Valentine's Day for the Romantics ...

Valentine's Day, Katie Style!

My daughter greated us this morning with home made Valentine's Day cards that she had obviously spent a lot of time on. Then we had to make heart shaped pancakes with strawberry perserves or fresh raspberries. Juice was cranberry and the table setting was put together with much care. The boys had red placemats while the girls had pink and then of course Katie dug around until she found contrasting plates for each. I just don't know where she gets these ideas!! I ditched my fondue plan when the kids decided to go to the movies :) Oh, well, sounded like a lot of work anyway.

Valentine Traditions

Hundreds of years ago in England, many children dressed up as adults on Valentine's Day. They went singing from home to home. One verse they sang was:

Good morning to you, valentine;

Curl your locks as I do mine ---

Two before and three behind.

Good morning to you, valentine.

In Wales wooden love spoons were carved and given as gifts on February 14th. Hearts, keys and keyholes were favourite decorations on the spoons. The decoration meant, "You unlock my heart!"

In the Middle Ages, young men and women drew names from a bowl to see who their valentines would be. They would wear these names on their sleeves for one week. To wear your heart on your sleeve now means that it is easy for other people to know how you are feeling.
In some countries, a young woman may receive a gift of clothing from a young man. If she keeps the gift, it means she will marry him.

Some people used to believe that if a woman saw a robin flying overhead on Valentine's Day, it meant she would marry a sailor. If she saw a sparrow, she would marry a poor man and be very happy. If she saw a goldfinch, she would marry a millionaire. Click for more ....

So much more fun than the stories of St. Valentine's Day Massacre. I'm thinking I must have seen a sparrow on Valentine's Day long ago! That's OK, though, because we're very, very happy!