Bed rest can do some strange things to me, I've decided. For one, it makes me completely bored and moody. On days like today, it makes me reflect and ponder. I'm in a quiet house right now because my husband took all 3 kids to church by himself. Ironically, the reflecting and pondering is all about that amazing husband of mine. I don't usually like to get all mushy and lovey dovey and share it with the world. Today I can't help it. That guy is one of a kind and if you know our love story at all you will know that being married to him is a dream come true for me.

I loved him long before he loved me. I never thought my chances of being married to him we're great, but as a girl in high school my prayers consistently contained the phrase, "And please bless me that I will marry someone like Eric Salway." ( no lie.) He was dreamy, handsome, funny, smart, witty, driven, kind, strong, caring; but these were only qualities that I admired from afar. There was no way I could be anything that he was looking for. But then I gained some confidence and chased him to Provo and somehow tricked him into seeing that I was exactly the one he needed to marry and the rest is history. And these are important facts about our history because they lead me to where my thoughts are today.

This may be a silly tangent I'm about to go on, but it's necessary for me to be able to explain something about my relationship with Eric. When we had been engaged for a total of 4 days, Eric had to take me to the emergency room and I ended up needing surgery. When I see pictures of how I looked in the hospital, I wonder why he didn't yank that ring off of my finger and run away. He actually did quite the opposite. I was really out of it with the pain medication and all of that, but every memory I have of the hospital and recovery are of him right next to me, holding my hand, looking at me, asking what I needed, comforting me.

Fast forward to our wedding day. I was a bucket of nerves on the way to the temple. My mom said she had never seen me so nervous before and she was probably right! I don't think I had ever been so scared. She asked me if I was having second thoughts and I told her that I just needed to see Eric and I would be fine. And I was! He held my shaking hands and smiled at me and the world was right again! That is how our relationship has been for me. He provides me constant love and assurance.

Now that we have 3 kids with a 4th on the way any day now, I am amazed at the patience and love and sympathy he provides for me. As my 8 year old put it-- since I've been on bed rest he's had to be the mom and the dad. It's completely true. It's not fair that he has to step up and do all of this, but he doesn't complain. In fact, I feel like he does a better job than I do! It's love, I tell you. Unconditional. And in his business of stepping up to take both of the parental roles, he still finds plenty of time to rub my back, and hold my hand, and tell me I'm beautiful. He lets me know it's okay.

It makes me reflect on my days as a teenager, praying to marry someone like him. Even then, I don't think I imagined how great of a man he was. I am left feeling very blessed. Blessed that my prayers were answered and blessed that Eric chose me just like I chose him. Feeling this way today caused me to realize I have to write these things down. Sometimes in the craziness of the days I forget how lucky I am. I forget how badly I wanted to be married to this man and I forget how glad I am that he still loves me after these 10 years. I need to write these things down so that I can remember how much we need each other. Or at least how much I need him. Especially now. I don't know what I did to deserve this guy, but I will be forever thankful that when I prayed to marry someone like Eric Salway, Heavenly Father gave me the real thing instead.

Do You Like Cookies?

Good! 'Cause I like to bake 'em.
Check out my new business!

A Different View

All three of my children have A LOT of energy. I know this because I tend to compare my children to other children, especially at parks and church. I also am told that my kids are energetic (or...annoying as they are playing tag in the aisles or touching everyone and everything as they walk by) by other mothers and people at the store. They also wear me out by the end of the day, everyday.

There are many times that I wonder why they are different. But yesterday I felt my heart swell with pride 3 times over (do I sound like the grinch?) when I witnessed the most simple thing.

Maya attempting to ride her bike without training wheels.

She had been begging Eric to let her ride her bike without training wheels for weeks. He finally gave in because...well, who can say no to her? Her blonde pig tails were poking out of her Dora the Explorer helmet, her grin went from ear to ear and her blue eyes sparkled. She kept telling Eric to let go of the bike and that she could do it herself, which is so Maya. She wasn't looking at the road. She was looking at me. With her "see mom, I told you I could do it" look. She probably only peddled 3 times before each fall, but her smile never left and she never got discouraged and this is what I thought:

"This moment defines how she will live her life."

And I've never felt more inspired, overwhelmed with emotion and love, and gratitude than I did in that moment. Who knows why I was given these children that have a lot of energy and teach me patience every day. I certainly don't think I am anything like Maya, but I want to be. She takes things head on and with confidence. And that energy that is hard for me to deal with sometimes--I envy it. Everything in life is exciting to her and requires her full attention and efforts. Who wouldn't want that quality as an adult?

