Sharing the Valentine's Day Love!

If any of you see my posts on facebook, you know I have been down in the dumps as of late.  I am missing Charles like CRAZY and having Valentine's Day lurking in background of everything we seem to do or see, I have had a MAJOR case of the blues.  Of course, the horrible, cold, Idaho-like winds over the past week only made matter worse!

That made these little treasures even more sweet!  Charles father and stepmother sent a fabulous box of chocolates from L.A. Burdick, just for ME!

 It meant so much to know someone was thinking of me this week.  My late Grandpa Jean used to always send me a box of chocolates for Valentine's day- even through college.  I always looked forward to that box, and I think of him every Valentine's day.... thank you to Charlie and Nancy for making that sweet memory even more special.

 When I opened the box, I was so impressed with the treats inside!  Super-small, little delectables that are super diet-friendly!  Just enough to give you the taste of chocolate without gorging yourself!  And with flavors like"Ginger", "Cashew Sesame" and "Lemongrass with Peppercorn", I knew these would be one-of a-kind treats to remember!

 In the center of the box were these 2 precious chocolate mice truffles!  Complete with tails!

 A couple days later, we got a care package from Charles' mom, "Mama Peg."  She sent Mallory this princess placemat and some cute Princess sunglasses, which I had to PRY off of Mallory's face for bedtime!  Her cookies were enjoyed by all, and I am so grateful that she took the time to send us some love from North Carolina!

 Of course, they all gave us a bunch of Valentines, which we will open in the morning.  Can't wait!

 My niece, Isabella, is in the third grade this year.  This girl LOVES her some arts and crafts!  When she got her assignment to make a box to collect her Valentines at the V-Day party, she headed to Hobby Lobby and enlisted her Auntie Amber to help her make a super-duper-special-girlie box!

 She was really into adding some height with pipe-cleaner "fountains of love" and making her heart pop-up off of the top!

 This same weekend, she had a book report to work on, and had to make a diorama describing the book "Eloise".  Not really a Valentine's craft, but I took a picture to share, anyway!

 My nephew, Tony, is in the 5th grade this year.  He goes to the same elementary school as Isabella, and also got the assignment to make a valentine container for all of his Valentines at the party.  Having never been a 5th grade boy myself, I tried to just think as he would.... you don't want it to LOOK like you thought valentines were cool, but you would want it to look like you put in some effort.  Here in Texas, we have 3-liter Coke bottles.  Don't ask me where I got the idea, but I suggested to Tony that he cut a slit in the top of a Coke bottle and use it to hold his valentines!

 Not only did he like the idea, he took it one step further and decided to make the bottle into a dog!  (yes, I know the nose may be pig-like, but trust me... in his eyes, it is a DOG!)

 He made a label for the side that says "Every Boy Loves His Dog", just to be SURE his classmates would KNOW it was a dog!

I just happened to have a teeny bit of red pipe cleaner left over from a project.  Perfect for the finishing touch- a tail!

Sending all of YOU love on Valentine's Day!