Luckygal, where in the world are you? Somewhere near a beach obviously--but which one. Sorry no good luck on the TS shopping, do keep trying! Jeanne, I have two baker's racks outside, one is a corner unit--but neither look nearly as cute as yours with your collections and vignettes. I need to work on mine I think. That is so neat that you do the Farmer's market too. Candy, I'm another one who does tablescapes for my "imaginary" friends. DH will only eat at the table when we have company--rest of the time he prefers to eat in front of the tv. Karen, I didn't do a table, but I did glue a little cheese tray and glass dome on a pedestal and decorate it--can I get any points for that? ;o) Kathleen, the rooster napkins like in your photo that you shared with me are some of my favs. We don't do sit down breakfast often, but I like to just sit the table and display them on the plates because they look so cute.

Sue: After reading your latest post about your husband never doing things for you on Vday or your birthday, I just had to post about what my then husband did one year. All the guys he worked with were talking about what they were getting their wives for Vday, and when he said "nothing", they started in on him. They embarrassed him so much that on Vday, he brought me a box of chocolate covered cherries. He went to work and very proudly told the guys. He should have just shut his mouth but he had to 'brag' that the candy did double-duty as it was also for my birthday on the 15th. They razzed him for a long time over his cheapness. It was the ONLY time though that he ever got me anything for either day. Ahem, do you think that might be part of the reason he's my ex? lol Shirley

Hi Everyone, Sorry I haven't made it back here until now. Belle, so sorry you have been feeling poorly. Hope it clears up soon. I asked some questions over on your gallery post, but you can disregard them since you answered them here. Your body must be telling you to rest or something--sometimes it goes like that, just one thing after the other! Take care. Punk, glad you had a bit of time to paint again. It is so good that your business is doing so well--and that the new helper is working out too! Anj, so glad you and DH got to have some "personal" Valentine times together. I'm sure that is sort of hard to come by with the young ones and their activities. Here's my latest movie review. We debated between the Valentine Day movie and the new Wolfman movie. DH decided we'd see Wolfman now and wait for the other one to come out on video. Wolfman had really good special effects as you might expect, and I always enjoy Anthony Hopkins--but this pretty much was the same old story we've heard many times before, silver bullets and all! LOL I did love the setting and the mansion and the horse drawn carriages. I probably shouldn't tell you that we've been in the 80's the last couple of days! It's been wonderful, and I managed to get a bit more work done in the yard while it was so nice. Hear we are getting more rain by the weekend, so that will be good too. A friend invited me to join her and a couple other friends for some TS hopping yesterday. I joined them in the afternoon when they got to this area and hit a couple of with them. I got so excited because I found a few painting books at both places--but they are not that great--maybe a project or two that I liked in each one. These may be some that I can soon list on the exchange in case they appeal to the rest of you. ;o) They were only 39 cents each so worth it just for the browsing pleasure! ;o) Punk, I also found a neat leaf dish with acorns on it--you know my "love" of acorns. It's posted over on Holidays if you want to see. Guess it's time to pull out some Spring designs and get some things made for Spring and Easter. Can't wait to see your decorations, so please share any you've made--past or present, okay? TTYL, Luvs

Well, now that I'm older and wiser, I have a much different idea of what constitutes romance than I did in my younger years. The hearts-and-flowers view of romance is not something I crave, but I do still feel that soft, special glow when I see that my DH has done something special for me. These days, "something special" can mean simply choosing words to communicate something to me in a thoughtful and kind way. Like he did today: Someone at my office is selling a nice-looking piece of furniture that he'd been interested in, but I didn't know if he would like this exact style. I texted him a photo and instead of simply saying "No thanks", his response was very gracious - telling me what he liked about the piece, but explaining what he'd rather have, and thanking me for thinking of him. I know - it probably sounds silly to some of you - but it's those seemingly small acts that fill my heart and kindle my love (and passion) for him. That said, I have always loved the hearts-and-flowers routine on Valentine's Day! I don't need to actually get flowers, but I like seeing the images of pink and red hearts. I like remembering how it was when I was a child, and my daddy always brought home a box of heart-shaped candy for his little girl. I associate the day with happy feelings and pretty paper ... I even think fondly of the white paper doilies that I used to create my own Valentines, and these little cardboard Cupids. Oh gosh - I just realized I've failed dismally at answering the OP's question. Do men like Valentine's Day? I think some do, as long as they don't feel there are unrealistic expectations put upon them. We exchange cards, and that's it. I don't want overpriced roses sent to me, and made that known a long time ago.