Happy Valentine's Day!

Love it or hate it...it's here again. Valentine's Day! If you have read my previous Valentine's Day posts then you know that I am rather fond of this day of love (and not because I'm married or in a relationship). I've always enjoyed it and how it gives us all an excuse (and sometimes we do need one) to share/spread/profess our love/like/kindness to the people in our lives.

My daughter and I put together just over 30 Valentine's Day cards for her friends at school and at Sparks. It was a great activity for us to do together - being with each other, chatting with each other, and figuring out love together. And what a fun filled day she had at school with activities, snacks, playing, and distributing her cards (which had a rad pirate theme!). I came across her cards at Armelle Blog (for personal use only). We tucked in a couple of gold wrapped chocolate coins and a red foil wrapped heart as the treasure.

I did some silly little games (Mad Lips, yep lips for Valentine's Day & a left/right Valentine's Day store with prizes) with my with high school students yesterday and you know what? No one complained. And as much as they want to be adults they all still want to belong and be loved. I kind of wish (in a small way) that they could do Valentine's cards for everyone in their classes until the day they graduate. And sure that wouldn't work for all kinds of reasons but I did challenge them all to go out into the halls and wish someone they didn't know a Happy Valentine's Day (maybe, another student who looked like they were having a bad day or are walking along without a crowd of friends).  I sure hope a few of them did. The more kindness I can infuse into their lives the better.


With all the prep for kindergarten and Sparks Valentine's cards, food for the K - class, games for my high school students and a few little surprises for my own sweethearts, I didn't end up sending out any homemade Valentine's cards like I have been doing for the last few years. So I've decided to send out some encouragement cards (which can go out any time of course). Oh Target Canada I am going to miss your dollar section and your great cards.


Speaking of rad cards I received a lovely one from my sweet husband. And melt my heart - he knows I love a gorgeous compass design and I'll take the "I'd be lost without you" sentiment any day of the week.  Our big plans for tonight are Vietnamese food (a first for us!) and renting a movie for when the kids are in bed.

And while love is generally what is on the agenda for today...I had a friend offer up a different word to me today and it meant just as much, "I really do trust you." Wow, what a beautiful thing to hear on Valentine's day (or any day) - means so much!

I hope that whatever your plans are today you know that you are loved and you are enough. My favourite piece of wisdom for the day is: When in doubt, be kind.

873/1000 - Okay, just three.

Mailbox Monday

This is my friend's mailbox (on right) in Norway where I send all my mail and packages! 

Had to include it - love it! Just peeking past it at the garden, the house, even the cars makes me wish I was there. It was a lovely, relaxing trip (now my mail enjoys that journey lol). Wishing I was there for strawberry season - best strawberries I have ever eaten (all that sun!).

Have a lovely week everyone! Happy 1st and Happy 4th!

Enjoy some time with family and friends and be summery!

Mail is Good.

Earlier this week I received this lovely card in my mailbox!

So blessed to have such lovely friends! Really, my heart just warmed when I saw the handwritten name and address. Oh and that lovely teal coloured envelope. But really it was the words inside and the person who wrote them that absolutely made my day. Thank you so much! You know who you are! Guess what people...you could be doing this for someone right now or who knows maybe there is one on its way to you!

The other cool thing I received this week was in this beautiful box.

This is a Tea-zer from Steeped Tea - I was lucky enough to be the recipient of this monthly mail out! I get two random 50g bags of tea for 6 months! So exciting to see what I will get and try something new. Looking forward to trying Strawberry Shortcake. I do love blank-of-the-month type gifts. Just really extends the love and there are so many cool ones out there (wine, cheese, beer, tea, treats/products for pets to name a few).  

Another great gift-of-the month would be a magazine subscription...my mom sent my daughter a subscription of Chickadee and she loves getting it every month! We talk about who sent it to her and then read through it together and man does she ever read through each issue a lot (well used). She talks about how she has a collection of them is quite happy about it. She also get a free monthly Lego Magazine which she adores as well. The mail can bring so much happiness, a break from the mundane (flyers, bills), a moment with a friend, a laugh, a smile...yep, mail is cool like that.

771/1000 Just one for now.

P.S. It's Mother's Day on Sunday. Do you have a mom in your life that would love a card? Your Mom? A single Mom? A Mom you admire? Make it happen!

Telling Time...

     I just checked in to see when I published my last post...March 3rd...whoa, what happened. I've been thinking about posting quite a bit but the sitting down and typing got lost in time. It seems that right now as a mostly-stay-at-home Mom I tend to see time a little bit differently than I used to. I don't mean that I don't know what the date is or keep a calendar on my fridge (because I do, a very detailed one at that) but time seems to be "coloured" in my brain a little differently.

     It has been 26 days since my last post or...5 family birthday get togethers, one friend birthday party (first one ever for my sweet girl), two weeks of being sick, two weeks of spring break (the same two weeks unfortunately), eight days with 4 kids under 5 in my care, one Pinterest book nook project and lots of other little adventures in between. Oh and mail - there has been mail going out too (of course)! Maybe, this is how we should all be measuring time - adventure by adventure!

It was a Lego party.

She had a great time.

Her penpal even came!

   

     We are in fact, just wrapping up our last few days of spring break and trying to squeeze a thousand things in - get the snow tires off, cleaning (everything), book nook, marking (for hubby), seeing friends and family, working on birthday thank you notes, a House Freezing party (yep, you read that right, it's a housewarming party but we are going to watch Frozen, drink tea and eat ice cream - how rad is that), making work lunches and writing some blog posts (haha). Can anyone else relate - do you see time this way? Or is it just crazy me?

