On Saturday, we hosted a little Valentine's Day party for Halle's friends and their mommies! It was fun to have a special occasion get together because it meant planning festive snacks and exchanging sweet treats.

The boy mama's were out of town and it ended up being a girls day! GALentine's as some say ;)

Everyone came over in the morning so I made some breakfast appetizers and heart shaped eats. I was thinking of planning some play activities but opted out since our (mostly) almost two year olds would probably have more fun in the playroom and running around... Which they did!

Here's a look at my food setup. It had to be documented since I actually pulled off a tidy house and food to serve thanks to both girls sleeping all night and a little late night muffin baking! Although I did have an oven full of dirty dishes that I didn't have time to wash before the party haha keepin it real ;) And I'll be honest, I totally took these (iPhone) pictures after the party! One: because I didn't get a good snap before and Two: because we always have too much food at our parties...

These cups are a breakfast appetizer I whipped up! The bottom layer is fried up mashed potatoes (or you could use hash browns). Next is a sprinkle of shredded cheddar cheese. Follow that with a layer of small bacon pieces. Finally, top with French toast bites. (I used scraps left over from my heart shaped waffle cut outs and fried them up in a French toast mixture.) And voila! A whole lot of breakfast goodness in a mini serving and cute to boot in a little cup :)

Everything was delicious! And it is always fun to have girl time with these ladies and watch the little ones play.

It has been so fun to watch these kids grow together. Most of the group met at their prenatal class. I knew Kerri, as Matthew's cousin's wife, and her daughter was born the day after Halle! It worked out great for me to join the gang when we moved to Calgary last December.

One thing we need to work on is taking group photos of the children at the beginning on these play dates! We always seem to forget until the end when everyone is wound up / a mess / ready for nap / and just altogether not in the mood to sit for a photo... Much less one with half a dozen other squirmy toddlers!

So here's a flashback to last Valentine's day.

Look at those little almost one year olds! Turns out I have spent the last two Valentine's with this group, instead of Matthew, who has been out of town both years! I'm grateful to celebrate some friend lovin with them ;)

And Matthew is always on the ball with flower and chocolate delivery which makes up for him being away. Plus for the last three years I've had a new family member to share the love and cuddles with - first Loki, then Halle and now Autumn. The day really just gets better and better with all these babies to love on and cuddle with! <3

Hope you all had a great weekend with those you love! And a happy long weekend and Family Day to my fellow Albertan's :)

Happy shovelling to my Newfs ;) har har!

Thanks for reading xo

Did you know February is apple month? Yeah, me neither, until recently.

Although I mostly like writing life updates & sharing personal stories. I thought I would switch it up and share a healthy apple snack, since it's apple month and all... And because making this is becoming a daily habit of mine.

I have a huge sweet tooth but am trying to be strong willed when it comes to giving in to junk. I've been making a real effort (most of the time) to choose whole food and add new varieties to my diet.

I have always liked baking but am learning that I also enjoy getting creative in the kitchen. It started during pregnancy when I would whip up my own recipes to satisfy cravings. Since then I've been trying to mix up the creating with making healthier choices. I'd like to start sharing some of my treats here on the blog for those that may be interested in a little food lovin mixed in with my motherhood tales and family updates :)

This cinnamon apple treat is an easy, sugar free snack to satisfy any mid day sweet cravings. And is so much better than just eating an apple! And gets bonus points for making your kitchen smell amazing!

+ Preheat oven to 375* F

+ Peel apple

+ Slice in to small wedges (similar size to home fries)

+ Place parchment paper on baking sheet (so that apples will not stick!)

+ Spread apples on parchment paper

+ Sprinkle heavily with cinnamon

+ Bake for approximately 20 mins

* note * I typically but Gala apples which are a bit harder than other varieties, such as Macintosh. So you can adjust bake time for apple type/tenderness desired. Or mix up different kinds of apple slices for taste & texture variety.

If you are pressed for time, aka too hungry to wait ;) you can also microwave the slices for 3-4 minutes. However I find the microwave dries out the apple more than baking.

The apple & cinnamon is good alone but I like to amp it up a little!

+ Place baked slices in a bowl, drizzle with honey and sprinkle a couple teaspoons of hemp hearts on top. So good!

The honey adds a little extra sweetness and the hemp hearts add texture.

Hemp hearts are a recent addition to my diet. They are shelled hemp seeds and are packed with protein. It's a good way to add more oomph to foods like cereal or salad.

I used to hear or read about foods like this and not really knowing about them I would get intimidated and wouldn't try them. And then I sorta had this realization that I'm the one who buys the groceries! Sounds silly now. But if something is expensive, or different, but good for you or you want to try it - try it! Duh.

It makes cooking more fun to change things up!

Let me know if you give this snack a try :) it's seriously addicting.

And it really is true that the more healthy food you eat, the more you will crave eating healthy food!

Aside from apple month, we all know February as love month.

I adore Valentine's Day!

Although I kinda think romantic dates and such on the 14th are just as overrated as New Years Eve parties... But still fun ;)

What I really like about the holiday is heart shaped everything, chocolate, baked treats and crafting homemade valentines!

The day doesn't have to be all about romantic love. Or a day for singles to complain. Honestly, one of my favourite memories of Valentine's is from back in the elementary school days. I always enjoyed making "mailboxes" and giving & receiving cards. Cause who doesn't love getting mail?! When it's not bills of course ;)

Having kids of my own now makes it all the better. We can make love notes for family & friends and bake together. Or start our own festive traditions! Holidays have no "rules" but they should always be fun!

That's why we're hosting a Valentine's Day party with some of Halle's friends and their mom's! Holidays are the perfect excuse for play dates :) Not that we need an excuse for a get together but I'm excited to make it more of a party with some festive decor and snacks!

They are coming in the morning so I'm planning on doing some breakfast foods & heart shaped snacks for brunch. And setting up a couple play spaces for the kids.

...That is if I can pull off getting my place tidy and everything together in time! Miss Autumn was either having a growth spurt or teething discomfort last night and woke 3 or 4 times. Then Halle decided to wake up wayyy too early which is strange for my typical late morning riser. So I'm tired and hoping all goes well tonight so I can do some cleaning and food prep when they go to bed.

I'm looking forward to sharing some of the party details next week :)

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Thanks for reading xo