Valentine’s Day ’21

Posted on February 14, 2021 by tandem in love

every year, we usually have a very small party with just the fam aaaannd this year was no different! we usually invite my sisters, brother, and mom and dad to come by to celebrate vday in the most festive way possible.

this year it was about breakable chocolate hearts and gifts galore. we always think we’re getting something small for the kids but we end up giving them so much stuff it’s kind of ridiculous. LOL funny but not funny. heh.

the big trend this year for valentine’s day were breakable hearts. the idea was big for christmas in a chocolate bomb version. everyone was making them and no one could get them as they were selling out so fast! so, i connected with a local girl who made them and got four breakable chocolate hearts filled with goodies for each kiddo!

we did our usual dinner of heart pizza but this year, instead of making them, we purchased heart pizzas through our school’s fundraiser. win win! the kids played, the adults chatted and ate as we whipped together an easy dinner for everyone.

once we were done eating, we decided to have the kids break the hearts. it was hilarious! they pounded and pounded on the hearts but no one could break them. LOL the only person making progress was olive! she cracked it and then they realized it was bottomless so all efforts ceased and they flipped their hearts to find their prizes. after they had fun with the hearts, we all gave the kids their presents and it felt like it was christmas day. LOL we really do think we’re keeping it simple when it never is.

as usual, it was a fun valentine’s day for us and the kids!

via tandeminlove.com — a little love decor in olive’s room

pink heart milkshake

Posted on February 17, 2019 by tandem in love

in celebration of valentine’s day, i decided to make olive a fun festive milkshake!

i’ve seen on instagram, the web, etc. these really cool looking crazy extra adorned milkshakes and i wanted to attempt one myself. i was inspired by a few pictures, focused around love day. so, off to the store i went to gather all the goodies!

i bought vanilla ice cream {you can buy strawberry flavored ice cream to get the pink look – i used two drops of food coloring to achieve the desired color}, spray can whipped cream, sprinkled soft cookies, heart marshmallows, festive sugar cake decoration candies {we bought x’s and o’s}, conversation hearts, doughnuts, and heart sprinkles {or valentine’s day themed sprinkles}. oh, don’t forget a festive pink, red, or heart straw! aaaaand some powered sugar and a lollipop stick for the doughnuts…more on that in a bit.

i poured 2-3 cups of milk into a blender, added a few scoops of ice cream {it really depends on how many people you are feeding and the consistency/thickness you want your shake to be!}, two drops of red food coloring, and blended it smooth.

for the doughnuts, i make an icing out of powered sugar and water. i used several tablespoons of the sugar and a teaspoon of water. mix and add until it’s thick and paste like. i dipped the doughnut {this was olive’s favorite part} in the icing and olive sprinkled each one with the hearts!

i did prep my garnishes before i made the shake but {tip} you can also store the blender container in the freezer until you are ready to pour! i used a hobnob glass {i love the vintage look of it} and once the shake was poured, i sprayed A LOT of whipped cream {you need a lot ’cause one – it settles quickly and two – you need it to hold your flair!

once the whipped cream was sprayed, i added the cookie, threw on a couple marshmallows, strategically added in the x and o’s, conversation hearts, and placed the stick with the doughnuts into the milkshake. i stuck in the straw and voila!!! a super extra cute festive milkshake!

[she was soooo excited!]

[she’s too cute]

xoxo

watercolor valentine’s day cards

Posted on February 12, 2016 by tandem in love

last year, miss olive helped mama make some valentine’s day cards to send out. this year, olive did it all on her own! i was so proud and excited!

i was out shopping with my sisters one night and we stopped by a paper store to peruse around. it was perfect because it was on my list to grab some extra supplies for olive’s valentine’s day cards. i had a lot of ‘stuff’ at home so i didn’t need much because i am a craft hoarder. haha!

one morning, i set up her table and asked her if she wanted to draw {duh, i obvs knew what her answer was going to be!}, she was so excited to ‘draw’. who knew this kid would be so entertained and paint for hours?! she was loving it. she painted heart after heart after heart. i didn’t think she would plow through so many cards! i had purchased a set of 20 and had a leftover pack at home, not thinking she would paint every single one of the paper hearts! she was having a blast.

i taught her how to wash off her paintbrush after each color and all of a sudden she became a pro! i didn’t have a paint smock for her but she is such a neat little girl, she didn’t get a drop of paint on her cute little outfit nor did she paint outside the heart’s lines!

after painting all her cards, i then helped her place her stickers on each one. i pulled off the sticker and she happily stuck it on each heart. it was too cute…she would place each sticker on there so wonky! crooked, sideways, or upside down if i didn’t help navigate her a bit!

[the preparation]

[a favorite valentine’s day decor…i actually bought this a few months after olive was born and didn’t have a place or a real purpose for it until this year!]

[she is usually so careful but i realized i need a smock for her! although she did not get one drop of paint on herself at all]

[we pulled out our valentine’s day books…our favorite, olive my love]

[my baby doll]

[she’s too cute…cleaning off her brush to pick a new color to paint with]

[her final touch: placing stickers on her valentine’s day cards]

after we finished all the cards, i assembled them all inside red envelopes, sprinkled some with confetti, and addressed them with a silver sharpie pen. in hindsight, i would have totally bought a finer point sharpie pen because the thicker marker took up way too much space on such a little envelope! eep! i sealed each one with decorative, festive print washi tape and a pretty little spring time flower postage stamp.

hc dropped the cards off in the mail and we were excited at the prospect of everyone smiling when they opened up their little valentine’s day card from baby olive.

xoxo

love day part 2

Posted on February 17, 2015 by tandem in love

on valentine’s day evening, we swung on by my parent’s house for some love day fun. the boys were over and wanted grace and olive to come by to play. plus, we also had their vday gifts to give as well!

we started with a valentine’s day themed meal. we were crazy about anything heart shaped! we ate a heart shaped pizza, finished off our meal with a heart shaped cake on heart shaped plates! natch. the pizza was ordered by kim and the cake was made by terry’s mom, barbara! how sweet!

we munched away at our dinner and then our cake {delish!}, while the kids played and ate…well, mostly played! they were itching to open up their gifts. oh, kiddies…they have no patiences do they?!

