Valentine’s Day is just another day around our house. We don’t do flowers or presents or fancy dinners. It’s not that we’re anti-Valentine’s Day. We just live life as John often sums it up, “I tell you and hopefully show you that you are very loved every day of the week. I, on the other hand, have had so many work projects and volunteer commitments lately that I’ve been MIA, which leads me to deal with extreme guilt when I walk in the house at night and see everything cleaned, laundry folded and dinner plate waiting on the stove. Knowing that I likely haven’t expressed ample amounts of my love and gratitude toward my husband, and knowing we have a strict no gifts policy, I decided to take the tried and true route cleared by so many women before me. You know, “the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.” It’s true. A wise woman once told us before marriage that love starts in the kitchen. A favorite around our house is anything with oranges and cranberries, so this little muffin recipe dressed up in parchment cups from Paper Chef was the perfect “You are loved today and every day” gift for my valentine.

Happy Valentine’s Day to you. I hope you feel so loved.