valentine's day

So, the free week that I previously posted about is long gone, but I did get to do a few of the things I wanted to do, like making pizza:



and these brownies:



which were actually very good. I was simply intrigued by the ingredient list and needed to know what they would taste like. I used egg whites, a spoon of coconut oil and a drop or two of mint extract and they really tasted like fudge. (You can trust this review because I'm a very picky eater who wouldn't eat beans in the first place.)

Valentine's Day was pretty wonderful. Andreas was home from tour for a short vacation and the Staz made a brief appearance. My mom had all of our places set with little gifts because none of us have significant others this year and we needed some extra affection.



We all got Hunbun mugs and chocolates. I'd created and ordered the mugs, so this wasn't a surprise, but the parents and Andreas had gone to a Russian shop in Colorado and managed to keep it a secret long enough to make the Russian chocolates they brought back for me a surprise.



From what I've heard, Russia isn't particularly known for good chocolate; something about the Soviet monopoly of its production that wasn't really interested in a quality product? How long these chocolates had been in the shop they bought them from is also questionable. At any rate, I enjoyed the surprise, having no idea how many calories were in each one, and the thought that was behind them. They also had pretty papers. When you have these little obsessions like I do (Russia, Britain, Doctor Who, 19th Century Lit, Portmeirion, baking etc) people tend to get you presents along these lines and this makes everyone satisfied. Staz has fashion things and Andreas has his music stuff. Get a hobby-- it makes gift giving so much easier. My older sister, however...well, we used to get her Hello Kitty presents, but now no one knows what to get her.



Anyways, the 14th was a gorgeous day with lots of sun and WARMTH. It was about 40 degrees F! (It has since plummeted to the negative degrees again, so this is a distant but happy memory.)



I planted this amaryllis bulb on November 1st. Really.



We all went outside for a walk in the huge, melting snow drifts. Everyone got a little stuck at least once-- dogs and all.



I knitted that scarf, by the way. Pretty good for someone who barely knows how to knit, eh? I've been meaning to take a picture of it.



We've had at least two blizzards since these photos were taken, but the thaw was nice while it lasted.



Doggies stuck below.



Dad stuck in the corner of this one:





That snow is REALLY deep. We were only able to walk on it because the sun had melted the top and then it had refrozen.









Yours truly wearing her jim-jams:



It actually wasn't cold enough to warrant the hood, but it was very windy.

This one felt left out:



(Photo not from the same day, but she did give us the same expression when we came in).