundaes for a special treat!  

Kennedy was happy to have her friend, Ainsley there to play with ~ such cute girls!

oh my boy, getting so big but still so darn cute! 

I love that sweet smile of yours, Carter!

controlled chaos

I was surprised that when we left the classroom was rather tidy and orderly.  There was so much stuff at each desk - no on gives just little cards anymore.

We ended our day with a delicious dinner - although we were making a mad dash to finish up and get Kennedy to her swim lessons.  None the less, it was so good, heart shaped crab cakes that everyone loved a great salad.  I wish so much I could have enjoyed the nice bottle of wine that Kyle got me as a gift, but I had to work that night so I made do with water.  We'll plan a special evening and enjoy it together.

How very blessed I am to have so much love in my life!

all you need is love

I just couldn't resist taking a few photos of Kennedy before we headed off to church...she was dressed up for Valentine's Day (wearing a darling dress that was given to us by a sweet friend who has three daughters - it had a crinoline underskirt, so Kennedy was thrilled to twirl and dance!) and was in a cooperative mood, so I seized the moment!

she's looking so grown up these days ~ I can't help but shudder when I think that she'll be turning 5.  5!  in just a few months.

i love you with every once of my heart, sweet girl!

{mustaches and ruby red lips}

How cute are these little ones enjoying darling Valentine's Day treats from their friend, Andrew.  Such a fun way to dress up a lollipop!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day 2012

The kids had Valentine's boxes waiting for them when they came downstairs for breakfast. 

I found this idea on Pinterest, too...after the kiddos went to bed, I decorated their doors with hearts.  Each heart had something that I loved about them.  It was fun to do and I think they got a kick out of the surprise.  Carter woke me up with a hug and a sweet litte voice saying, "thanks for my hearts, Mama.  I love them"  And these are things that really fill me up.  He was so appreciative and loving.

The highlight of his Valentine's box was a Oregon jersey that I found on sale at the end of the season.  I think he would wear it every day if I let him.  He actually contimplated giving up Oregon Ducks shirts of Lent.  That's how much he loves them.  Silly boy.

Love those cheesy, smile for the camera faces!

Trying to get a few decent pictures before dashing off to school. 

Now that's what I call LOVE!

I helped out in Kennedy's classroom during her little party.  They made a heart craft, played a few games and had a special snack.  I really adore preschool and it's so fun to help out during these special days.

Kennedy and her friend, Lyla, in their matching dresses.

Lyla is the tiniest, sweetest little thing. 

Snack time and one last "cheese" for Mom.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Sharing the Love

This is my second attempt at this post...my first is lost in cyber space. We've been having computer issues lately for years and I'm almost at a breaking point.  Grr.  Just add it to the list of things we "need" or rather, "really want".  Some day we'll get that winning lottery ticket, I'm sure.  Guess I need to start buying them to increase my chances. 

Enough of the negativity, this post is about sharing the love, which we did in preparation for Valentine's Day last week.  While I've never been a huge fan of the holiday, this year seemed more fun and you would have thought it was Christmas watching the kids.  They had so much fun choosing and preparing their Valentine's cards and I tried my best to make the day a special one for my little loves.

Kindergarten is serious business.  Carter had 26 Valentine's Day to write and deliver.  I decided we'd tackle them over the course of a few days and I think we were all happier because of it.  He did such a great job and loved his Lego Starwars cards (writing with a red pen was also a pretty big deal)...sadly, he wanted nothing of my homemade, crafy suggestions.  *sigh* He's a little too grown up.

Kennedy received this fantastic light-up ladybug in her Valentine's care package from Nana and Pops.  It has quickly become her new favorite possession, often accompanying us to the store, school or church.  If you're looking for a gift idea for a toddler, I'd highly recommend it.  It lights up with stars and moons projected all around the room.  Very cute, thank you Nana and Pops!

The night before Valentine's Day the Grices joined for a dinner play date.  It was such a fun evening!  Rachel brought over the makings for a cute Valentine's craft, a heart wreath.  I think Kennedy ended up making 3 - this little one loves to craft!  Carter lasted long enough to play with the glue gun and he was done.  It was much for fun to run around with his friends, I think.

Before dinner I tried to get a picture of our cute, rowdy group.  With six kids six and under, it was a tad challenging.  Carter, Audrey and Joshua were super cooperative, Samuel was being silly, David was too busy with the Buzz Lightyear laser toy and Kennedy simply refused.

How cute are these little ones?

5 out of 6 isn't bad

Thank you Papa Murphy's for your heart shaped pizza...made for a easy and festive dinner.  I loved having a full house, filled with laughter and love.  It was a wonderful way to spend an evening.

After dinner the kids decorated sugar cookies that I had made. 

Joshua loved the frosting!  Doesn't he have the sweetest little face?

David cracks me up.  This little guy is a ham and just so sweet.

Carter and Samuel

Samuel is a great kid and I love that Carter has such good friends.

 

Audrey and Carter attempted to take a picture of Rachel and I, which led to hysterical laughing.  Laughs from deep down in your belly, great laughs that leave you feeling so much better.  Rachel is such a wonderful friend and truly an inspiration.  I'm so thankful for her presence in my life.

Kennedy had originally chosen princess Valentine's for school, but once she saw these cuties (that I found on Pinterest), she quickly changed her mind.  I think they could have used slightly bigger eyes, but I was happy with how they turned out.

Happy Valentine's Day!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Now this is what love is all about...

unconditional