Welcome to "Love Week"

I've strung the crepe paper from the walls, hung hearts all over the place, have everything ready for our Valentine's dinner and Family Home Evening. Thus, "Love Week" has begun. I usually just try to make Valentine's day special, but this year, I'm extending it. With all the crap in this world, I figure my kids can use all the love I can throw at them, even if it's as corny as cheap decorations and homemade games.
Along with my theme for the week, I thought I'd blog about some of the people I love.
I'm starting with my Mom and Dad, the people who loved me first. I have a lot to be grateful for when it comes to these two.
My mom taught me homemaking skills and how to be a good mother. She is the best cook and did it all from scratch. (I don't remember ever using a cake mix.) She always canned in the summer, (still does) and we often had a garden. People tell me I look like her, and have many of her manerisms, I can't imagine a better compliment.
If I got my looks from my mom, I got my sense of humor from my dad. Not that Mom doesn't have a sense of humor, you'd have to, to live with Dad. It's just that he's the one who would try to get us to laugh, telling jokes (David and Goliath) and doing crazy things like dressing up like a wolf for a FHE game or putting on my mom's mumu. They both taught me about working hard. They brought up 7 kids, teaching us the gospel by word and example. One of my favorite memories is when my sisters and I would lay across Mom and Dad's bed (they were probably trying to read) and talk to them. This happened often and I remember feeling such a sense of security, knowing I was welcome there. Our discussions often turned to the gospel and this was when I began to believe that Dad knew everything about the gospel. We could ask him any question and he always knew the answer. (I still think that's true.)
They've been married for 45 years and somehow managed to raise us in a way that we all, though we have very different lifestyles, love to be together. I think that's the greatest badge of their success. I hope that I can raise my kids so that they'll feel the same way about each other.
I'm so grateful to my parents for setting me on the path, holding my hand as I learned my way, then letting me go, but with the knowledge that they would always be there for me.