Life Lately

The other afternoon brought the slightest dusting of snow...

...and then we had heaps of it by the following morning.

As ever, I've been warming myself with steaming cups of coffee {sometimes topped with a little fat-free whipped cream}...

...and keeping away the chill of these frosty winter nights.

We've been eating simple, yet delicious meals...
{my version of Chipotle's Burrito Bowl}

...and there's been a bit of muffin-baking, too.

Now on to Valentine's Day...such a lovely day, isn't it? I've always loved this day {remember the Valentine's parties in grade school?}, even when I was without a significant other. To me, Valentine's Day isn't just about romantic love but rather LOVE in general. It's a day that serves as a great reminder of how we should all be telling the special ones in our lives that, "Hey...I love you." We should all be doing that as much as possible! There's no such thing as too much love, am I right?

Matt got me the sweetest card. Here's the front:

...but what he wrote inside was infinitely sweeter. I won't be showing you the inside--those words are just for me. :)

Even though we had reason to make this an ultra-special Valentine's Day {with our being separated by thousands of miles last year}, Matt and I both desired a low-key day. I made a mouth-watering, scrumptious meat loaf {trust me, this isn't your average meat loaf}, creamy mashed potatoes, and a side of strawberries. We ate sparingly, saving room for dessert, because we went out to get some Cold Stone Creamery Ice Cream! {thanks Mom & Dad Perry for the gift card!}

We're planning to go out this weekend for our "Valentine's Day" dinner; we just didn't feel like fighting any restaurant crowds this year. Actually, a Valentine's Day spent in the cozy comfort of our home seemed like the most romantic thing to us.

I can't help but reminisce a bit about my Valentine's Day last year, trading little pillow-treats with my Hungarian sisters. I still miss Hungary every day, and my dreams lately have been filled with visions of returning and falling into the arms of my "family" there.

Hoping you all had a delightful Valentine's Day, too!