Happy St. Valentine’s Day

 

My mom brought home Calla Lillies for me last week while she was here and my Hubby brought home beautiful flowers for my mom and I earlier in the week.  They were gorgeous!

The stargazer lily in my mom’s bouquet was at least 8 inches across.  It was just outstanding.  I cannot recall seeing such a beautiful lily in a bouquet.

True Companion

Eric & I exchanged Valentine cards tonight after being gone all weekend. I was excited for him to open my card because I knew he'd like it. Knowing Eric is a fan of the musical cards, I discretely scanned the square envelope he gave me and quickly said, "You open yours first!" He complied. We both had a good laugh and a kiss to follow.

A little background and an explanation . . .

In college, Eric was accepted to a six month IFYE (International Foreign Youth Exchange) program through 4-H. We'd been seeing each other for about a year at the time he found out he was accepted. I was excited for him, because the program is limited, and I knew it would be a great experience for him. So, during my senior year of college, he was in Australia exploring and learning the culture of Down Under while I toiled away at my studies. It was a good test for our relationship, and one that neither of us regret.

During that time of limited contact (there was no internet access and phone calls were few because they were extrememly expenisive), we sent letters and cassette tapes back and forth. His tapes were much better than mine! And yes, I still have them. One of the tapes included this Marc Cohn song - True Companion (and it happens to be the featured song on the musical Valentine cards we gave to each other this year).

You can listen to a sample here and the lyrics are below.

Baby I've been searching like everybody else
Can't say nothing different about myself
Sometimes I'm an angel and sometimes I'm cruel
But when it comes to love I'm just another fool

Yes I've climbed a mountain
I'm gonna swim the sea
There ain't no act of God, girl
Could keep you safe from me
My arms are reaching out,
out across this canyon

I'm asking you to be my true companion
True companion
True companion

So don't you dare and try to walk away
I've got my heart set on our wedding day
I've got this vision of a girl in white
Made my descision that its you alright
When I take your hand, I watch my heart set sail
I'll take my trembling fingers, and I'll lift up your veil
Then I'll take you home and with wild abandon
Make love to you just like a true companion
You are my true companion
I got a true companion
Whoa true companion

When the years have done irreparable harm
I can see us walking slowly arm in arm,
Just like that couple on the corner do
Cause girl I will always be in love with you
When I look in your eyes, I still see that spark
Until the shadows fall, until the room grows dark

Then when I leave this earth I'll be with the angels standing
I'll be out there watiing for my true companion
Just for my true companion
True companion
True companion

Saint Valentine's Day!

Happy Saint Valentine's Day!

Today is also ValenDine. This is an event a group of friends and I planned last year to help raise money to complete a renovation of the childcare room for the Cathedral. It was a night of fine dining, beautiful vocal solos and duets, entertainment from a string quartet, a marriage vow renewal ceremony and a blessing for engaged couples or singles. In addition, childcare is provided onsite at a reasonable cost. The event was a success, making all the planning well worth it.

The childcare room renovations were recently completed, and the room is so peaceful and clean. All that remains to be done is a bit of decorating in the room itself. I still hope to acquire toys for the room and organize them in the best way. Thanks to helpful friends, this will be completed soon, too.

Tonight, another group (a circle from our church) has decided to carry on ValenDine. It is my hope that it becomes an annual tradition. The marriage vow renewal was my favorite part of the whole evening, and it is why I hope this event continues to be a tradition. My husband and I are helping at ValenDine this year, but also hope to attend and enjoy the evening.

The Bleeding Hearts shown in the photo are just beautiful in my opinion. They are one of the first plants to poke through in the spring time and are an incredibly easy plant to grow because they require so little care. Bleeding Hearts would be a good addition in any Mary Garden.