My attitude was changed yesterday as I saw in my mind's eye, my little girl grown and successful. With children and a husband and energy and joy bursting from the walls of her home. This energy is something she had when she was born. It is as much a part of who she is as her blue eyes. This isn't something that I change, and now it's not something I want to change. It's something I admire and can't wait to see bloom and blossom when she can harness that energy into the talents that she has. It will be beautiful to witness, I am sure.

Little Maya didn't learn to ride her bike without training wheels yesterday, but if I know my Maya...it won't take long.

Why Do You Run?

Something I needed before I attempt another 12 mile run today.

If You're Going To St. George...

Going to St. George? You should! Here's what I loved this year:
1. SNOW CANYON: Sand dunes are awesome! (but not on windy days...my kids cried after about 15 minutes) Bring your buckets and shovels and stay in designated areas.

Peculiar sand men and sand angels

Messy sand baby.

The BEST part about Snow Canyon were the petrified dunes. It was a hike of hundreds of little nature-made stairs that the kids could not get enough of. I loved it because there were no steep cliffs, but still fantastic views! The "kid-friendly" hikes were closed at this time of year, but they were described as easy and beautiful. If not for the wind, we would have spent a whole day here. Think: picnic, hikes, dunes, star gazing at night.

2. The river and splash pad at the City Offices. My kids thought this was great and there was plenty of shade, table, chairs and grassy areas for football. (and if you are my husband, clocking children in the back with the football. He has great aim! ;)

Stop by the 1950's style candy shop across the street when you're finished in the water! Orange cream shaved ice!

3. Visit the St. George Temple. They have gorgeous grounds and a fantastic visitors center. Awesome missionaries, too! They were so nice to the kids.

4. CRAVE and Nielson's Frozen Custard!
Can't leave without a raspberry concrete from Nielson's. CAN. NOT.

We found a cute little self-serve frozen yogurt shop called CRAVE. 30 cents an ounce sounds inexpensive until you fill your WHOLE cup with 5 different flavors of ice cream and PILE on the toppings. Worth the smiles, though!

5. Catch giant lizards! (and let them go)
There were lizards (and snakes, apparently) right on our back porch constantly! The kids loved to try to catch them.

There was so much more to love!

• Virgin River Trail - walked and run 2x daily by our family!
• Local parks for kick ball and basketball
• Pirate Island Pizza (WAY overpriced, but still fun)
• Glow in the dark miniature golf with Beatles music playing in the background. Proud moment for us when our kids are singing along!
• Hurricane Half marathon! NEXT YEAR AGAIN...maybe.
• Can't do St. George without lots of swimming. Our favorite was the Washington County rec. center. AWESOME indoor water playground!

We loved it and didn't want to leave!
Can we live there?
(but then I remember it gets to be 34389327953 degrees in the summer, so never mind..

Hurricane Half Marathon 2010

Here I am!

It's been a fun and exciting Spring so far. Actually, a lot of events that I wish I had blogged about. But, we'll start here with the last two weeks because that's what is on my mind.

We planned a trip to St. George for the week of my birthday. Being a person that does not exercise unless I have something to train for the amazing athlete that I am, I decided to sign up for a half-marathon on my birthday. Luckily my sister, Heidi, agreed to train with me.

The whole week before, I was a bucket of nerves. I felt like I couldn't fully enjoy "vacation" food because of the upcoming event (which isn't such a bad thing), and two days before the race I started getting sick with a sore throat. Eric bought me a jamba juice type thing and a shot of wheat grass. WHO drinks that stuff!? I felt like I had just swallowed a handful of grass.

The night before the race, Eric gave me a blessing and I said a long prayer. It might sound strange to care that I was able to perform well in the race, but it was SO important to me. I had something to prove and it was a long time coming. Remember back in 2008, when I did all of the training for the race and then had a little road bump? Well, this race was my time to shine. And after the blessing and a prayer, I felt confident that I was not the only one who wanted me to do well. Nothing like a little faith building exercise right before a race!

So, the race started bright and early on Saturday, April 24th and I was tired after no sleep from nerves and the sore throat. I was still so nervous that I forgot my ipod and other things that I planned on having. But, really, there is an energy before a race starts. If you've ever done a race, you'll know what I'm talking about. There is a huge group of people, sizing each other up, getting ready to go for the same goal. I like it!

