Me: “The English language has so many long words made up of Latin components. I’m surprised more smaller words didn’t get invented along the way, like ‘theb’ and ‘gack’ and ‘bley’.”

Michael: “Yeah, I know. Now drink your gack so that we can go to bley.”

Moments after we walked into the store, Michael spotted a sweater covered in multiple colors of sequins draped over one of the women’s clothing racks.  He ran over to it, grabbed it, waved it in the air and shouted, “We have a winner!”

Me:  “No. I am not wearing that.”

Michael:  “It’s not for you!  It’s for ME!”

Me:  “That’s a woman’s sweater.”

Michael:  “It’s an ugly sweater party!  This is PERFECT!”

Me:  “Michael, it has shoulder pads.”

Michael:  “I know!  Aren’t they cool?!?”

(I will post a photo here after he dons his sweater tonight)

Michael: “No, it’s Presidents’ Day.”

Me: Oh. Did you get me a president?”

Michael: “I’ll see if I can get you Clinton.”

Me: “I don’t think I want him.”

Michael: “But he’s probably on clearance.  I bet I can get him really cheap.”

Michael: “That’s what Jesus would do.”

Me: “No. Jesus was good. He was nice to his wife.”

Michael: “Uh…”

Me: “Okay, Jesus was nice to other people’s wives.”

Michael: “That’s even better!”

Me: “Why did you buy such a big box?”

Michael: “Don’t worry. They were really cheap.”

Me: “I’m mostly just worried about where to store them. That’s a big box!  I don’t know if it will fit in the cupboard.”

Michael: “Just store the left-over crackers in the chicken coop. They’ll fit in the there.”

Me: “Are Beyonce and Jay-Z actually married, or are they just in a relationship?”

Michael: “I don’t know, but I don’t think that baby will ever want for anything.  Even if they break up, I don’t think Beyonce is going to go on Wicca.”

Me: “Uh, that would be WIC.  You know, the ‘Women, Infants and Children’ program.”

Michael: “Oh yeah.  WIC, not Wicca…  I doubt anybody is ever going to accuse Beyonce of being a witch.”

Mary Kay Indulge® Soothing Eye Gel Sample

Michael: “What’s that little tube on the counter?”

Me: “Oh, that’s just a sample of Mary Kay’s eye reducing formula.”

Oops!

I have an addiction.  Yes, I fully admit it.  I love Cost Plus World Market.  It is truly one of my favorite places to shop.  Our local Beaverton store is always filled with unique items that tickle my imagination.

At Cost Plus World Market I found these adorable little gift boxes to fill and display in this neat little replica shopping cart.

I  do my Valentine’s Day shopping there because the gift ideas are much more fun and original than those found on the typical grocery store shelves.  This is the second year that I have made my V-Day purchases exclusively from Cost Plus World Market, and I’d like to share some of my finds.

Valentine’s Day at our house is not just for my husband and me.  I love to pick up trinkets for the kids, which I place out on the dining room table the night before.  They awaken to their gifts from “Cupid”.  It’s a fun way to begin the holiday.

Red velvet pancakes for breakfast!

This year, two of the kids are going to be away at college, so I will save their treats from Cupid until we next see them.

After the family members who are home are finished going through their goodies on Valentine’s Day morning, I plan to make red velvet pancakes for breakfast.  I’d never seen these before, but I thought they looked like a lot of fun to make.  I imagine they will be yummy too.

Everybody loves pancakes, so I know the Valentine’s Day twist on an old favorite will be well received.

While I’m busy making breakfast, I’m pretty sure that Michael will make me a mocha in the new “coffee non-paper cup” that I picked up for myself during my shopping trip.  He does that on a fairly regular basis anyway and, after all, it will be Valentine’s Day.

Whole Beans Coffees and my new "Non-Paper Cup"

If you haven’t tried the World Market coffees, you are missing out.  We buy them in whole bean form and use them in our espresso machine.  There are many different varieties from which to choose.   These coffees truly make it worth getting up every morning.

Oh, and isn’t that non-paper cup super cute?  I thought so!

Since the kids haven’t developed a taste for coffee yet, they’ll be getting their own special beverages on Valentine’s Day.

Chocolate Beverages and Chocolate Coins

Around our house, the USDA recommended daily food allowances kind of get put on hold on certain holidays.  Valentine’s Day is one of those days.  I figure that we have the entire rest of the year to balance out those few days each year, so why not just enjoy the special occasions?

