Lovey Dovey Day

Happy Valentine's Day!

My parents on a beach in Brazil. Married almost 25 years and celebrated Valentines Day in none of them.

I have to out myself: not the most important holiday in my calendar. Probably most of that is cultural, February 14th is a lot less hyped here in Europe, and though heart shaped chocolate boxes and long stemmed roses do start popping up in stores, that's about the extent of it for most people.

My first Valentines Day with Karl, we both forgot.  I went into an exam on Feb. 16th, wrote the date at the top and thought "Oops! Looks like we forgot something. Oh well."

The next year, Karl surprised me in the morning with this:

Valentine's Day 2014..an unexpected surprise :)

And I have to say it meant so much to me, coming out of the blue like that. In some ways, not making a big deal of it takes all the pressure off and makes each unexpected gesture so much more meaningful!

"Ich liebe dich!"

This year, Karl has to work all day from very early to very late. He got up this morning and I rolled over and fell back asleep. But when I finally did get up (at 11:00, after a deliciously long lie-in) I found this surprise on our kitchen table!  My opposite-of-a-sweet-tooth, won't-eat-dessert-if-you-beg-him baby made chocolate cupcakes and frosted them all by himself, just for me!

Now I'm of two minds. We don't do fancy dinner reservations and we don't exchange gifts, and I've always been very happy as a non-valentiner. But now this thoughtful man of mine is going rogue and off-script, and I have to say, I kind of like it! There's something about walking into your kitchen and finding this sweet heart-shaped deliciousness that just makes my non-romantic heart leap. Maybe I'm a Valentine's Day gal after all?
 

Look up at the Sky!

-Zanna

PS. Favorite Five Romantic Movies!