Valentine's Day

The most excitement I can remember on a Valentine's Day happened when my mom made our family heart-shaped pizzas. 

Also when I broke up with a boyfriend a couple days before Valentine's Day because he was being a louse. 

I prefer to focus on the pizzas. Pizzas never let you down. Pizzas love you no matter what. 

This year for Valentine's Day, I made a handful of little gifts for a handful of people I like, made a handful of little cards for a handful of little cousins who live far away, and called it a day . . . and then sat down to determine what kind of heart-shaped pizza we'll be eating on the 14th. 

I'm nothing if not consistent. 

 

I was also trying to use up things in my craft closet: nine million tea towels, extra Pyrex coffee cups, the 47th roll of red baker's twine . . .  

It doesn't take a $200 trip to Target to let people know you care.

 

Besides, who needs Target when you have a gabillion Pinterest printables at your fingertips? 

Granted, there are some pretty lame ones out there, but then again, there's "I'm cocoa for you!" and "I like you a latte!" And who doesn't feel like a million bucks after that? (Don't answer that.)

Let's just say . . . I'm all for reminding people that they matter, especially when they're worn out from work, spent from chasing after kiddos and everything in between. 

I may not be able to bake you all a heart-shaped pizza, but I do think "You're tea-rrific!" and that counts for something, right? 

Happy Valentine's Day!

Country Christmas Connection 2016

 People.

If you have never taken part in a gift exchange, you must start now.

Because if you haven't, you may have missed out on meeting a lovely woman like Brenda who--ok, let's cut to the chase--sent me DONUTS. 

holiday gift idea

Our garden didn't really do like we'd hoped this year. 

Also, I say that every year.

Make-It-Yourself Instant Oatmeal

Missouri can't make up its mind if it's July or October. One day it's 50 degrees. The next day it's 86. One night the air conditioning is running. The next the heat kicks on. 

One day we're breaking out the flannel. The next day we're pulling our short-sleeved shirts back out. Heck, we don't even know which end is up anymore. 

Here's what we do know: Regardless of the weather, it's a truth universally acknowledged that harvest will actually wrap up at some point, and before we know it, it'll be Thanksgiving. Or maybe Christmas. See? We don't even know anymore. 

But when the bean dust settles down and the combine is cleaned and put away, when the corn is stored and the dryer fans are shut off, it will be cold. And farmers will head outside regardless, layering up, pulling hats out of the closet, and filling thermoses with coffee to keep their insides warm while working outdoors. 

One way to help? Homemade oatmeal. 

It's genius really. I love brown sugar oatmeal, but let's be honest: There's not nearly enough brown sugar in it. As in, I want to see a tightly packed CUP of brown sugar sitting on top of my eight flecks of oatmeal. 

So if I make it, instead of buy it, I can keep my farmer warm AND I can get a sugar high before 7:30 a.m. Totally worth it. 

Cold this fall? Need a quick Christmas gift? DIY oatmeal. It may be 90 degrees tomorrow, but hey,  the good news is: It'll keep!

Make-It-Yourself Instant Oatmeal 

4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350. Scatter the oats on a baking sheet and bake until lightly toasted, about 15 minutes. Let cool, then pulse in a food processor until coarsely chopped. Stir in sugar, salt and cinnamon; the dry mix will keep in an airtight container for several weeks. 

To serve, spoon 1/2 cup of the mix into boiling water. Top with your favorite mix-ins and enjoy!