[how adorbs is this heart shaped pizza??]

[twinning]

[heart shaped chocolate cake by barbara]

[b really wanted to be in the picture]

we finally gave them the green light to open up their gifts. they were super excited! we lined them up and they were ready to go.

[ready for presents!]

thuy and the boys gave olive the cutest gifts! pretty outfits, toys, and make up! yes, you heard that right…make up. she loves to watch all the ladies of the house get ready in the morning. that’s her thing…sit on top of the toilet and watch me{us} put on make up and get ready. she loves to brush her teeth {baby toothbrush}, comb her hair, and put on bronzer. so, auntie thuy gifted her with bronzer, make up brush, and a hair brush for her purty hair. so fitting.

[she loves make up and getting gussied up already…]

[my cute tiffany blue colored pouch from thuy]

after the kids opened up all their gifts and reveled in the goodies, thuy surprised us with a little gift! how sweet and thoughtful! she gave me a beautiful tiffany blue zipper pouch…how cool. i love the color and the bag.

well, that was our valentine in a nutshell {or really in a two part blog 😉 }. we had a wonderful, blessed day celebrating with our loved ones. ♥

“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” first corinthians 12:4-8

xoxo

flashback friday

Posted on February 13, 2015 by tandem in love

today takes us back to…2014! i wanted to post a pic of me and rich from a few valentine’s day ago but i couldn’t resist this photo!!!! oh em gee. look.at.her. i die. soooooo sweet, small, cute, & perfect! such a little peanut! *sigh*

i’m dying over her short, shiny hair. her round buddha belly. her fat chunky, chubby, cheeks. she is barely 2 1/2 months young here. what a doll! plus, i loved her sweet little outfit: a pink cardi & heart printed pants. she was definitely my valentine!

oh, how time is flying. i can’t believe how tiny my babes was. *sniff, sniff* i seriously wish she could stay little forever. don’t get me wrong, i am loving every moment with olive as she grows but looking at photos like these makes me miss her at this size! soooo stinkin’ cute.

last year, we celebrated one day with our family {my sisters and my nephews} and exchanged gifts. then we celebrated at home {sweet home chicago} with just me, the hubs, and olive. it was pretty awesome…having the new babes and all. it was a very special valentine indeed.

well, i hope everyone has an amazing valentine’s day! i hope you are spending it with someone special, your family, or friends! enjoy this day of love! happy valentine’s day lovies!

xoxo

i heart you s’more

Posted on February 10, 2015 by tandem in love

now, who wouldn’t want chocolate covered heart s’mores?!

i had been contemplating the idea of making something fun for valentine’s day. i wasn’t sure what. i had sugar cookies on the radar. i bought the raddest copper cookie cutters the other week {pictured on instagram} and totally want to use them {no worries…i will definitely find many uses!}. anyhoo, i love hearts, i love s’mores, i thought why not make conversation heart s’mores?! i got my inspiration from love from the oven but i fine tuned some things to what i preferred. i love making anything s’mores!

my stash: graham crackers, lollipop sticks, a bag of nestle milk chocolate chips & two bags of white chocolate chips, edible ink pens, fluff, and a small {1 1/2 inch by 2 inch} heart cookie cutter.

[ingredients]

i first cut out the graham cracker hearts. yes. it’s pretty cool to do so and they don’t break! i love it. make sure your surface is free of debris {sweep the crumbs off to the side of the counter after each cut} and evenly apply pressure as you press and ta da! heart shaped graham crackers!

[graham crackers]

after i cut out the hearts, i spread half of the hearts with fluff. i then melted the chocolate and spread the melted milk chocolate {for a dozen hearts…i would use 1/4 of the bag…don’t over heat the chocolate!} on the other half of the crackers. i placed the sticks {about an inch} on one half and took the marshmallow covered heart and gently placed it onto the chocolate heart and stick.

i placed the pops into the freezer to stiffen them up and moved onto making the white chocolate. i used food coloring to get the desired color for the hearts. ok, ok. so i know there are so many opinions out there. folks say to not add anything to chocolate, because it’s already such a delicate form and you should use colored chips instead. plus, people also say to not use nestle chips for dipping. that candy melts, almond bark, and chocolate melts are best for dipping. honestly, it doesn’t taste as good! so, nestle chips it was! adding the food coloring didn’t do anything to the chocolate’s consitency but i definitely should have added shortening to the chocolate to thin it out! next time. it will definitely create a smoother coat.

i let the chocolate dry for an hour or less. after they hardened and cooled, i took my red decorating pen and wrote fun messages on each heart. so cute! i then individually wrapped each heart in a festive cellophane bag and voila! a cutesy valentines’s day treat for your loved ones!!

xoxo

tandem in love

{life is truly beautiful and it should be celebrated + shared.}

Tag Archives: hearts

Valentine’s Day ’21

pink heart milkshake

watercolor valentine’s day cards

love day part 2

flashback friday

i heart you s’more