Happy Valentine's Day, 2015

Like this guy, only cooler.

     So this has been one of the best Valentine's Days I've ever had. It was even better than the time my mom sent me a heart-shaped Valentine balloon that had a face and a tux and crepe paper arms and legs with cardboard feet and hands that would sort of bounce/walk across the room. She sent it to me in school when I was in sixth-grade, making me the object of much jealousy. I named him Billy Walker, and we danced around the school.

     Sadly, I woke up with a migraine. The migraine actually woke me up out of a sound sleep. So I got everyone else up, started the pot de crème while Lydia made breakfast, so I could eat and take something for my head and did my migraine remedy routine, which involves drinking a glass of prune juice, a cup of coffee, a little food, some ibuprofen, and movement. It sounds crazy, but it works.

    I gave each of my Valentine's a gift in order of when they became my Valentine, so I started with Ray. I gave him a drawing book that he's wanted for years now. I also have a tradition. You see, back in 1993, when Ray and I met, I gave him a Valentine card and a "box." It was made of a block of wood and described how it should never be open because it held love inside. It had a cute poem on the bottom that has long since been lost, and it was wrapped in light blue paper with a curly, blue bow. Ray kept it, even though we didn't get together back then. Every year since then, with the exception of last year when I couldn't find one, I have given Ray a box of some sort for Valentine's. This year, I found a box of colored pencils with a Dia de los Muertos skull on it. And it kept with our theme. Ray picked my name, so he made a chocolate bar for me, and it had dried cranberries and dates in it.


     Lydia was next on my list. She really wanted Dexter Charming, so she got it. Like I already mentioned, she made breakfast of chocolate chip waffles. She also spent her own money to get all of us gifts. She got Ray and me Skylanders, and she got her brothers some Mixels. She also made everyone a card using stamps she got from Ray's parents for Christmas. She made her chocolate bar for Victor. It had almond butter and strawberry preserves in it.


     Victor and Alex were next. They both have fallen in love with paper craft. Victor wanted more Minecraft, and Alex wanted Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Victor made his chocolate for Alex with dried cranberries and strawberry preserves. And Alex made his chocolate for Ray. It had dates, dried cranberries and raw sunflower seeds in it. The boys put on a Valentine's concert for us. The name of their band is Boyz 2 Bed. They got an unofficial Valentine gift of mesh bags to keep their paper craft toys in.

     Ray made me a card, which was really nice. He also gave me volume two of season six of Ancient Aliens because we love that show, and he made me some rose-flavored dark chocolate roses and hearts. I made my chocolate for Lydia with dried cranberries. The candy bars we made were a lot of fun, even if some of them fell apart because of being too stuffed with tasty goodness.

     We had sushi for lunch because we haven't had it in a while. Then we danced. We got a family gift of Just Dance 2015, and we danced. There are some really fun songs on it. My parents came over to give us some cards because they are awesome and love us.

     As night approached, it was time to make our special Valentine's dinner. Ray and I made it together: Paleo burritos and Mexican Chili Chocolate Pot de Crème. The wrap on the burrito is a recipe from a book by Kelly Bejelly called Paleo Eats. It is full of ground turkey, onion, peppers, cumin, cayenne, oregano, and avocado, and topped with salsa. The pot de crème was a real winner and pretty easy to convert to Paleo, so I'll post the recipe. We watched the movie while we ate our delicious meal, and I was sad when it was gone.

     Now that Valentine's is out of the way, it's time to buckle down again. I'm working on a pretty big project. It's going to be two approaches to living a Paleo lifestyle. I hope everyone had a great Valentine's Day. This is my Valentine to you: Love life. Live it to the fullest. I love you and wish you love and health. Happy Valentine's Day!