a love-ly weekend indeed

it was a fun and busy valentine's weekend for the wans.

on saturday, we exchanged cards. i'd picked up a limited-edition, just for v-day bag of all-green peanut m&ms while at target the other day, and when the teen caught sight of them, she was all "ewwwwwwwww, that's gah-ross, mom!" heh.

the hub ran a few errands, and then when he got back, we packed up the car and headed up to wrightwood to see the ILs and help them out with the valentine's dinner they were putting on at their church. it was gorgeous and cold up there, with the recent storms dumping feet of fresh powder on the town.

the church was rocking these killer-looking icicles.

the ILs had set and decorated the tables quite festively, complete with a flyer that explained the evening's murder mystery entertainment.

the bean put on some gloves and then went outside with the hub to play and eat some snow.

i took her in to the childrens' building to let her run amok and play with all the toys. after being slightly dumbfounded at first, she got into it and had a blast.

i was really amused to open a drawer of kitchen toys and find this:

spam is everywhere!

then it was a whirlwind of activity, helping brother wan finish cooking the meal (prime rib, creamed corn, smashed potatoes), plating the individual dinners, coordinating the kids who acted as that evening's servers and entertainers, dishing out dessert, and then staring openmouthed at the piles and piles of plates, flatware, and glasses that resulted. i had the bean strapped to me, asleep as i worked, and when it was all over, the hub sent us home with his mom while he, brother wan, and FIL tackled the cleanup. they didn't get home till 11:30. yikes.

yesterday, we got up early to head home and get ready for a visit with my brother and o. we hadn't seen them in ages and we were pretty excited to hang out and just relax with them. o recently switched to a vegan diet, and so i'd bought ingredients to make some vegan chili. i was a little nervous, as i'd never made chili from scratch before, let alone anything vegan, but i had fun researching recipes and buying the groceries - which included meatless "meatballs" that i planned to chop up and stir into the chili.

it turned out really well:

after tasting it several times, i got the hub to give it a try. he wasn't thrilled about the idea of meatless meatballs, but he gamely stuck a spoon into the pot and took a big bite.

"it's actually pretty good!" he proclaimed, and i beamed. yes!

and when my brother and o arrived, we chatted for a while before we dug in. i'd also made "regular" chili for me and the hub, along with cornbread and sliced up some ciabatta i'd found at trader joe's. everything was yummy, and i think they enjoyed their special chili. at least, i hoped they really did and weren't just being nice. ha!

they're planning a november wedding, and so we sat and talked about their progress and helped them with questions they had about vendors and meals and contracts and things. oh, how i love weddings! and then as i took the bean into the other room to nurse, o followed me in and shut the door.

and asked me to be a bridesmaid! oh mah gah! i'm so excited, i can barely stand it. and when we went back out to join the boys, she also asked me if the bean could be their flower girl.

could she? COULD SHE?!? hell, yeah! and there's also a role for the teen, but i think i'll let them talk to her first before i spill here (stop smiling, my dear, i know you're reading this).

we fired up the wii and played a bit of my new game, which was really freaking hilarious. i can't wait to play it some more. then we started playing baseball - really badly. the boys were aghast at our ineptitude and quickly took over the controllers. they sucked at first, too, but got the hang of it and totally blew us out of the water. ha!

they tried out boxing:

and bowling and tennis, and then we were all tired. haha, wusses!

i sent them home with the rest of the chili and "meatballs," and about an hour after they left, the hub fired up the BBQ for our delayed valentine's dinner. while he grilled a couple of thick ribeye steaks, i took a tip from amber and adapted this recipe to make some miso-glazed shrimp.

mmmm, it was quite a delicious way to end valentine's weekend. and so way better than fighting the crowds and going out! i love cozy dinners at home.