 Lots of thank you notes heading out to friends and family - thank you for making birthdays so memorable for both my kids (who are now 2 & 5 - Oh my!) FYI that's a peace sign and a high five. Also, filling out a store receipt feedback form for Samantha at the Lego store in Lynnwood for finding the super cool Lego birthday kit (for half-price to boot) - it was exactly what I was hoping for (and maybe, I'll send her a little personal note too).

It's been a busy 26 days. I'm looking forward to a little bit of down time so I can sit, read, drink tea and write some of you lovelies some letters that I've had on my mind lately (they are in my head, just need to put pen to paper). Here's to telling time, adventure by adventure and letter by letter!

753/1000 Appreciation is on its way with 25 pieces of mail...

Sweetness

This story starts back in November when a new friend started reading this blog for the first time...and she liked it. Really liked it. Which makes me incredibly happy and makes me think that my little challenge is not just my little challenge. It's been shared with readers, friends, recipients of my mail and all mail that might have been inspired by a blog post along the way. And this sweet friend liked my blog/challenge so much that she wanted to help me meet my thousand paper letter challenge! And so...

How Lovely!

she offered up hair clips for me to send out to some little girls in my life. She simply said just tell me how many you would like - I just want to help. How nice is that! My friend and her business partner have a little company called Hair Candy. Super excited to get these out to some sweet girls (already three have made their way out into the world). So thank you, thank you, thank you to a very sweet friend! You may have already met her in my last post  - yep, that was her (and her awesome family) making people happy on Valentine's Day. How lucky am I to have met her - thanks Melissa!

728/1000 some hair clips, some thank you notes, and some randomness.

A Little Inspiration...

Last week I posted some ideas about Valentine's Day and I had to interrupt our regularly scheduled Mailbox Monday to share this with you:

Just got in from a handing out "Free Kisses" on the streets of
Steveston. The amount of smiles we shared has filled our hearts:)
Happy Valentine's Day to you all!

My friend Melissa took some inspiration from my last post and came up with this incredible idea! Melissa and her beautiful kids handed out "Free Kisses" to the people in their community - this would absolutely have made my day if I was passing by. In Melissa's words: "It was a great way to spend the evening. Some people told us it was the only valentines day gesture they received all day. The kids handed out a couple hundred and every person was really happy about accepting a 'kiss.' Made us feel great about the people in our community."  Oh my goodness, they handed out "a couple hundred" - I am just in awe of this gesture. She said she was inspired by me but have to say I'm feeling incredibly inspired by her brilliance and sweetness. Truly a Happy Valentine's Day story (for many).

*Thanks to Melissa for sharing these pictures and her story with me.

Valentine's Day

Radio, tv, the Internet, magazines, store fronts are all a buzz with flowers, diamonds, expensive dinner dates and chocolates...which are lovely (really lovely) but I worry about the expectation it puts out there for Valentine's Day and the entitlement that follows for those that are figuring out this like/love thing (which might just be all of us). There are so many ways to show love, to support friends, to be kind that are special. So ignore the hoopla and make it about love on your own terms!

I received some sweet tea towels from a friend - just because!

Love them!

And Piper received this fabulous hair clip from another lovely friend (more about this later).

Piper was thrilled with this Hair Candy Hair Clip
made just for her!

Not your typical Valentine's Day Fare are they? But amazing nonetheless. Think outside of the roses, chocolates, diamonds, dinners etc. scenario and share love with those around you in amazing ways on Friday!  

Love people you've never thought of loving...your neighbours that you don't know yet (baked goods, a plant...foster a little community), your children's teachers  or office staff (they have to deal with a lot of kids hopped up on Valentine's Day sugar  - maybe a coffee card...maybe something stronger), drive through worker (it's not the best job is it and they are working on Valentine's Day - sucks), buy a bag of chocolate hearts or heart lollipops and just hand them out to everyone you meet, bring flowers to any office/residence/hospital/library for the staff room, if you go out for dinner by all means overtip, fill coin operated coin parking meters, offer to take a couple/group photo for someone so they can be in the photo, or don't plan it out at all and just be open to making someone's day. 

It can certainly be a dark day for some - remember that too and appreciate that/honour that. And if you can lighten their burden, do. If nothing else reach out and have a conversation with them on Friday. I saw a card recently that said something along the lines of "it could be worse you could be dating a total idiot." So I guess there is that. I just saw a cool "new" holiday out there in cyberspace scheduled for February 13th called Galentines...where you get together and have fun with your girlfriends (the gals) - oh fun! Don't forget to love those close to you too an extra little bit today just because! Why not?

Meanwhile at our house my husband and I are pretty low key on the gifts and by that I mean...we don't tend to spend a lot but we do tend to think a lot about the gift or card or gesture (and that's why I love him). My love language is gifts and he knows this but this past weekend he did all of the laundry - ALL! So maybe, service is one of my secondary love languages - it was so thoughtful and to boot he let me sleep in on Monday (Family Day). Those are great Valentine's gifts right there (or any day). A huge thanks to him! He needs to do nothing else (he'll be glad to hear that). 

"Piglet noticed that even though he had a very small heart, it could hold a rather large amount of gratitude."

AA Milne - Winnie the Pooh

711/1000 Four pieces out the door

Mailbox Monday

Okay, so this probably looks a little like "Advent Calendar Monday" doesn't it? But I had to share this amazing advent calendar I received in December from a beautiful friend (who clearly gets me)! Such a lovely selection of teas and I thought about her with each cup and shared some with friends too! Tea, friends, Advent - these are wonderful things.

And now let the New Year begin!

Happy Monday everyone - I've been thinking about you all!