Valentine's Day ♥ memories to share.... There was the year Bobby gave me a cute stuffed teddy bear. Of course I "ooh'd & aah'd" over the bear. Then at his persistent insistence, I looked closer at the bear. Then I noticed the sparkle! On each of the bear's ears was a diamond earring! I was stunned. He sure got an A+ for creativity!

One Valentine's Day, ♥ I received a rather large box, at my job. It was from Pro-Flowers. I can recall wondering how any flowers in a box could still be alive. Not only were they alive, they were beautiful. The two dozen roses had been shipped from South America, directly from the growers. Each rose was encased separately in netting. Can you imagine how long it took me to "un-net" each rose? The box also contained a beautiful vase for the roses. I am pretty sure it took me most of an hour to unwrap the roses. After unwrapping, the instructions said to carefully peel back the outer petals on each rose, before placing them in the vase. There went another hour! I lovingly referred to the beautiful rose bouquet as my "Valentine's ♥ Interactive Gift"! It is now one of my favorite Valentine's Day ♥ memories.

On another Valentine's Day, ♥ he brought me Hallmark's Kissing Bears. When the bears "Kissed" the girl bear's cheeks glowed red. They were so cute. Each year. on Valentine's Day,♥ I set them out to enjoy and remember. I smile when I remember the smile on his face, as he gave me the bears! :)

On my first Valentine's Day ♥ after his passing, I treated myself to a wonderful evening. I hadn't planned to. It just happened. First, I had the opportunity to have a massage! I had called one of the massage schools that I heard about giving an hour massage for $25.00.  When I called for an appointment, I was told that the only openings they had for the week were on the evening of February 14. I contemplated that for a moment and decided it would be a perfect Valentine's Day ♥ gift for me to give myself. I had been wondering how I would get through the evening, alone. I am pretty sure that when I told them I was newly widowed, the masseuse determined that I would receive an extra good massage! It felt soooo... good. On my way home, I stopped and picked up a bouquet of fresh flowers. It was the first time I had ever bought flowers for myself. At the time, it felt odd to make the purchase. But the flowers brightened up my house and made it smell very nice! I have done it several times since. Sometimes a girls just needs fresh flowers! Bobby would have done it, if he was still here. Of that, I am sure.

Memories are both sweet and bittersweet. They can cause us to both, cry and laugh - sometimes even at the same time! Thank you God for allowing me to have such sweet memories of love. ♥