Valentine's Day Recap

Two posts in two days! It's a miracle! I have the day off today and got a lot of the cleaning/errands done yesterday, so I am taking it easy today. Poor Mike had to get up and teach a class, but I didn't really feel bad for him because I get up while he is still nestled in bed pretty much every day. So. The big V-Day. This year I realized I was not really an active participant in the Day of Love 2011. I kind of sat back and waited to see what Mike was going to do for ME. Looking back (and writing this) it is very embarrassing because it is so selfish. I wrote an entire blog last year about loving everyone everyday, and then I didn't apply that lesson to my husband.

I think that raising a family with three daughters can be a blessing and a curse for fathers. Dad becomes the hero, the king of the house, the man almost no one can compare to. However, he also becomes the minority and may be taken for granted. When we were growing up, my father brought candy home for all of us on Valentine's Day. My mom gave us little treats when we woke up. Of course, we took our Valentine cards to school for our friends, but I don't remember giving gifts to either of my parents. Yikes!

So, that is where I went went wrong last year. No matter what Mike gave me, he was not getting that same affection (even if it was material) back. It was all me. This year, (thankfully) Pinterest invaded my life, and I thought, "What cute thing can I make to show my husband how much I love him?" I ended up with this.

Let me tell you a little something about being crafty. First, it takes a LONG time. I don't care how much you love someone, 52 reasons is a lot to think of without repeating yourself. I believe #34 was "You order the large cheese dip." I kicked Mike out the night before so I could complete my project and my back was hurting the next day from being hunched over so long. It didn't matter - it was worth it because Mike loved it. It was so fun to watch him flip through the reasons and make comments about them. And it was cute to see his eyes light up when he realized that something he never thought about was something I love the most about him.

Now, I DID get some jewelry and flowers, so my craftiness was not the only thing going on. We had a nice, low key dinner and really enjoyed spending some time together. It's a learning curve people, and I apparently started at the bottom. I hope that everyone else had a wonderful day as well!

A quick update on my parents. They left this morning and were already making friends with other boats sailing the same way. I do want to stress that while their excursion may seem crazy to some, it had been carefully thought out. I was called to make sure I would be willing to the be the executor of their will (comforting) and have been sent a plan of how to contact the Coast Guard if something happens. (Again, a little disconcerting.) My parents are armed with a digital collection that would make the Apple Store jealous. Meals have been cooked and frozen, and the last time we talked, my father was telling me about his swim plan so that he wouldn't gain extra weight. I think they are going to be just fine.