Hey, hey, it’s Valentine’s Day! Here’s a conversational heart for you–with all my Favorite Things! I’ve got 6 items on this month’s list that capture the essence of love: from books and music, to food goodies, and makeup and appliances. Grab one of these Valentine’s Day gifts to share the love with a loved one or yourself!
Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone! What better day to share some items that make me really happy. So it’s time for the monthly My Favorite Things: Valentine’s Day edition! From cooking with ease to one of my all-time favorite books, a lip gloss that is a safe (and safer) bet than others out there, cupcakes delivered to your doorstep, syrups that make mixology fun, and Hamilton musical goodies, these are the things that are popping my cork right now.
This post contains affiliate links. (Click the titles to order)
Valentine’s Day Gift Edition
Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cooker
My new best friend in the kitchen is my Instant Pot. Makes meal prep a cinch! We can even take frozen meat and cook it to perfection for that same day…without thawing! There are amazing Instant Pot Facebook communities for sharing Instant Pot successes.
My favorites have been slow cooking meals all day without overcooking, making chili, and using it as a rice cooker! This ain’t your mama’s crockpot, so get rid of your old ones and grab an Instant Pot!
Love Does by Bob Goff
This is a perfect Valentine’s Day pick because it’s got love in the title. I received this book from a friend on the day my husband got admitted to the hospital with pneumonia. It carried me through those days with a peace and a connection to God like I’ve never had before. Boy, did I need some love to get me through. This book lifted me up like the joyful balloons on the cover!
Maybe the book struck a chord with me because I feel a kinship with Goff as a fellow attorney and a Disney lover.
Goff welcomes us to this radical idea that love is action: “Love is never stationary. In the end, love doesn’t just keep thinking about it or keep planning for it. Simply put: love does.”
I really loved the manageable chapters and the fact that they could be standalone reads. Here’s one of my favorite quotes (notice the travel parallel):
Every day God invites us on the same kind of adventure. It’s not a trip where He sends us a rigid itinerary, He simply invites us. God asks what it is He’s made us to love, what it is that captures our attention, what feeds that deep indescribable need of our souls to experience the richness of the world He made. And then, leaning over us, He whispers, “Let’s go do that together.”
Just read it.
Beautycounter lip gloss
Beautycounter has my new go to lip gloss. I always use lip gloss over my matte lipstick to give it a bit of a shimmer. Naturally, when I got this, my teen quickly swooped in a grabbed one for herself! There are 8 colors: Bare Shimmer, Peony, Dahlia, Fig, Buff, Sienna, Opal, and Ruby.
I’m digging Buff and Bare Shimmer right now, but what I love most is that I know they come with the Beautycounter promise that none of the harmful chemicals on the company’s Never List will be in these lip glosses.
Sallie’s Greatest Simple Syrups and Jams
I found out about these cooking gems at a Christmas open house at the local olive oil and vinegars shop, Olive and Then Some. My favorite syrups were the Peach-Mint syrup which pairs fabulously with prosecco and the Strawberry-Basil syrup which makes a subperb Sangria. You can find delicious recipes over at Sallie’s Greatest.
Also try their Blueberry Lemon Thyme jam on warm melted Brie-it’s divine!
Georgetown Cupcakes
Jonesing for some cupcakes but don’t have a local go to bakery? No problem! Order from Georgetown Cupcakes!
I love the way they deliver them so each cupcake arrives in a perfect condition. The hard part will be deciding between the over 100 flavors available. My favorite: Salted Caramel. Like heaven in a cupcake wrapper!
Hamilton ANYTHING
I’m a die hard Hamilton fan, so pretty much anything associated with the musical is tops in my book. That said, there are a few standouts, like this Hamilton: A Revolution book with all the lyrics and stories about how it made the journey to Broadway. I had no clue that the artistic director in the production lost his 16 year old son just before the Broadway debut and still managed to hear “It’s Quiet Uptown” every night.
Now that I’ve worn out all my Hamilton tracks from the musical, I’m diving into the Hamilton Mix Tape.
My best friend Shannan at Between Us Parents has a great list of gift ideas for Hamilton fans-go check it out!
So my Valentine’s Day favorites include Hamilton, makeup, food helpers and food like cupcakes and simple syrups, and a book about love. What would you add-I’d LOVE the hear it!
Disclosure: Some items on this list may contain affiliate links. They help keep me caffeinated and motivated to find new goodies to share. Thanks!
Sherry Boswell is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
I adore this list! Thanks so much for the shout out. I’ve been on the fence about the Instant Pot. I believe you swayed me! Happy Valentine’s Day! Hope you’ll keep sharing more things you love – so fun to these great recs!