20 Things I Love

 

Last month I read a blog post by Ashley at The Big White Farmhouse blog where she made a list of 20 simple things she loves about her life.  I thought that was a wonderful way to start the new year, and it inspired me to do the same.  I decided to wait to post mine near Valentine's Day since that seemed fitting, so here is the list I came up with:

1. That first cup of steaming flavored coffee in my favorite mug when I come downstairs at 6 AM.

2. Holding and petting our 2 Maine cooncats.

 

3. Spending hours browsing in a library or bookstore.

4. Attending concerts and shows with my husband.

 

5. Sitting in my new kitchen as the sun streams through the windows.

6. The smell of homemade bread baking in the oven.

 

7. Seeing several "Comments Awaiting Moderation" in my blog inbox after publishing a post.

8. Sitting down to blog when the house is quiet and I have no interruptions.

 

9. Playing board games as a family on long winter nights.

10. The feel of a baby in my arms.

 

11. The smell of crisp sheets after they've hung on the clothesline on a sunny day.

12. Walking through the woods with my camera.

 

13. Filling a pew at church when grandparents and adult children come to visit.

14. Trying out a new dinner recipe while sipping a glass of wine.

 

15. Feeling the breeze off the mountain blow through our kitchen screen doors on a summer evening.

16. The sound of water flowing in the brook beside our house.

 

17. My afternoon cup of homemade mocha with nutmeg and cinnamon on my way to the school.

18. Watching goat kids and lambs frolic in the pastures.

 

19. Licking raw cookie dough off the beaters.

20. One big snowfall each winter with all of us at home for a snow day.

 

This list just scratches the surface.  Those of you who read this blog know that each season and holiday brings another unique collection of photographs of the things I love most about life.  Focusing on those things and the positive in every person and situation I encounter is one of my goals for this year.  

So what about you?  What would be on your list of 20 things you love?

Homemade Ideas for Valentine's Day

Pretzel Treats

 With Valentine's Day less than a week away, I need to start planning to do something special for the ones I love.  These are some of the things I made last year. 

Raspberry Filled Sugar Cookies

Heart Shaped Cucumber & Cheese Slices

Cupid Floats

Recipes for these treats can be found on my blog here.

And here are a couple that I actually made on Valentine's Day last year:

Salted Caramel Cocoa

Cocoa Pudding Cake

The recipes for these can be found in my blog archive here.

How about you?  Do you have any special Valentine's Day recipes you make for your sweethearts?  I'd love some new ideas for this year.

Simple Valentine Treats to Make With Your Peeps

I know this sounds un-American, but while most of the country was preparing for the Super Bowl, my children and I spent Saturday creating Valentine treats.  Some things were inspired by Pinterest, but others were my traditional sweets.  Everything is super simple to make and requires little time and few ingredients.  All of it was well-received.

Valentine Pretzel Treats

This is one I did find on Pinterest and was a huge success because it is colorful, bitesized, and only requires 3 ingredients.  Simply put square pretzels (I used the butter flavored ones) on a cookie sheet, and top each one with a Hershey's Hugs chocolate.  Place in a 300 degree oven for about 2 or 3 minutes until the Hugs have softened, but not completely melted.

As soon as they come out of the oven, place a dark chocolate Valentine colored M&M in the center.  I couldn't find a good way to do this without getting messy.  It was a bit too tedious for my smaller children.  Maybe using a pair of tweezers would be a good idea.

Just look how cute these turned out.  The Hugs eventually firm up once cooled and the treat is no longer gooey.  Perfect for classroom parties or just to have at home.

Raspberry Filled Sugar Cookies

These heart shaped cookies are something I've been making for years.  Sometimes I fill them with creme frosting, but this time I used Smuckers Natural Raspberry Fruit Spread.  Simply roll out your favorite sugar cookie dough and cut out with heart shaped cookie cutters.  For the top cookie, cut a smaller heart out of the center and bake everything in the oven according to the directions.  I used refrigerated Pillsbury sugar cookie dough and baked them in a 350 degree oven for 11 minutes.  After they come out of the oven, let cool for a minute.  Then spread the jam on the solid hearts and sprinkle powdered sugar on the cookies with the center cut out.  Place the tiny heart shaped cookies aside.

Then, place them together like a sandwich, and you've got pseudo healthy Valentine sugar cookies.  Yummy!

All those little heart shapes you cut out of the cookies above can be covered in frosting and decorated by the kiddos.  Our favorite butter cream frosting can be found here at my blog post from last July.

Some easy treats that aren't sweet are these Town House heart shaped pretzel thins with a piece of cooper cheese on top---in the shape of a heart, of course.  Cucumbers are also easy to slice and push a small metal heart shaped cookie cutter through.  Somehow even raw veggies are more appealing to children if they're in a different shape.

Valentine Floats

To make some pink non-alcoholic beverages, I used some vanilla ice cream, cranberry Sierra Mist, whipped cream, and maraschino cherries to create Cranberry Floats.

Just put a couple of scoops of vanilla ice cream in the bottom of each glass, add the soda, and top with whipped cream and a cherry and straw.

The only problem was that the whipped cream and maraschino cherries kept sinking into the foam before I could get a good picture taken.  Didn't change the flavor though.  The kids definitely want me to make these more often.

Finally, since I've gotten into seasonal chalkboard art on my front porch, the snowman was erased, and a Valentine theme was created.  Although, it's looking like we might get more snow here in a few days.

Now doesn't this look like more fun than watching a football game?