So, hot chocolate will flow for the non-coffee drinkers.

The chocolate beverages may well be found in the little chimpanzee mug that I picked up at World Market.  Isn’t that just a crack-up?  I bought it for Michael some time back and it gets a lot of use around here.

Pink Velvet Cupcakes

In the spirit of the holiday, I intend to make Valentine’s Day cupcakes for everyone.  I found a Pink Velvet Cupcake Mix that looks divine and I’m sure they’ll be popular.

Can you tell that I like anything that has the word “velvet” in it?  Am I that transparent?  Ha ha!

I do plan to share the cupcakes – perhaps with neighbors or friends -  because I have plenty of other sweet indulgences planned for Tuesday.

It’s a school and work day at our house, but I will have some fun and silliness awaiting the return of the family members.

Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies and Ouija Board Mints

If you know this family, you know that we enjoy goofy activities.

I found these Valentine’s Day fortune cookies, and thought they’d be fun to crack open.  I also wasn’t able to pass up the Ouija Board mints.  I don’t know how they’ll taste, but they will no doubt be quite the conversation starter.  It’s little finds like these that always make Valentine’s Day shopping so much fun!

If you’re curious about the little mailbox in the photo, that was a project I did with Vesper’s Girl Scout troop.  It was a simple project using foam sheets, foam stickers, craft glue, tape, a brad (for the flag), and a magnetic closure.  The girls made “love notes” for each other and their family members.  It was a pretty cool little craft project!

Bath Fizzies and a Love Note

After everyone is off to school or work and I have the cupcakes made, I may just settle in for a nice soak in the tub.  I picked up some bath fizzies that I plan to divide up among the girls and myself.  I figure there is nothing wrong with a little self-pampering on Valentine’s Day too.

Before Michael gets home from work, I will make sure to have his card all filled out.  I thought this one was so cute!  now I just have to figure out what to write inside.

As a self-professed chocoholic, Valentine’s Day just wouldn’t be Valentine’s Day without lots of chocolate in the house.  The chocolate pictured below will be distributed by Cupid to be found on the dining room table in the morning.  I thought the beef jerky chocolate would be sufficiently weird as a diversion from the more traditional choices that I also selected.

Chocolate

Flowers

Lindt Balls

Then, of course, there are the flowers.  I love a bouquet of roses just as much as any other girl.  However, fresh cut roses don’t last very long.  World Market has a wide selection of decorative flowers and branches that will never wilt.  Also carried is an extensive collection of glass containers and vases for display purposes.  So many possibilities!

Candlelight Dinner

If Michael doesn’t catch the above hint, that’s okay.  I’m really just looking forward to spending some time with him on Tuesday evening.

Perhaps we’ll have a candlelight dinner with an Italian twist to it.  I have a lot of the supplies for such a dinner already on hand.

Sometime during the day, I’m definitely going to pull out the napkins that I found.  The cartoon on it made me giggle, and it’s about love, so it fits right in with my Valentine’s Day theme.  If you can’t see the napkins clearly, go ahead and click on the photo and you will be taken to a larger version of the photo.  From there you should be able to see the drawing.

Wine Accessories - foil cutter, stemless glasses, stopper, Vinturi aerator and glass markers

Since Valentine’s Day is on a weekday this year, Michael and I have decided that a mellow evening is agreeable to us both.  We’ve discussed going to try out the new Cinetopia luxury cinema at Progress Ridge.  “The Vow” is playing that night, and it sounds like a romantic movie.

Certain auditoriums at Cinetopia allow the serving of adult beverages while in attendance, but we’ll probably just wait until we get home.  We have all of the necessary supplies on hand, and I purchased several bottles from which we will be able to choose.  It will be nice to relax with Michael and enjoy a glass of red.

Red wines and fruit candies

Here I have photographed some of our bottles.  Which one do you think we should pull out and open for Valentine’s night?

I thought that the little raspberry candies added a festive touch.  I’ll put those out on the coffee table for nibbling when the wine is served.

We often use stemless glasses because they are less apt to be tipped over.  Always use coasters when placing the glasses on wood surfaces in case of condensation formation.

I’m looking forward to Valentine’s Day here at our house!  I’m ready to start dishing out lots of love and kisses!

Lots of Love and Kisses!