scrimpValentine

My li'l special Valentine

So sorry to have abandoned my ship (blog), but Valentine's day had me running around like it was Christmas or Thanksgiving! I love making homemade old-school valentines, but this is my first time attempting this with a baby. It was really hard because I felt like he was in his exersaucer or playing alone all day. These babies take like, an hour to make, and let me tell you...they make a huge mess. There was glue stick and tissue paper EVERYWHERE. Then I had to run to the post office so that it would get to her in time. Then I had to make my dad's and my mom's and Mike's. Etc, etc, etc.

scrimpyThings I've been doing lately:

• I made Mike a batch of chocolate truffles, and I made my own box, so it was like a homemade box of chocolates.
• Stayed in for Valentine's day and instead made my own chocolate desserts and dinner.
• Made a double loaf of banana bread muffins and froze most of them to send with Mike for lunch.
• Made a batch of 15 whole wheat rolls and froze for Mike's lunch.
• Made a batch of Haymarket Pita chips for snacks for the week.
• Made a batch of baby wipes for Dylan's booty.
• Made a batch of oatmeal for the week.

I also walked all the way to Trader Joe's this week to avoid paying $3.40 for the train. I feel like the T is so expensive now, so I only take it when I really need it. Trader Joe's has a lift that you can use by yourself (I always kind of put it off because I thought it would be a whole "to do", but it's really easy! So, if you need to take your stroller to TJs in Back Bay, go for it!).

I think I will tell you guys how I put together my antipasto platter for Valentine's dinner, along with my recipe for fresh Italian bread. I will also share with you my truffle recipe (easy as anything you've ever done in your life...just a little messy and time consuming, like most things scrimpy!). I'll also share with you how I set the table for our Valentine's dinner, and some of the other fun and scrimpy things we did for the holiday! Oooh, and I also want to tell you what I did with all the leftovers from my antipasto platter.

It is fun to do the whole "flowers, dinner, jewelry, chocolate, gifts..." thing for Valentine's day, but it is more fun and creative (and budget friendly) to make your own dinners and gifts. Looking back, I would say that some of the best gifts and memories I have are from these past few years that we've been scrimping. Having a child makes it a bit trickier to get out for the special day, so it's especially fun to have a homemade Valentine's night when you have a little one! No paying for a sitter, getting showered, or spending money required!

I love planning special things. With our anniversary being January 17th, and Mike's birthday being January 25th, I had my hands full. When January 26th rolled around, I got right on to planning Valentine's day! Luckily, everything I did can be done for any special day, be it one in February or in July :).