I Heart This Day

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!  St. Valentine's Day was first celebrated in 496 A.D. and remained on the Roman calendar of saints until 1969 when Pope Paul VI removed it.  What was he thinking? 

Nevertheless, Valentine's Day still remains quite popular and is the second largest card-selling holiday behind Christmas.  Every year I think back to the milk carton mailboxes in elementary school and the sheer joy I experienced ripping open all of the envelopes and reading the cards from my friends.  Of course, the manner in which I celebrate the holiday has changed over the years.

On Sunday the 13th, I made Jim a batch of white chocolate cherry shortbread cookies that I read about on another blog.  Even though they were preparation and time intense, Jim absolutely loved them and it made all of my hard work worth it.  They were so good, in fact, that they made it into my favorite recipes binder!  I plan to make them again during the holiday season because I love the festive coloring. 

White chocolate cherry shortbread cookies

Initially, I had the most difficult time figuring out what to buy him until I stumbled across a gift basket filled with "man foods."  However, I decided that there was no need to pay some internet company to assemble and ship a basket.  So, over the past few weekends, I began collecting the "fillers" at Putnam Market, Saratoga Salsa & Spice and Target.  I also owe Julie my gratitude for scouring the Broadway strip in Saratoga with me on a cold January afternoon.

When we got home for work, I presented Jim his presents.  The finished product contained beef jerky, pepperoni, peanuts, salsa, summer sausage, wing dip, chili con queso dip, dipping pretzels, Peeps, sour gummy Sweet Tarts, sour gummy lips, Peeps chocolate hearts and a Whitman's sampler.  I also added tickets to the Second Annual Mac and Cheese Bowl, which is sponsored by the Times Union/Regional Food Bank and being held this Saturday. There are 30 restaurants participating this year, so I can't even imagine how full we'll be afterward. It will definitely be fodder for a future blog post.

Jim's Valentine's presents

My presents

As for me, Jim had these lovely roses waiting along with some chocolate, pink candy corn and my favorite perfume in the world, Hypnotic Poison by Dior. It reminds me of the tropics - the most subtle, perfect combination of vanilla and almond. According to Sephora, it's an intoxicating blend of bitter almond, caraway spice, sambac jasmin, cinnamon, tuberose, vanilla, musk, mosses and jucarunda wood. In short, I adore it and have received many compliments on my
scent when wearing it.

How did you celebrate Valentine's Day?  Do you have a favorite fragrance or cologne?