Happy Valentine's Day!
How about we put the girls to bed a little early tonight and make a special Valentine's Day dinner just for us?
Side Note: Curious minds may wonder what kind of paste produces this kind of photo. The girls are brushing with Logodent. I wish all healthy habits were as easy as this one! The girls love this toothpaste and it's something I can feel good about as well. Art & I still prefer Nature's Gate Creme de Mint, we find that it gives us the maximum Valentine kissability.
Here's the plan: I'll wash kale & cook while you pop the bottle of wine & scoot the girls off to bed...
1. Purple + Green Kale. Steamed with sauteed garlic in olive oil. Art sprinkles a little sea salt on his; for me, it's lemon juice & sea salt. I like freshly squeezed, but I've wasted lemons that weren't used in time, and I've also had to go without because I wasn't prepared, possibly because they were over-priced, or because they weren't organic. I really miss CA produce, so a bottle of Lakewood is key to have on hand.
2. Couscous with Sweet Red Bell Pepper and Carrot Confetti & fresh Italian Parsley.
3. Sauteed Tofu with the current house favorite marinade, Mr. Yoshida's. We call it Mr. YO! and it blows Soy Vay away (which is better if it's diluted with a can of pineapple chunks & juice)
4. Washed down with a bottle of 2004 Red Bicyclette Merlot. Nothing fancy, but oh so smooth...and French.
BTW, This is where I've been getting my Bizarro fix since my newspaper squelched Piraro's thought provoking and humorous voice.
Hubby works out of town a few days of the week, so we celebrated with dinner & wine on Monday. I thought Valentine's Day would be about making cupcakes and paper hearts with the girls. But, when Art called this morning, he sent me on a scavenger hunt to find a gift he left. 'How it all Vegan!' and a Yoga DVD were nestled in a paper bag with his signature sketch. Such preplanned thoughtfulness!
Thanks Honey! I Love You so much! Happy Valentine's Day! XOXO
15 comments:
What a sweetie!
What a great dinner! And how lucky you are to have such a sweet Valentine :-) This isn't meant to be offensive, but it's always been my assumption that the love sort of dies after kids and careers sort of get in the way (I think that's just my experience with divorced parents talking) but it's really nice that you and Art are so in love!
Can't wait to see what the day brings with the girls.. have fun!
Looks like a perfect evening. Happy V-Day, Vicki!
Look how SWEET the little gals look! Give them smooches for me and don't forget my favorite pooch, Jolie!!! Happy Valentine's Day sweeties! xo, Cinda
the picture of your daughters is absolutely delightful!! :)
What a sweetie! Looks like you guys had a lovely dinner.
Happy V-day!
I love this post! What a thoughtful husband!
I found the seitan meatballs recipe--it's awesome.
2 cups seitan, home made or store bought
1/2 cup fresh whole wheat bread crumbs
1/2 cup pecans
1 medium sized handful fresh parsley
1 medium sized handful fresh basil (or about a teaspoon dried)
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 - 1 teaspoon roasted sesame oil (optional)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for brushing
4 cloves of garlic
1 teaspoon egg replacer powder mixed into 1/4 cup water
salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 400. Pulse bread for breadcrumbs, seitan, pecans, garlic and herbs (in batches if necessary) in the food processor until a nice mealy consistency. Empty into a large bowl, add remaining ingredients and mix with your hands until well combined. Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary. Form into walnut sized balls and place on a cookie sheet sprayed with nonstick spray. Brush with olive oil and bake for 20 minutes.
These can be made ahead and simmered in a bit of tomato sauce to heat and served over pasta or on a nice big roll for a meatball sub.
Hi Tania! My parents are divorced & I didn't believe love could last... until I met Art. His parents have been married 45 years and a strong mutual respect & commitment is key. Humor really helps too -- not everything needs to be taken so seriously! There have been mountains and valleys in our 15 years, which is rewarding looking back through the years of shared achievement.
Hi Cinda! Smooches have been delivered -- pass them out at your house also. :o)
Hi Julie! Thanks so much for digging up your Seitan Meatball recipe -- I totally appreciate that. It looks great & since seeing it on your blog, I've been thinking about spaghetti & Wheatballs! Awesome looking recipe, I wonder if I could replace the pecans with almonds or cashews?? I'll try & monkey around with that...
Happy Valentine's Day!
Oh, Vicki--what a wonderful way to celebrate Valentine's day! And he was too sweet to leave you a gift like that--I need to get Bob to read this post! (Hehe, just kidding--Bob's super sweet too...)
What a lovely Valentine's Day story, Vicki. I especially like the toothpaste tip with a super-cute photo of the girls and the adorable scavenger hunt :)
Oh Vicki I'm glad that you and Art were able to have an enjoyable Valentine's together. THat was so thoughtful of him to hide that gift for you. When I saw the picture and note he left you, it really tripped me out because his writing and drawing look exactly like my dad's writing and drawings. I did a double take!
Enjoy the new book and dvd!
-Teresa
Vicki, you are so lucky! I loved your description here in your comments about your relationship with Art. You two have really put a lot in and have been through a lot, it seems. To see how adorable he is with the scavenger hunt is very sweet!! You are both very lucky!
that is very cute, what a sweet couple!
What a sweet post. And your kids... always make me smile... You and your beautiful family absolutely define the word love, Vicki. Thanks for sharing your day with us!
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