The Truth about Valentine's Day

I have a confession...

Valentine's Day is my favorite holiday.  I'm a hopeless romantic. 

It is also my sister's birthday, which makes it extra special in my family (Happy Birthday, Gabby!!)

But Valentine's Day gets a bad rap for being a cheesy Hallmark holiday. 

Not so, my friends, not so.

In an effort to bring some validity to this wonderful day, today we're going to take a quick walk through history to find out the truth about Valentine's Day.  For those of you who are groaning because you hate history, hang in there.  There's a sweet treat at the end, I promise.

Here's the bullet point version...
*Valentine was a real guy - a Roman Priest - who lived in Rome during the persecutions at the hand of Claudius
*He was a well-loved guy by many people, including children
*Claudius sent forth an edict that all men must be in his army and none of them could get married
*Polygamy was rampant those days and Valentine supported traditional Christian marriage and encouraged marriage in the church
*Despite the king's edict, Valentine married couples in secret
*He was caught, imprisoned, and tortured for doing this
*While he was in jail, a blind girl brought him food and he thanked her and prayed for her.  A miracle followed - the little girl could see
*Valentine sent her a letter from jail before his execution and signed it, "from your Valentine."  Hence, the first "valentine" sent.
source: cbn.com

And there it is.

Want the kid-safe version?  There's a great little book called "The Story of Valentine's Day." 

 This is only one book in a great line of board books by CandyCane Press.  The books are simple enough for a toddler, yet give a great starting point for older kids, as well.  These books range from Martin Luther King Jr. Day to Christmas and everything in between to give a very simple connection between our traditions and the historical event/person.  I buy mine at Target.

And for those of you who hate history and suffered through this lesson, here is a cute baby pics as your reward :). 

And for those of you not into cute baby pics, here's a sweet recipe from All Day I Dream About Food.

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Sandwich Cookies


Yes, they are Gluten Free.

Oh. My.

So, show someone special today how  much you love them.  Give an effort in honor of a guy who gave it all for love.

Sound cheesy?

Maybe.

But, I think it'd make a great Nicholas Sparks' movie.

Happy Valentine's Day from Life as a Rinnagade!