Looking for Love

I usually put a fair amount of energy into Valentine's Day. I don't necessarily go overboard, but the holiday doesn't go unnoticed either. I decorate the house and the front porch on February 1st, decorate the kids' bedroom doors throughout the first two weeks of the month, bake heart-shaped cookies and brownies for snacks, and send Valentine's Day-themed cupcakes to school. I buy the kids a couple of small gifts, put together a photo album showcasing the previous year for Tom (an annual tradition), and assemble my (also an annual tradition) Valentine's Day treasure hunt.

But this year I am d...r...a...g...g...i...n...g. I skipped the house decorations and didn't put up my Valentine's Day wreath and front porch decorations until last Wednesday. I have been decorating the kids' bedroom doors with notes of love written on construction paper hearts, but I haven't baked cookies or brownies or cupcakes. I have a couple of small gifts for the kids and Tom's photo album ready to go, but I haven't yet started on the treasure hunt.

What has been one of my favorite months since we moved to Texas has been kind of a bummer for me this year. A variety of reasons come to mind: I accidentally over-extended myself with writing assignments, I can't seem to get ahead of my volunteer commitments, my allergies have been giving me a run for my money, I've been under the weather (for the first time in a year though, so I really shouldn't complain), and, speaking of the weather, we have had record-setting highs almost every day for the last week. I know it sounds ridiculous, but I truly believe I have some strange version of seasonal affective disorder; I cannot handle warm hot, sunny weather when the calendar indicates it should be cold and snowy (or at least chilly and rainy) outside.

February is my comfort month. In February we make hot chocolate after school, curl up in front of the fireplace with a good book, and watch movies snuggled under blankets on the couch. We go to bed early, sleep late on the weekends, and reconnect as a family as we "hunker down" to endure winter's last flurry and prepare for spring's arrival. And since none of that has happened this February, I'm just not feeling it this Valentine's Day Eve.

But...

Valentine's Day will be here tomorrow whether I like it or not, and my kids (and husband) need a little love spread around the house. They need their heart-shaped cookies. They need their traditional Valentine's Day treasure hunt. So today is all about looking for love (and perhaps a little humor), so that when tomorrow rolls around I'll have enough in my tank to make my family's day special. Here's what I've found so far.

• 15 minutes of yoga courtesy of my friend and yoga instructor, Bev. (Best to start off the day with a little self-love, don't you think?) 

• These photos, all of which are finalists for the 2016 Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards.
• This dog, as she meets her most-loved toy in real life.
• This story about a Connecticut town's EMT service...that's run entirely by high school students.
• These funny tweets that only husbands would say.
• And finally, CHiP, the Keurig for cookies. If this doesn't say love, I don't know what does.

I feel better already! And it doesn't hurt that today and tomorrow's high temperature are 70 and 60 degrees. 😉