Never Too Late for Love

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Ah, another Valentine's Day has arrived.  And have you properly gifted your sweetheart(s) today?  I had been working hard (and secretly, I thought) all week on a Valentine gift for hubby - a special playlist of songs for him from me on Spotify.....all selected carefully, listened to, dragged up to the "My Funny Valentine" playlist spot - you get the idea.  I spent some time on this so as I was preparing to finally sharing it with dearest hubby -- as I was getting ready to type, "Happy Valentine's Day" -- you can imagine my curiosity (and subsequent frustration) when I noticed a red flag up in the corner of my Spotify screen (this is where you are figuring out that I don't know much about Spotify).  I clicked on the flag and read that said hubby had started "following" the "My Funny Valentine" playlist 20 minutes earlier.  Geesh! So much for Valentine surprises!!

All is not lost - for me or for you, if you still are looking for last minute ways to share a Valentine message.  Pinterest had some ideas for the procrastinators among us (or for those of us who would rather not blow the family budget on an 8 pound box of chocolates....well, we would, but...you know what I mean).  Here are a few that I found.

Have a couple of bananas and a Sharpie?

Of course, if your Valentine has a weakness for donuts instead of bananas, this is a great idea - and the link takes you to a free printable from Remarkable Home - easy peasy.

And finally, grab a couple of tootsie pops and some construction paper...

Hugs & Kisses, all!

P.S.  I really wasn't kidding about an 8 pound box of chocolates.  DeBrand's Chocolatier's was giving away this!!

Now, Where Were We?

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Need to follow-up on a couple of things....first, whatever happened to that promise I made to keep you posted on my project to get my filing organized?  Remember this?

 

Yeah, me too! But, I'm happy to report that I did follow through - all of the above has been sorted, trashed as needed, filed appropriately, and now for the big reveal:  

Have to say I'm pretty proud of myself and it has been done for a couple of weeks now (no, it did not take just a day or two as maybe suggested by the original link in the post - in fact, I did go back to my traditional sort, stack, file approach - seems to work best for me when I get myself in a big mess like this).  But, the goal now is to keep this clear -- motivation is that we'll be ready for grandkiddos to visit at any given time.  ;)

Second, I totally failed at pulling off that Valentine's menu on February 14th - and now I know it's a very good thing that I didn't attempt it.  If I had, we never would have made the concert that night or I would have been very frustrated at leaving a half-prepared meal and kitchen in chaos behind.  I know this because I did prepare the dinner, with the help of my talented sous chef/Valentine/hubby this week, when we didn't have any time constraints.  Good thing!  Apparently the recipe tags "quick & easy" only apply if you are preparing ONE recipe at a time - not three....

But I promised pictures so here they are.  First ~ the Beef Tenderloin with Morels and Tarragon Marsala Sauce  and Tomato Bread Salad with Herbs.






Now the dessert, Coffee Souffles with Mocha Sauce...first, let me say, I really wish I had taken a picture when I had taken these out of the oven - they were gorgeous - I've never made a souffle-anything before so I was very skeptical, but they were beautiful - really, they were!  But, now I know why the recipe says "serve immediately."  Yeah....

But, the mocha sauce was delish and covered a multitude of souffle sins - so hubby and I decided it was still very light and luscious.

All in all, a great dinner - "easy" maybe, but not quick and definitely messy.  Very thankful for my sous chef who volunteered for clean-up while I enjoyed a second glass of pinot noir and put my feet up.

Must Be Love

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Ok, putting myself out on a huge limb right now and posting what I'm planning for our Valentine's dinner....sounds like a good idea right now.  We'll see how it plays out a few hours from now.  The goal was to find something special but simple - we've got concert tickets at 7:30 so I don't have a lot of time to mess with. I know, I know - what am I thinking....here we go....

Appetizer

Wine - Mark West Pinot Noir

(at least I'm keeping this part simple, lol)

Salad

Tomato Bread Salad with Herbs

Entree

Beef Tenderloin with Morels and Tarragon-Marsala Sauce

Dessert

Coffee Souffles with Mocha Sauce

So, want to start taking bets? ;)  You can check back later and see how I did - there will either be pics of the above....or a pizza box (or Subway wrappers).  Happy Valentine's Day!

Uhm...just got back from the concert.  This is what we're having for dinner.  Seriously.