Of course when I'm sizing people up, I realize that some of the guys running this race have legs as long as my whole body, and I'm saying to myself, "Please don't come in LAST place!"

The race started up a hill, but my sister and I were feeling awesome! The weather was beautiful and the sun was just starting to rise over the reservoir we were running around. I was just taking it all in. Seeing the red rocks of the St. George area, the water, the sunrise; and then I saw a guy peeing and I thought, "Hmm, already at mile 2?" People have warned me that during longer races, people will just do their business on the side of the road but it's still wierd to see.

Then, mile 5 started and all I saw was "UP". It was a major hill and mentally I shut down. It ended up being a mile long and it psyched me out. I could not get in the groove after that. People all around us were walking and in my mind I kept asking when I could walk. Heidi motivated me the best she could with lures of fetticine alfredo and whatever I wanted to do after the race. I was just so tired.

Really, though, the thing that kept me going was knowing that my husband was there at the finish line. I knew that he didn't care what my time was. Only I cared. I knew he'd be proud and I also knew that my kids needed to see me finish strong, even though I felt far from strong. The whole last 3 miles I was chanting to myself, "Don't stop running, don't stop running."

I could see the finish line and I could see my family. Heidi and I sprinted to the finish line for a time of 2:27. Not even close to the time I trained for, but it's a place to start for me.

Here we are getting ready to sprint to the end!

(ignore the creepy smiley guy behind Heidi...strange)

I FINISHED!

And here's what I learned from training to the race:

• I am capable of doing whatever it is that I set my mind to
• The only limits that I have are the ones I set on myself
• I am NOT the slowest runner!
• I am strong
  
• A marathon is possible for me.
  

*****************************************

So, I did race the next week. JUST a 10K, though.
Much better time. 62 minutes. 10 minute miles. NOT 11, like my half marathon.

What I learned from the 10K? 6.2 miles is a MUCH better distance!

Luck o' the Irish

This St. Patrick's holiday has been full of the usual: crafts and baking. Hayden colored some awesome leprechauns that I proudly displayed. I will keep those forever!

We also made leprechauns out of toilet paper rolls. The girl one looks a little bit like a witch. Maybe female leprechauns don't wear hats?

We also made rainbow cupcakes, which quite possibly are the greatest cupcakes I've ever seen! Here's the recipe

Our cupcakes were so tasty, that Hayden thought for sure we could catch the leprechaun with one. Hayden came up with the idea to put a cupcake in the middle of a piece of paper and put a penny on top. Then, he put glue all around the cupcake. The leprechaun would come over to take a bite or grab the penny and he'd get stuck. That was the plan, anyway.

As you can see, we didn't catch a leprechaun, but we DID catch a leprechaun shoe! How many people do you know that can say that?! He also left a note on the paper that read, "You got my shoe, but you'll never catch me!"

The leprechaun did leave us some of his treasure, though.
Green and gold treats!

and...he turned our toilet water green.

Until next year, leprechaun!

I swear it was here just a minute ago...

Where did the Spring weather go? It's been so nice here. Like, play outside with no jackets kind of nice. I had great plans for this weekend. Two new garden beds are waiting to be filled with Mel's Mix. I was going to plant peas today. I have my garden all mapped out like last year.

But today, I woke up to SNOW.

So, my planting will have to wait. How long? I don't know. I hope not too long. Eric assures me that this snow will be gone in a couple of days. That seems like forever to me. I thought spring was here!

Here's my two new boxes waiting to be used.

We've started onions and flowers from seed.
Today, I'm going to start my tomatoes, peppers and tomatillos.

Since I have more garden space, I am experimenting with more seeds, and trying out a different part of the yard for a couple of items. I'm excited to share it with you, but I guess it will have to wait. (Hopefully for only a couple of days!)

The Baby Turns One

My little baby turned one, which means that he's well on his way to not being my little baby anymore. It's exciting and sad at the same time. I have to say "hello" to walking and talking and mischief and "goodbye" to tiny baby clothes and bottles. Time for another baby, I guess. (um, no!)

My talented sister, Heidi, took some adorable pictures of Crew that totally capture his sweet personality. I love the pictures and I love this baby.

