Be My Valentine?

I am a romantic at heart.  I've always claimed to have Cinderella Syndrome, waiting for my handsome prince and I to live happily ever after. Fantasy?  Yes.  But being a hopeless romantic is better than being a cynical  skeptic who believes days like Valentine's Day are only for commercial profit.  That would by my husband.

Don't get me wrong.  I love the guy.  We have a happy marriage, many things in common, the same moral values, a natural sense of right and wrong and fairness to all.  But he is NO romantic.  I miss this sometimes, but I know deep in his heart he is a good man and would give a stranger the shirt off of his back if he thought the stranger needed it more than he.

On days like Valentine's Day, I get a little melancholy and wish for romance.  Instead I'll make my family a nice dinner, then remind my son that he needs to make the effort with his future girlfriend/wife. I'll invite Grandma over for dinner and we'll have a nice family evening together.  I will remind myself how much more I have than romance.

I have a wonderful home in the woods and a wonderful husband to make it the home of my dreams.  I have a son that I am so very proud of and I am blessed to have been his mom.  I also have my mom.  What a gift at this stage in my life.  My mom is 88 years old and lives next door and although the situation has it's challenges, I would not trade our circumstance for any other.  I am truly blessed.

Instead of flowers I have wonderful, beautiful trees in my woods of many shapes and variety.  I can stand on my huge covered porch and listen to the fall of water in the creek nearby.  I get to see deer, moose, and elk on a regular basis.  I have the sun shining with my perfect southern exposure on glistening white snow.  The road past my house is lightly traveled, but the school bus stops at the end of the drive.  My new neighbors are close enough for an occasional visit, but far enough that I can feel secluded.  What more could I need?

Don and I are getting ready to start our next 'building' project.  We need to finish the kitchen (just finish work) and then I should finally be getting my bathtub installed!  That would be an awesome gift that I will treasure for years to come.  I found some great tile (on sale) for the bathroom and managed to order a faucet online at a reduced price.  I am sure it will be a challenge and take some time to get it all installed, but it will be worth the effort.

I treasure the fact that my husband is handy and compromising and willing to build me all these wonderful things.  He may not be Cinderella's romantic prince, but he puts his heart is everything that he does for us.  So on this Valentine's Day, while my Valentine cards are cut out hearts inside a bag of cookies baked by my mother (which is wonderful), I have all my sweethearts, my family close to me, in my home and in my heart.