The Little Things

Hubby and I have never made a very big deal over Valentine’s Day.  We usually exchange cards, and maybe enjoy some chocolate.  And before kiddos we’d go out for a nice dinner on the weekend before or after (although truth be told we went out for a nice dinner almost every weekend once upon a time!).

The girls’ first Valentine’s Day, when they were about six weeks old, is a complete and total blur.  The next year, when they were 13 months old, I dressed them in the most precious red velour outfits, ones I’d bought before they were born (sniff, sniff!), and they sampled Mommy’s homemade strawberry cake.

When the girls were two, they wore pink shirts with hearts on them and enjoyed Mommy’s cinnamon pull-apart bread from heart-shaped bowls.

Last year, when the girls were three, we hosted a Valentine’s Day play date.  We did a craft, ate heart-shaped sandwiches, and enjoyed dipping marshmallows in chocolate and pink sprinkles.  I made little heart-shapedfelt “baskets” for the girls, and they got a couple of snack-size chocolates.  This was the first “gift” they’d ever gotten for Valentine’s Day.

This year, the girls were all about the holiday.  They remembered our play date from last year, and they were all too excited to start reading Valentine’s books and doing heart-themed crafts, almost as soon as New Year’s was over.  We built up to The Big Day by making cards, valentines, and sampling some of Mommy’s homemade confections.  (This year I made Oreo Truffles and strawberry fudge.)

This year I did a little bit more in the way of gifts.  I found the cutest pink and red undies a few weeks ago, and paired them with some red socks bearing the word “LOVE”, fitting them in their little felt baskets.  I also bought the girls each a little board book with a “love” theme.

They’d requested that I make them a cake for Valentine’s Day (which kind of came out of nowhere as far as I’m concerned…I don’t make a habit of making a lot of cakes!).  I couldn’t resist buying a heart-shaped pan and surprising them after supper with a piece of strawberry-filled, buttercream-iced confection.

The girls were delighted over everything, of course…but what warms my heart more than anything was what they deemed to be the highlight of their day.

I got them up on Valentine’s morning and told them I had a surprise…”We’re going to have an early breakfast with Daddy before he goes to work!”  They SQUEALED!!!  And then they proceeded to CACKLE and GIGGLE…and they’ve never used the potty so quickly, racing downstairs to give their daddy huge hugs.

I’ve done a bit more with each passing holiday, but my heart swells to know it’s still the precious little things that stand out to my babies.  I hope their hearts are always so tender.