One thing about Crew, is his ability to capture anyone's heart with his "flirty eyes" as some say. He has these dreamy blue eyes and long eyelashes that any girl would kill for. He is good tempered and really easy going. He loves food and can already tackle a whole banana. I don't even cut it up--he just goes to town! He loves baths and splashing, which is hilarious to watch. He gets a serious look on his face when he's about to splash and then he splashes like his life depended on it. I laugh every time.

If I make eye contact with him ever, he HAS to crawl or get to me somehow. Sometimes when he's playing by himself, I have to sneak in to check on him so that he won't see me because he'll immediately stop what he's doing and come over to me to play. (Which, I love, of course!) He sleeps 13 hours at night, with a 6:30pm bedtime, he wakes up happy and snuggly. He gives kisses (sometimes) and he loves to watch me blow bubbles with my gum. Do you see why I want him to stay this way? Forever?

***********************************************

For his birthday cake, I did a baby animal cake that I found in Family Fun's March issue. It was really easy and cute. (Just time consuming) I love the way it turned out!

Here's little Crew looking at me like, "What am I supposed to do? We didn't practice this!"
He ended up loving the cake!

And so did everyone else apparently, because my brother, Ryan, ate the whole barn and my brother in law, Matt, ate the whole silo! How's that for flattery?

Happy birthday my little sweet baby, Crew.
I love you.

"The Strangest Things That Have Ever Happened To Me"

Creativity abounds in the mind of my six year old. He really is so clever and smart. He never watches a movie without pen and paper in hand. He'll draw out the story as he sees it and add captions of what is going on. I love watching him do this because this is not something I do well. Art is not my thing.

A few days ago, Hayden had another stroke of genius, but I have to admit...it was partly my fault.

After Family Home Evening, I asked Hayden and Maya to go and brush their teeth. Hayden responded with moans and groans and "I don't want to go to bed!". I finally responded with, "Go brush your teeth, or you'll end up like your older brother!" (please don't think I'm the meanest mom ever! We are big teasers at this houses.)

Hayden stopped, looked at me, and then went and brushed his teeth. Eric and I looked at each other and started laughing. I thought Hayden must not have heard me, since he didn't respond with any questions.

10 seconds later, he poked his head out of the bathroom and asked, "Wait, what big brother?"

"The one that lives in the attic."

Hayden totally accepted this as truth, and started saying things like, "Oh, so that's what all that noise is up there at night."

It took me until the rest of bed time to convince Hayden that I was just joking. He made Eric promise that he could see the attic the next day, just to be sure.

The next day, as promised, Eric lifted Hayden up into the attic. Hayden had a wierded-out look on his face. "It's different than I imagined." he said.

Nothing else was said about it. Later that night, Eric and I took the kids to the gym's day care so that we could exercise for an hour. While Hayden was in there, he started his newest art project.

I give you: "The Strangest Things That Have Ever Happened to Me" art exhibit

First, we have "The Attic".
Here is Hayden with the flashlight looking around the attic. The black balls, are dust, and the brown lines are the wooden planks.

This one is called "The Strange Blue Light".
One time when Hayden was taking a diaper out to the garbage in the dark, the street light that is normally yellow, was blue. That is strange!

This one is called "Black Out".
While Hayden was watching a movie with his cousin and some friends, the power suddenly went out and left them in complete darkness.

I think its a pretty great exhibit, myself!
I think Hayden works through a lot of his emotions while coloring. After he drew these pictures, he hasn't said a word, or asked about the attic.
(Thank goodness I only scarred the child for a day or two, and not for life!)

"...You get out of it what you put into it"

For the second time in my life, I've taken up running. I really tried hard to start running again after I had Crew, but I started way too early after having a C-section and the pain set me back. (and by set me back, I mean I didn't try again for 10 months.) The joy wasn't in it for me anymore. I had forgotten why I liked it; why I had gotten up some Saturdays at 5 AM just to run.

On my quest to enjoy running again, I signed up for the Ragnar relay race in June. Nothing like FORCING yourself to run because others are counting on you, right? And I'll tell you, after 2 months of consistent running: I am getting back to loving it again. After I decided a couple of things about running, the "fun" factor clicked again.

1st, I decided that while I AM running to lose weight and get healthier, it is not the PRIMARY reason I'm running. I am running because it makes me feel good. I feel like, "Hey, if I can run this distance, I can tackle those other hard things in my life." It feels good to accomplish a goal. It helps my self-esteem and self-image. It's one of those things where I can see my efforts and realize I am improving. To quote Oprah,

"Running is the greatest metaphor for life, because you get out of it what you put into it."

