Valentine’s Day Weekend with my Valentines

I got to spend Valentine’s Day weekend with not only my very own husband-valentine, but also with my kid-valentines, plus a couple of their valentines. It happened to be President’s Day weekend, so we had a three-day weekend on our hands to celebrate.

And let me tell you what, our family is getting big. And crazy. With a million moving parts. But I will never take this for granted: time with the people I love most.

Ok, and that picture does include Claire and Grace’s valentines, but I love them too. And is missing Abby, Lucy and the little girls, so here they are:

Keeping Family Traditions With Adult Children

It’s the best ever to have one of your kids who holds onto traditions with a vice-grip. So where some family traditions tend to get lost in the shuffle when your children morph into adults, Lucy makes sure we hold onto the important ones.

Like heart-attacking the kitchen, valentines candy in cups for breakfast, heart-shaped pizzas for dinner.

I mean, those are important, am I right??

So we did each of them with care.

I loved having Murphy’s help to hang the ones on the fridge, can you tell they were hung with care by her?

Heart-shaped pizzas:

(Lucy insisted on an action shot.)

And a lot of other things too.

But let’s back up to first things first.

How We Spent Our Valentine’s Day Family Weekend

We first got to hang out with our Utah kids in Provo and have dinner together, picnic-style, at Max and Abby’s.

Murphy gave us some valentines, and showed us her most amazing new ballet outfit.

Can you tell Claire was completely flabbergasted with the cuteness?

We also got to participate in a wrestle party with our grandbabies before bed.

Love.

Before everyone else arrived in the mountains, Dave and I got to have a double date with these two:

Not the greatest snow but beautiful billowy white clouds in the distance and just good kids.

Meanwhile Lucy got a ride to Provo to meet up with Grace. LOVE these two sisters.

Then the masses started to arrive, including boyfriends and babies. We played games and watched Beast Games (ha!) and basked in togetherness.

Skiing and Moments Together on Valentine’s Day

On Valentine’s Day itself I took a sunrise hike as the world came alive with an orange glow and back home to Murphy who helped me heart-attack the kitchen. She was quite delighted with her little Valentine’s Day gifts.

This was a pretty special day to have every one of my valentines plus their valentines on the mountain except for Lucy.

Even Claire’s boyfriend’s mom joined us for a bit:

Abby and I switched out half day so I could be with the little girls and Lucy. There is just something so satisfying thinking of all your kids together with your husband, thinking of the memories they’re making.

And you getting to be with babies and your own baby.

Lu and I whipped up some cookies together and started on the dinner prep.

Heart-Shaped Pizzas and Games

Murphy and I were pleased as punch to make the pizza dough for Lucy’s beloved Valentine’s tradition together.

Then it was on to all of us standing around the kitchen counter making our own heart-shaped pizzas.

Elle and Carson left to be with his family (so grateful they got to be together to celebrate his parent’s anniversary this first anniversary after his dad’s passing), and the rest of us played games and watched the Olympics.

So grateful Grace and Claire plus their valentines were willing to hang here and make the day so great for Lucy.

And I’m so thankful for my valentine. And that he’s with me through thick and thin.

Church with Adult Children

On Sunday we went to church together and let me tell you, the scramble to get adult children to church is sometimes as real as the scramble to get babies there. And poor Abby was super sick. So we wrangled those baby girls with Max and arrived all disheveled and had to sit in the two very front rows.

Then we came home to make a big brunch.

We packed everyone up again and took the shuttle to meander around Main Street which I loved.

And we watched The Chosen when we got back to which the majority promptly fell asleep.

Sometimes it’s so hard to know how much to push and how much to let roll. Oh I want to actively infuse Jesus into the very air we breathe. I want these favorite people of mine to feel that power. But Dave reminded me that love is the best teacher.

And he is right.

Lucy’s cousin Lyla came up to hang with us and play games that night. Oh I love this sweet duo.

Also, I gave some haircuts. Not sure why that matters to document, but sometimes haircuts are bonding, don’t you think? Although… Elle may not love her layers she requested and I’ve never done before…

Also, are Dave and Murph the best duo?

Ending the Weekend: Small Moments That Matter

On Presiedent’s Day itself, since Elle and Carson had to leave for the airport at 11, we decided to be the first on the ski lifts right at 8:00am. It was exhilarating to be the only ones on that mountain. We braved the winds and cold (twenty degrees colder than the day before) and explored a new lift area, then skied back speedy quick to get these people on the road. I loved that morning.

I don’t, however, like the end of togetherness.

Yes, the quiet is welcome. And things stay in their places. But I do love the mess of family togetherness.

Did we utilize that togetherness enough? Did I get a quiet moment with every child? Do I really know what they’re each up against right now? We didn’t even get a picture of all of us together for crying out loud.

ALL of us.

But I will carry that family togetherness in my heart without a photo. Despite some deep worries that come with the territory of mothering adult children, I will never take this for granted: to be the mother of my favorite people.

When it was down to just Dave, me and Lucy, we had Lucy unveil her guitar she had protectively brought, and strum those strings for us.

She asked Dave for a father’s blessing and we hugged up together before the two of us left for the long drive to Logan.

We talked the whole way, her in a mood to be constructively vulnerable. I had planned to have some hard talks with her. There’s so much going on that we really need to address so she can be successful. But I just felt a nudge to just build and listen.

I love her more than words can say and I’m so incredibly grateful any time we can get eyes on her.

Anything we can do to help her progress in the ways she so deeply yearns for.

Oh these adult children!!

“Forever and always my babies they’ll be.”