Valentines Day Love!

Happy day of L-O-V-E, my friends!

We keep Valentines Day pretty simple around these parts. For sure we dress the part (and I have special new little V-day hairbows for the girls) and we have fun little snacks and meals. And, per my own family's tradition, we are visited later by the Valentines Man! He arrives in a red Spandex suit, sprinting lightening fast, running to and from our front door and ringing the doorbell to leave a special little treat. Nothing extravagant, just a little sweet treat! Sadly, Ian always misses his visit. He always seems to have just left the house to run a trashbag outside or go water some flowers. ;)

Our best gift this year was preschool artwork for the fridge!

The girls came downstairs this morning to a "fancy" breakfast -- heart waffles and fresh berries with a special treat of whipped cream and a cherry!

This morning we have two different playdates (naptime should be a good one today) and then later this evening, Ian and I will cook together and listen to some love music courtesy of Alexa. She's already knocking it out of the park this morning with my "Alexa, play Valentines music" request -- she knows what's up). 

On our menu: filet mignon (this recipe), crab cakes, haricots verts, green salads, and a no-bake cheesecake with cherry topping (this recipe). A teeny glass of red wine too :) 

We vowed no cards, no gifts. We will probably be uber-romantic and eat our supper alongside a murder show. HA!

Last night I celebrated Galentines Day with some girlfriends. We had lots of fun with my LipSense testers!

And for any of you looking to place an order, I have lots of fun freebies to send with you today! Your choice. See details on my Instastories (here) or on my Facebook page (here).

Happy Valentines Day to all of you lovely folks! MUAH!

Ladies' Valentines Gift Ideas $1 - $100

I don't believe that Valentines gifts have to be extravagant, but what lady wouldn't want something pink, sweet, or personalized?

And, truth: I'm not in the "Hallmark Holiday" camp. Instead, I LOVE Valentine's Day. We don't tell our loved ones enough how much they mean to us, right? So I'm totally cool with a day designated for us to remember and recognize those who make our hearts swell.

$1: A card. They are 2/$1 at Dollar Tree so you most definitely have no excuse to not pick one up. Extra credit? Write a poem inside. (Please don't just sign your name!) The cheesier the poem, the better.

$5: NYX Butter Glosses. These have a cult following. Smooth and glossy, and you can't beat the $5 pricetag. (here)

$10: "Be Mine" red spatula from Williams Sonoma. Love their kitchen accessories and I would most definitely use this year-round. (here)

$25: Kate Spade Tickled Pink stationery. Pink. Gold. Polka dots. (here)

$30: Baublebar initial bar bracelet. To wear the initial of your loved one. (here)

$40: Personalized 3-Initial Embosser With Stand. If it ain't moving, monogram it. (here)

$50: Kendra Scott Elle Earrings. They have this in a zillion colors, free shipping, free returns. Some colors even on sale in the $31-38 range! (here)

$75: Kate Spade rhinestone earrings. Vaaaa-vaaaaa-VOOM. (here)

$100: Fondue set for a little melted chocolate or cheese. And if you want to get creative, check out the Melting Pot menu for some inspiration of what to add to your melted chocolate (graham cracker bits, marshmallow, Oreo crumbles). Yum. Everyone needs a fondue set. (here)

Love Day Recap

I can't believe I have to wait another 364 days for the next Valentines Day.

Seriously ... I love this holiday.

Yesterday at work, people kept stopping by my desk with treats.  By 12:30pm, I realized that all I'd eaten that day was a strawberry cupcake with cream cheese icing, a snack pack of gummy hearts, and some Brach conversation hearts for good measure.  Yep, my kinda holiday.  And it only got better from there.

Ian knows how much I love tulips, so he had this arrangement waiting on me at home.

I had the dining room table set for dinner ... which, funny enough, is the first time that he and I dined solo in this room.  We typically eat at the breakfast room table, the bar, or in front of the television!

Pardon the state of the chair rail -- you can see we had the molding put up, but it is still unfinished.  We're having it caulked and painted this weekend!

I scattered silk rose petals on the table and even broke out our nice Ralph Lauren wine glasses with the gold rim.  You know it's a special holiday when you don't care about handwashing your stemware.  :)

I picked up these cute vintage-inspired Valentines boxes at Michaels.

Even our chandelier got a makeover!

I picked up a bottle of one of my favorite red wines.  Apothic is so completely yummy, and you can usually pick it up for about $10.

For dinner, I made the most delicious filet recipe from my girlfriend Ashley.  You sear the filets for a minute each side (after seasoning them with S&P and olive oil) and then pour over them a mixture of red wine, balsamic vinegar, garlic, and brown sugar.  Then just reduce the heat and cover the pan and cook for 4 minutes on each side.  Oh my word, it's a favorite recipe.

To accompany the filets, we had sauteed kale.  I sauteed it in some olive oil, a little butter, and chicken broth.  Salt and freshly ground pepper seasoned the dish, and Ian topped it with a little parmesan cheese.

For dessert, I made a lemon cheesecake pie topped with cherries.  We never have dessert like this on weeknights, but it was so fun to splurge.

With dessert, we opened cards and presents.

And I am the proud new owner of a Swell Caroline Moon & Lola monogram necklace!  It's the tortoiseshell script monogram necklace, and I love it.  It's a lighter color tortoise than Ian and I were expecting, but still pretty.

After dinner, we watched The Devil's Double which is not at all romantic, but a haunting and captivating story.  It's one we'd been wanting to watch for a while.  We didn't plan to watch it on Valentine's Day, but it's just what we had on hand from Netflix. 

I stayed awake for MOST of the movie, which is a huge feat for me.  Ian had to clue me in on how the movie ended, per usual.  Does that happen to anyone else -- once you're in the dark and snuggled up to another warm body, it's lights out?!

A fantastic Valentines Day celebration indeed.  I hope yours was lovely, too!