2nd, I decided that it really doesn't matter how fast I run. A couple of months ago, I would dread my running days because I felt so slow. Then I realized, "Who CARES?!" Isn't the point of a race, to finish the race? It's not always the goal to be the fastest. It's not like I'm an olympian. (YET! ;)) My mantra has been "Progress...not perfection." And with that mantra in mind, I've shaved 1 minute + off my miles in only 2 weeks, not to mention that I also doubled my miles from last month. It's amazing how much we psych ourselves out. Or at least I do. (did.)

What keeps you motivated to run? I would love to hear!


And, as a side note, I updated my sidebar to include the races I'm doing this year. Wanna join me for any of them? I would love some company!

Party without Pictures

Hayden's class party was today. I am sad about the fact that I forgot my camera. I planned the party and had a huge bucket of stuff to remember with sticky notes all over it (reminding me of what to do) and so with all that stuff, I forgot my camera.

We played a few games, painted, and had cookies. Then it took 30 minutes for them to pass out Valentines to each other. THIRTY MINUTES!!!

Thanks to a few of my friends that have a few class parties under their belts, we had some great games!

1st Station: Heart Games. Each child was given 10 candy hearts, a straw and a cup. They played racing games to see who was the fastest. They had to stack the hearts and suck the candy hearts with a straw and put it in the cup. They LOVED this!

2nd Station: Bingo. There's this great website I found where you can print your own Bingo board, so that's what we used. Here's the site.

3rd Station: Valentine Pictureka. My brilliant friend, Nichole, made this game for a child's class and let me borrow it. She used stamps and pictures to make three 8 1/2 by 11 boards, which she laminated. Then she had individual cards with some of the pictures from the boards. I brought a 1 minute timer, and the kids had to find the picture on the board before the time ran out. So. Fun!

4th Station: Scratch and Sniff Painting. I was having a hard time finding a craft for these kids to do. That's weird for me, I know, but the budget for these parties is not much. Basically nothing. So, finally I decided on something simple and cost effective. I bought kool-aid in grape, lemon-lime, cherry, lemonade, blue-raspberry and orange. I put 2 TBS. water in a small cup and then added the kool-aid and stirred it with a paint brush. Each flavor smells different and has a different color. It's a real scratch and sniff that the kids made themselves! This activity deserves it's own post, really. We're going to have to do this again and take pictures.

So, that was the party in a nut shell. Very fun, easy and successful! My three favorite things.

All You Need Is Love

Valentines morning started EARLY! I was hoping to get to sleep until at least 7 AM, you know, like normal. Nope. Bright and early 6:15AM, excited children (all three) hopped out of bed to peek in their mailbox for their final gift. They found two yummy caramel apples and a nice little note from the Love Bugs. Their tired eyes and excited smiles were enough to get me out of bed and start the day.

The kids DID NOT want pancakes for breakfast. They wanted caramel apples, of course! So, since it's Valentines day, I caved. Chocolate for breakfast always seems like a great idea, right!?



Our romantic (?) Valentines dinner consisted of everyone's favorite Sunday meal: Honey glazed ham, twice baked potatoes, some vegetables and pink juice; all served by candle light. Maya helped me with the centerpiece of candy hearts and paper hearts, and then I had her go downstairs with Hayden until dinner was ready.

When they came up stairs in the dark house to see the candles on the table, they were so excited! Hayden, for some reason, thought that the candles reminded him of Halloween. He wanted to tell scary stories and play "No Bears Are Out Tonight". He also said that the candles were the best idea ever and that he'll have to remember that for when he's older and married. That made me smile.

Then we went around the table and said what we loved about each other. It was sweet and we all felt loved. Especially me.

To be honest, I was a grouch when Eric got home from work at 5pm. After struggling with kids during Sacrament meeting, wanting to bear my testimony but not being able to, and then doing singing time for jr, sr, and nursery left me tired and needing a break, which the kids were not allowing. He came home at the peak of my frustration. Poor man. But...he still loves me! And that's what is awesome about love. To love someone, you also need to forgive and boy does he forgive me more than necessary. It wasn't a great start to our Valentines evening, but it ended well! And left me feeling thankful and loved, like I said.

