Love

On Saturday we went to the square to test out Johanna's new soccer ball. A group of teenagers practicing "random acts of kindness" gave me a carnation which Johanna promptly borrowed and Emmy got the scraps.

Preparing for Valentine's Day.  Yesterday Johanna and I made Valentine's for Luke and Emmy.  Then we met up with Bevan and her son, Garrett, at the park.  Johanna and Garrett are in love.  We picnicked in the sun and played for nearly 3 hours.  We left with our first sunburns of the season.

For our Valentine's dinner I made a simple meal of salmon, asparagus and baked sweet potatoes. The real prize was dessert. I made strawberry shortcakes using this amazing recipe. I substituted the all-purpose flour with whole wheat pastry flour and it was divine. 

I think the secret weapon ingredient was the heavy cream. Always the bargain shopper...

Valentine's dinner table complete with cards on the plates, a wonderful tradition handed down from my mom.  Johanna was in heaven and could hardly contain herself as she waited for dinner to be served so she could start opening her special cards, including some from Ya-Ya & Grandpa Dick and Gigi.

After dinner as I was whipping the cream for dessert, Luke played a game with a very excited Johanna. They had to be very quiet while they waited for the shortcakes or they wouldn't come. She was silent, but the anticipation thick. Imagine how hard it was for her to wait for the photo to be taken once the "cake" was in front of her. It was so fun to watch!

I started the day with an awesome Yoga session and listened to Frank Sinatra as I baked. All in all, a pretty good day.

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