Best Valentine!

Brad and I had our first date on Valentine's Day 22 years ago. That day, he brought me 11 red roses because he had sent the 12th to school the day before. He has always been an amazing gift giver.

This year, though, he outdid himself:

Allow me to introduce Inkspots Loveletters, also known as Inks. She is actually quite small weighing in at just over six pounds, and we are guessing she is about nine months old.

I had a calico growing up that I adored, and Nuzzle, our first cat that became truly my cat, wasn't a calico but had the personality of one. It's been two years, and just before Christmas I told Brad I was ready for another cat--and I really wanted a calico.

My sweet husband has been stalking shelters and rescues since then, hoping that someone would arrive to be a Valentine. Wednesday, he called me at work and asked if I could slip out a little early to come meet this sweet face; she came home with us that day.

She was a stray, and we are quite sure she had never been in a house before ours. She is the sweetest little snuggler, and she is the first cat I have ever had that plays hide and seek. She will snuggle her little self somewhere, and when I walk in the room and call her name, she will just start purring until I find her. Thank goodness she has a very loud purr box.

22 years ago, we ended up at Taco Bell because the other restaurant lost Brad's reservation. Tonight, we plan to go to Moe's because we both love it and hate the whole fancier restaurant on Valentine's vibe. We will come home and snuggle in with Inks, and I can't think of a better way to spend the holiday.