Day of Love-Valentines

Valentines Day is a weird day is it not?  I mean, how stupid is it that elementary children have Valentines Day parties?  I like the idea of reminders to express your love for people, but all the decorating, gifts, and cards...crazy.  I know what my deal is, I hate being told what to do!  When I was a kid, we had a book that my mother loved to death--  Mrs. Piggle Wiggle. Mrs. Piggle Wiggle helped parents straighten out kids who were, hmmm, shall we say struggling with some behavior issues?  Well, there was this one story about a stubborn young lady who would retort "I'll do it because I WANT to NOT because you tell me too."  For some reason, my parents found this story to be hilarious and comforting.  It seems I resembled that child.  Go figure.  Anyway, I still have that same streak.  I hate that mass marketing  and peer pressure  rule the way we celebrate holidays:  think tacky inflatable Santas riding Harleys in people's yards, or having a party for 7 yr olds to pass out Valentines cards to children of the opposite sex.  So, to throw my family off  my Grinch path and hope that they grow up a little nicer than I am, I decorated our dining room(just a tiny bit) for Valentines Day.  I had a bunch of cut out hearts from a project years ago.  I strung them up above the windows.  Then, I wrote "This is why I love you" notes to the kids and put them at their place at our dining table.  Dinner was served on hot pink plates.  I really blew it out of the water--for me anyways ;)  Mike is much more sweet than I and surprised me with a handmade beaded necklace that a lady at the school makes.  It is so pretty!

Before you go thinking it was a heavenly day filled with harp music and love, let me finish.  Hudson started the day with a stomach virus.  He was so listless and quiet, I've never ever seen him still and not talking!  It was scary. When you meet your child for the first time at age 21months, you don't have any idea what they act like when they are sick. From the day we got him he's been a tornado of movement and noise.  Yesterday morning he just would lay on the floor, not saying a word.  Abby, the ever wise and sensitive one said "Well, you are going to have an easy day!"  Love that no-nonsense girl.  He did perk up at noon and wanted "chicken-fe" or Chick Fil A.  I made a classic mommy mistake and let him eat.  We then went into Ross for daddy some shirts.  BARF--all over my leg and the floor in the check out line.  Lovely.  Never fear, he was fine after that!  And, the real expression of love wasn't a Valentine gift, but a mommy's arms and loving caress while he was sick.
The evening ended with Mike and I watching Phantom of the Opera--which he gets to see on Broadway next week--hear me yell no fair!  Then, I finished my FEMA disaster training for my community health class.  So romantic.