Happy Valentine's Day!!!!

I love this holiday! I know it's made up by Halmark, blah, blah, blah, but I really enjoy all of the hearts and flowers and focus on love. I know we should focus on love every day, but it is nice to have a day dedicated to it. A holiday makes the day (week, month) seem extra special, a break in the mundane. It is ecspecially fun to give and recieve cards and gifts from loved ones. It was so cute to watch Rylie open all of her Valentine's from her little friends ("ooh, Ratatouille, My Little Pony, Dora!") The best though, was watching her jaw drop when she came downstairs this morning and saw the gift Daddy had set out for her on the table. It was a plush My Little Pony baby, complete with a diaper and bottle. She has been playing with her regular ponies nonstop and loves babies (ecspecially with all the Anna talk), so this was a perfect present for her! Her face was so cute, her jaw did literally drop. She could have cared less that Anna got a super soft pink teddy bear from Daddy, or that Mommy got a Starbucks gift card and movie from Daddy (Gone with the Wind). She did pause for a moment to give Daddy the picture frame she had painted for him.
After our gift exchange we ran some errands and then she went out to a special Valentine's lunch with Grandma and Grandpa and the seniors group from church, while I went to my Doctor's appointment. I was able to spend a half hour focusing on my little Anna Sophia while she was on the monitor. The Doctor said she was not in any distress, and was in fact doing perfectly what he would want her to be doing! This is such a praise! I will go back in on Monday for another ultrasound to see if there is any change in the amniotic fluid levels, but so far, so good! (For those of you keeping track, I have been having strong contractions the last two nights.)
Tonight, Rylie gets to spend time with her Nana and her boy cousins (which she adores!), while my Valentine and I go out for dinner with our Flock Group.
I am so blessed by all the love in my life. I have such great family and friends (even though Rylie told me this morning that Daddy and I didn't have any friends) and am blessed by a wonderful church body. A day never goes by that my sweetpea and I don't exchange lots of hugs and snuggles. I love it when she's in the middle of playing and looks up at me and says, "I love you Mom"! My littlest Valentine is snuggled inside of me right now! My true love is amazing! He is such a Godly husband, father, friend, mentor. . . I could go on and on. We have been married for allmost 10 years now and been friends for 18 years (is that possible??). He is my "best friend with benefits" and I love him so much. He unselfishly cares for Rylie and I and constantly shows us that he loves us. He is always there for me and challenges me to grow in my faith. He is my night in shining armor with his white steed (or Buick)!

Happy Valentine's Day!