Photo Friday - Valentine's day

I'm going to try and become more conscientious about blogging regularly.  One of the ways I want to do that is by having photo-Fridays...the day of he week where I post photos from the last week or some other recent event.  If I can come up with cool things to call other days of the week, I might try them out too.  Suggestions are welcome ;)
So this week, I'm going to post about Valentines Day because I have an amazing husband.  He told me ahead of time that he was going to make me dinner and that Mom was going to help him because I doubted his cooking skills.  I shouldn't have because he made me an amazing dinner.  He also told me we were going to have guests for dinner which made me a little unhappy until I figured out who the "guests" were.

Sweet Potato Heads!  Potatoes have played a major part in our relationship and we have 4 Mr./Mrs. Potato head figurines in our apartment, so this was very fitting.  The potatoes are baked and the vegetables are fresh. There were extra "parts" in a bowl for dipping.

He also made me bacon covered cranberry meatloaf.  Honestly, bacon makes everything better, and it was heart shaped.  I love my husband!

I made him heart shaped donuts with pretties on top.  The donuts were chocolate which is his favorite!

I even wrote his name on one of them!

All in all, it was a wonderful Valentines day and I have the bestest husband in the world (sorry mommy)

Living at "home"

On occasion I'm asked how it is living with my parents...for clarity's sake, David and I don't actually live with my parents, but live in an apartment attached to their house. It's a difference.  It means there is a solid door that we can shut between our place and theirs. It means we have our own washer/dryer, shower, bathroom, etc.  It means we (usually) eat our own meals in our own space.
But it's also much the same.  We're still available for daily chores and when they need help on the farm outside of regular farm hours.  We still sometimes share meals.  I can still borrow ingredients from mom if her  pantry has something that mine doesn't (and vice versa!).  We share the family vehicles. We share a hot water heater and an oven. They are still available for company so it's not as lonely.
And the best part: We have a great rent agreement worked out where we work for part of our rent and utilities.
But sometimes...sometimes it's tough.  Sometimes you don't want your parents to be around.  Sometimes, when all my siblings are home it is louder than anywhere I have lived since high school, and it's overwhelming. Sometimes you don't want your parents knowing how long you sleep in or how late you stay out. Sometimes you don't want to hear the advice and opinions of your family.
But sometimes...sometimes it's wonderful. Sometimes you want to be with your parents, you want to learn from them.  Sometimes the siblings being home create a lively sense and you simply can't be lonely.  Sometimes it's nice to know that some one is keeping half an eye on you and what you do.  And it's amazing to have access to a vehicle (we couldn't afford insurance on one at this point).
In some cultures this living arrangement is normal, or at least something similar. And I wonder if they aren't on to something. By living this way, separately together, we are consuming less resources, we are combining forces when it comes to farm work (we did chores with only 3 people this morning, instead of the usual 6... it makes a big difference), and we are learning from each other.
The bottom line:  At this point, this is how things are and I'm happy with it.  It's a good situation.