Red Hearts in a White February

This decor-challenged lady tried her best to spruce up for February!

The candle is one the girls made from beeswax to put into a sunshine box for some friends.

We had some gorgeous, frosty days!

Colorado frost against a Colorado sky!

  

I loved this bouquet of roses in the morning sunshine.

I was planning to buy pretzels for a really simple, cute Valentine's Day snack, that only requires pretzels, icing in the middle and a sweetheart candy on top, BUT I forgot the pretzels!

Sooo--I quickly looked up other ideas to make do since I didn't want to have to run all the way back into town just to buy pretzels.

We tried to make jello heart cutouts, but there were some scraps of jello left over, which we chopped up and added to whipped cream, and decorated with these iciing hearts and--what we made out of our heads was better than from recipes!

I didn't think till after I uploaded this picture, that our home-raised T-bone steaks Rose grilled for Valentines Day supper were heart-shaped!

We were going to eat the candy from this big box I bought after Christmas when candy was 50% off, but then we decided to let Sam take it to the fire station. He was gone most evenings that week to the fire station. He is having to take a lot of training, including wild lands training, and he's thinking about EMT training.

Jonathan bought me these beautiful tulips.

I got the children these balloons at Dollar Tree. Crystal took some of our decorations to her restaurant to spruce it up for Valentines Day.

Balloons are always a hit.

A plate we made for our neighbor ranchers whom the children work for, made with cheese cutouts and snowflake crackers.

I added this cardinal and Hannah added little hearts.

Mending Carrie's coat pocket.

On Valentines Day, (my sister-in-law Anita calls it Happy Hearts Day), one of my nieces and one of my nephews celebrate birthdays!

Just love our puppies cuddling up with each other under the deck swing on a warmer day.

The children have no end of playmates with all the puppies!

Last week, my sister Dorcas's girls sent Carrie a sunshine box to cheer her up while she convalesced from her fall from the horse!

They had such sweet little gifts, including this (I think) homemade purselette,

and pretty soap, lovely water floral water bottle,yarn, and a CD.
Thanks to Mercy and her sisters!

So we just keep moving along through our ordinary and not-so-ordinary days, blessed with friendship and cheer from those we love, and blessed with our own family's love.

The girls help me so much with the meals.
Below Jonathan is making popcorn Sunday evening, Carrie is making chip dip, and Rose is making a molasses syrup for popcorn balls!