tuesday's list: valentine's

 
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So I'm using this week's Tuesday's List to share how we celebrated Valentine's Day. Everything from the food and goodies to the kid's parties. Please join me :)

#1 - Knox's School Party
Knox had his little Valentine's party at MDO on Thursday. Ironically, this was the day of the Great Texas Blizzard (over a foot, total!), so when I woke up and saw a 6in of snow on the ground and more coming, I assumed all the schools would be cancelled and they would move the party to next week. Well thanks to Facebook, I quickly found out I was WRONG! So seeing as I had stayed up til nearly midnight finishing Valentine's and making 2 dozen heart shaped sugar cookies for the kids to decorate, he was NOT missing that party! Luckily that was also the morning of my 12wk check-up, so we were able to drop him off a little late and head to the doctor's right next door... (Thank heavens the roads never got icy. Just a whole mess of snow!

But anyway - I found this new recipe for the cut-out cookies and now I'm keeping it because they were SOOO good! I usually use Paula's, but her's tend to be puffy - which is sometimes good - but I wanted flat ones so they'd be easier for the little ones to decorate. This recipe makes A LOT so I halved it but now I'm kind of wishing I hadn't so I would have had some to decorate myself!



I made these little Valentine's for Knox to pass to his classmates, and they got the teachers' stamp-of-approval for cuteness! Little Romeo also came home with lots of goodies for himself and some adorable artwork for his #1 Valentine... Mommy!

#2 - For the Family
All of our family is in Tennessee, so on special days I like to be sure to get a little something in the mail to them all.



Keeping with the firetruck theme - I made these cute Valentines on cardstock, had some wallets printed at Wal-Mart, and attached them with pop-dots so that they could be easily removed and kept. I also sent these to his teachers. They were a hit all around! And for the grandparents, I drug out my Xyron and made them into laminated magnets...



(Oh, you KNOW I had to have one for my own fridge as well!)

Knox wasn't forgotten either. He got Valentine's from all 3 sets of grandparents!

#3 - Our Celebration
James and I decided to celebrate Valentine's on Saturday night in the comfort of our own home.  That's right - no waiting 40 minutes for a table, no overpriced meals, no crowded theater, and no having to pay a sitter! It worked for us ;)

I went to the gourmet meat market and splurged on a few choice cuts, and made James' favorite - Filet Oscar...



Oh it was divine. I paired it with roasted asparagus topped with bernaise sauce and Mashed Baked Potatoes.

[There's a story behind those potatoes... James has stuck his foot in his mouth one-too-many times over my mashed potatoes and apparently (ahem) he seems to think I put too much butter in them. (Like that's even possible?!) Anyway - I'm currently 'on strike' and refusing to make them, so I hopped on to Paula's site (not exactly the place to turn when you're looking for less butter, but she never lets me down!) and found this recipe. Gotta say - they were amazing - and although loaded with cream cheese, sour cream, and (YES) butter - they seemed to please Mr. Picky.]

And for dessert...



Homemade Ghiradelli chocolate covered strawberries (Be still, my heart...) and our favorite local wine. Just a few sips for me of course, and then it was sparkling grape juice for the rest of the night ;)

All enjoyed while watching It's Complicated and The Blind Side... In the comfort of our own living room! 100% legal, non-bootlegged copies. Promise. Let's just say it pays to have family in Hollywood... We've got New Moon and Dear John (among other boy choices) coming to us :)

#4 - The Goodies
Well you may remember that my new desk was my Anniversary/Valentine's gift, and seeing how I'm putting it to good use, that's OK with me! However I did manage to get a pretty good foot and back massage as well :) James' gift was the meal. It's not often I let him devour 10oz of cow smothered in butter sauce and mashed potatoes and not mention a word about cholesterol... Haha!

So really, it was Knox who made out like a bandit this year. (Shocker...)



We got him a Dodge Ram to match his Daddy's. Except it's better because it's not just plain black and it 'dances' to the Cotton Eyed Joe. (I'm already wanting to drown it...) And we also got him a few movies ($5 Target special!) and the 'Rescue Mater' to add to his Cars collection. Don't you know that boy's in hog heaven with all those trucks!