All You Need Is Love

Last Minute Things

Remember how I said that I was going to make THESE for my kid's Valentines gifts? Well, I haven't even started. So, I'm having Eric pick up a couple of THESE on his way home from work tomorrow instead. They are so yummy, and are decorated very cute for the holidays. Homemade is usually the way I roll, but you can't make caramel apples like this! You just can't. (and they aren't as expensive as they say on the site. They're $4.95 each...totally worth it!)

Since Valentines day is on a Sunday, Eric and I celebrated last night. (he surprised me with a whole night planned and even got a babysitter!) So, Sunday, it will be a family celebration. I have a few things planned, but what I'm most excited for is having a family candle-lit dinner! I'll for sure post pictures of how it goes.

Have a WONDERFUL Valentines day!

Valentines from the Past:

We made these cute cupcakes from (where else?) Family Fun in 2007.
They turned out so well, but you can't tell because I am horrible at taking pictures!
Trust me, though, they were cute.

**********************

In 2008 and 2009, we had a special heart shaped breakfast.
Cinnamon french toast cut out in a heart shape with cookie cutters.
Pink Heart Shaped (sort of...) pancakes.
Both were awesome!

*********************

One of my best Valentines ever in 2002, right after Eric and I started dating.
He brought me a dozen fire and ice roses (my fav!) and tied to each rose was written something that he loves about me. I still have all the little tags, even.

Then he wrote me the sweetest, most funny poem in the whole world.
I love that guy.
Here are some pictures of us from that Valentines day long ago...

I still love him.
Just a whole lot more.

Delivered!

We got our "Loveland" Valentine in the mail yesterday!
They put a cute stamp on the left of the envelope and a very darling postmark on the top right.
I sent them out a week ago, so plan on that when you're sending out your Valentines.
I just love it.

More To Do...

Here are some things I want to get done in the next 4 days before Valentines Day:

*Make THESE cookies (Saturday night...while kids are in bed)
*Put some Valentines together for Hayden's class -- I'm thinking THESE!
*Make THESE bean bag chairs for the kid's Valentines gift (Might have to be an Easter gift...)

Looking for more *easy* Valentine ideas? Let me point you in the right direction:

*Family Fun's Valentines Archives*

Have I mentioned how much I LOVE their ideas?!

What are you working on?

Olympic Oval

The greatest ice on earth is right in our back yard! We have the Utah Olympic Oval where the 2002 Olympic speed skaters competed. There is an indoor track here as well, and I have seen Apollo Ohno many times as I have run here on cold winter mornings. The 2002 records are all over the building. You can't help but feel like a champion yourself while running around the track...until you get passed and lapped by some real champions that are training there. But it is a cool place!

Because we have a pass to the Recreation Center, we can get in free to the Oval (+ the cost of skates) once a week. We took our kids for the first time a couple of weeks ago, and boy oh boy, was it an adventure!

Did you know they made skates so small? I thought it was the cutest thing ever.

The Oval allows strollers on their ice, and they had these "granny walkers" for the kids to cruise around with. Thank goodness for those things! I don't think we would have been able to enjoy the ice if we didn't have those. I am not a good skater myself, so it was nice to not have to worry about saving the kids every time they fell. Many people kept asking where we got the walkers, so not many people knew they had something like that. I would be willing to bet that your local skating rinks have something like this. If you're taking young kids, I think it's a necessity!

The kids cruisin' along!

The videos below are hilarious to me! I laugh every time I see the one of Hayden.
They had a blast, and can't wait to go back!

Our Valentines

As a teenager, I worked at a copy and print store after school. I loved seeing what people would bring in to copy, and often I would ask for a copy for myself. I got my wonderful chore chart system, organization sheets, and many other things that I love, including the Valentines that we are making this year.

I hope that the sweet lady who copied these off at the store 10 years ago doesn't mind that I'm sharing this! I seriously love this valentine, though. It's perfect for boys or girls and doesn't cost much to make.

Here's the template: (if you would like me to send you a copy by email, leave me your email address in the comment section)

We just copied these off on different colors of paper. Then cut them out. Fold the "holster" on the dotted line and glue around just the sides together so you can still put the gun in the holster. Glue a stick of gum to the barrel of the gun, then stick the gun inside the holster.

Here's a picture of my kids assembling the valentines. It's the only picture I took! I should have taken one of the finished product. If you look closely you can get an idea of what they'll look like. We like to mix up the colors and put a blue gun in an orange holster, etc.

Valentines day is getting close! Are you ready?