Saturday, February 14, 2009

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day to all the folks in bloggityville! I have always let my darling husband off the hook for this holiday, because I feel that it is a plague on the backs of men everywhere. Why are they expected to spring for a "Pajama Gram", teddy bear or long stem roses? What makes this a special day for women only? The TV ads make me feel so sorry for the guys. I think all Valentine gifts should be something that can be enjoyed by two....like, uh, perhaps a great dinner out, a fine bottle of wine or a great box of chocolates. I think my aversion to the gift part is because I have always mentally reserved the day for my memories of my Dad. When we were young, Dad would come home with a big box of Fanny Farmer Chocolates for my Mom and little boxes for his three girls. After we married, our boxes got bigger and our daughters were the recipients of the little red heart boxes. Each year he made the trip to the candy store and then drove about town passing out the boxes that said, "Dad loves me! " This was a man of unique intelligence, who was the epitome of the absent-minded professor. I don't think he actually knew when Christmas or Easter was due, but he knew about Valentine's Day and I would never give that memory away to any one else. I love my husband every day, so he doesn't have to shell out the big bucks for any card company holiday. Today, we met our kids at the local Panera's for lunch (something I really love...the kids, not Panera's...well, I do like it). My daughter-in -law told me about a little ritual that is carried out in their home. Many years ago, my son came home on Valentine's Day with a big bouquet of flowers for her, but as he walked into the house, their little girl said, "Oh, Daddy... you brought me flowers!" He bowed and presented them to her with a wink to his wife. Ever since that time, he has brought Lacey flowers on Valentine's Day. It is so like my Dad with his candy ritual, that I could cry. This is something that is beyond the commercial bit and gets right to the heart of things. But, then....who wouldn't adore this child? She was six when I took her to "Glamour Shots" and we had a wonderful day. She will be eighteen soon, but I'm not into publishing pictures that would identify her to the public at large. She is a beauty and is very well guarded by three older brothers.

If God were going to give me seven grandsons and only one granddaughter .... I got the right one!
Most of the people who are kind enough to visit my blog know that we spend the winter in Florida. As the years pile up around us like wrinkles under our chins and our health becomes more precarious, we seem to be unable to handle the six month stretch in paradise and we end up making a trip north to visit our doctors. So, we are home for a month (I hope is is only a month) and I will have a gastroscopy on Tuesday. Hopefully, we will head back to Ft. Myers by next week, since we are freezing our behinds off. This picture is what greeted us this morning for Valentine's Day. Believe it or not, this is a walk in the park compared to the two inches of ice we drove through in Kentucky and the eleven inches of snow that was on our deck when we arrived in Ohio. When the thaw started last week, 200 or so ice fishermen were caught out on the ice in Lake Erie near Toledo and had to be rescued by the Coast Guard as the eighteen inch ice developed a huge crack between them and the shore. They had fishing shacks, snowmobiles and all sorts of equipment out there when the ice decided to break away from shore. One man fell through the ice on his snow mobile and died of a heart attack. I don't think I could make it for two seconds in forty degree water. The snow had all melted by this week and we had over two inches of rain the middle of the week. Ohio is certainly not boring and I love the changes of season, but I hope the next season I see will be the flowering of the shrubs and trees in May!

9 comments:

Cathy said...

Kacey, I loved this post. I also have very similar memories of my dad at Valentines Day. I still have many of the old candy heart boxes he gave me. They are now filled with memories, just like the box they reside in.

As for Ohio, I am sick to death of this winter. I can't wait for spring to get here, but, this winter has been so bad that the only thing bad about Spring getting here is that it just takes us a little closer to next winter. Which is a horrible thought.

Let us know how your test goes.

Changes in the wind said...

Well the best Valentine of all is to know that you aren't dead....I have checked your blog over and over and was afraid that something awful had happped to you after your last post:)

molly said...

I, too, was a little worried by the very long silence! Glad you're still kicking Kacey! Hurry back, the weather here is at its best! Good luck with the gastroscopy next week....

Frequent Traveler said...

Dear Kacey,
So good to have you posting again -always glad to hear you are both okay - and will keep my fingers crossed for you for the garstrocopy on Tuesday !

Your Dad was wonderful on Valentine's day, as was the other man who showed his daughter what love was.

I agree the holiday should be showing love to both men and women alike...

What a stunning picture of her when she was 6 !!! Wow. Glad she has her older brothers to watch over her now that she is 18 !

(HUGS) and thinking of you.

Loving Annie
http;//www.truetraveltreasures.blogspot.com

Carine-what's cooking? said...

I'm with everyone else, so glad to see this new post Kacey!

As for V-day for us, well, hubby has the worst cold he's had in at least 3 years and I seem to have "popped" either the rib itself or the cartilage. Whichever, I can't move well and breathing a chore.

Hoping the rheumy has something more than "rest it and take anti-inflammatories". Guess I'll find out tomorrow.

We're postponing our celebration until we are feeling better.

Kacey said...

Oh, My ... I am so sorry that I left you hanging. I think of you as my good friends and yet, I did not give you an update. Mostly, because I hated to sound like a self-absorbed old lady... I might be, but didn't want you to know! We had to come home to get
competent medical care. We drove home (1200 miles) in 18 1/2 hours on Thursday, the 29th of Jan. I saw my family doc on the next Monday, my cardiologist on Tuesday and the gastroenterologist on Thursday. He could not do a gastroscopy until I have been off Plavix and Aspirin for a full week. At that time, I was in glorious ecchymotic technicolor, but my heart stents were staying open. The indigestion is getting better very fast now, but the gastro doc told my daughter (she works for him)that he thinks my old fundoplication is pulling away from my diaphragm. If that is true, I will be in for a big thorasic surgery and I am a big chicken. Keep your fingers crossed that we can go back to Florida (we need to bring our clothes and stuff home) and get a few rays of sun before getting anything serious done to this body. I really felt lousy for about six weeks and could not see my way clear to post anything. I'm so sorry to have been thoughtless of my friends. I won't do that again! Hugs to each and everyone of my blogger buddies.

Big Dave T said...

Glad to see you're still spiffy and spunky there in Ohio, er, Florida, whereever you are. I was up at 6 a.m. on Valentine's Day so I could drive to the local gas station and pick up some instant lottery tickets for the missus. That's part of our tradition for the gift-giving holidays. Glad to hear your's went well with the younguns' and all.

That ice-breaking incident on Lake Erie was big news on the BBC when we were over in London a little over a week ago. But over there, they pronounced it "Airy", instead of "Eerie."

Granny Annie said...

Kacey, you always go a while between posts but when you do show up you always have something worthwhile. This was a lovely post and made me remember the special things my dad did for us on Valentine's Day. Thank you!

Anonymous said...

The Valentine's Day flowers for your granddaughter is so sweet. Here's hoping it starts to warm up soon!

V Day in our house is pretty low key. We both try to do something nice for each other and I helped the kids make cards for their dad.