BLAH - BLAH - BLAH...Ok, Happy Valentine's Day ;-)

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Yes, it is February 14th, Valentine's Day, and yes, I will post, but no, I will NOT get personal...so if you're here to try to get "juicy details" - move on...about as personal as I'm going to get today is to let you know that one of my best Valentine's ever was waiting for me this morning from Hannah (2 yummy special treats, of course) but a wonderful card declaring me to be the best mom ever (and she "seconded" the sentiment in her own writing :-)). Now you know that will warm my heart for a long, long time!

I did do some online surfing to see what Valentine goodies might catch my eye to share with you today and found some fun things and great new shops...

I LOVE this card from Hidenseek, an Etsy shop in the UK. This extremely talented artist brings to mind old-style children's books and fairy tales....and I couldn't resist the little girl's red dress and brown hair, although my hair was always cut in a pixie!

And, yes, now you know where my post title actually comes from - these soaps caught my eye when I was searching with the keyword "Valentine" and MariaElenaEvents has them in a large assortment of scents to choose from - a great deal! Plus, I really had to appreciate her sense of humor...

Now, for those of you who just can't make up your mind today...you may need this from FiligreeandFindings on ArtFire! What a great find!

Sometimes I like to window shop, and yes, even buy occasionally when I can, jewelry instead of making my own (I know, it's shocking, isn't it!)....if I could, these babies would be in my cart today! Maybe tomorrow (if you don't beat me to them!) ~ from one of my favorite artisans and a great pal, too...AbeleesHandcrafted on 1000Markets:

So, I do wish you a very wonderful Valentine's Day ~ may you be surrounded by all those who love you and filled with love yourself ~ blah, blah, blah! ;-) Peace...

P.S. A little "Valentine 101 Romance Advice" from Hannah as we're driving home from the "mountain" today ~
HANNAH: "Y'know, I think, alotta guys think it's romantic to teach their girlfriends to snowboard on a day like this and they're wrong."
ME: "Really?"
HANNAH: "Yeah, I mean, I can't tell you how many times I've heard on the lift, 'Why did you tell me to do that?' or 'You told me to do it that way!' or 'I just want to go home!' They should just let them learn on their own. I don't think I would want anyone trying to teach me how to snowboard."

You heard it here, guys -- listen up! Dinner and a movie - don't make it complicated.

FRIDAY FREE~FOR~ALL

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A bit of this, a bit of that...after all, it's Friday~

First, just to clarify, the adorable puppy in "Wordless Wednesday" is not mine - she is Andrew's "Tusker" who keeps him company over in Tanzania (and also has a penchant for chewing things -- I think perhaps she may be telepathic with our Scout...hmmm...but, she is adorable, isn't she!). Here is our "sweet" pup (not really a pup, shhh! he thinks he is!).

Had a great "Mimi" day with Sarah today ~ although must say when I picked her up, her first words were, "Don't panic, but I was sick most of the night and had contractions for a while this morning, but it's ok, they've stopped and I just HAVE to go to the mall to get this stuff, so if you don't take me, I'll go by myself." EEK! Like I really had a choice then, huh?! All is quiet now in "high-alert" baby world, but I was watching her like a "Mimi-hawk" all day! :-) She picked out some wonderful new mommy sleepwear (a gift from me -- and very appropriate as one of the sets' brands was "Mimi") and got an adorable outfit for baby "Rachel" (not the little one's real name - family joke since we're being kept in the dark and that's what we all guessed!) to come home from the hospital in....we "topped off" our day by "finishing off" our feet with much deserved pedicures ~ well, at least she certainly deserved hers :-).

REMINDER....this weekend will be the FINAL days of the Valentine's Sale in the Etsy shop (sale ends at Sunday, midnight) -- if you haven't checked out these specials, be sure to stop by and do so this weekend. Other Artisan Beaders also are offering specials and you can see their shops at this link. Now's the time to get that special Valentine a treat....or treat yourself!

Finally, want to share this very cool link with you and encourage you visit it daily - to "exercise" your brain AND help with world hunger (can't argue with that, can you?). It's sponsored by the United Nations World Food Program. From the "FreeRice" site:

Do I really make a difference by playing FreeRice?The rice you donate makes a huge difference to the person who receives it. According to the United Nations, about 25,000 people die each day from hunger or hunger-related causes, most of them children. Though 10 grains of rice may seem like a small amount, it is important to remember that while you are playing, so are thousands of other people at the same time. It is everyone together that makes the difference. Thanks to you, FreeRice has generated enough rice to feed more than two million people since it started in October 2007.

TGIF, everyone!