Just because I try to keep my belly expansion to a minimum doesn’t mean I always succeed!

The day started out innocently enough with Mildred, the office Cupid, coming around and handing out Hershey’s Kisses. (I responsibly dropped my kisses into the empty tissue box on my desk where I “hide” things like this from myself.) Here she is (on the right) with Belkis and Jennifer:

When Vianni arrived in her gold boots, however, I knew things were about to get out of hand:

The festivities for the day included a secret office valentine gift swap. Jennifer was my Cupid and got these adorable socks for me. I can’t wait to wear them tomorrow!

Our big Valen-dining lunch feast began at 12:30. We each had the option to contribute $5 to ordering food from Caridad or to make and bring something. Obviously I made something — I can’t afford $5 for lunch!

Here’s the pretty table decor, complete with festively wrapped apples as party favors:

(I took two of those apples home :-)).

And here’s the food vanishing …

… onto my BIG plate:

This plate included maduros (my favorite!!!!) and tostones:

Grilled steak, onions, and veggies:

Chicken:

And beans:

I had more veggies and beans.

And I also had lots of dessert (duh). My first (small but full) plate included a slice of Orange Cranberry Dark Chocolate Heart Tart (all of which got eaten except for two crumbly pieces that I brought home!), a chocolate-covered strawberry, three Italian cookies, an extra piece of tart crust (the crust tasted like some sort of amazing dark dark chocolate butterscotch toffee), and a big scoop of Baskin-Robbins Gold Medal Ribbon ice cream:

Plate #2:

#3:

And I decided I might as well finish the ice cream carton:

And keep snacking on cookies for the rest of the afternoon:

With peanut butter:

And tea:

It’s pretty safe to assume that I ate about four times as many cookies as pictured (and I also brought three more giant ones home for my freezer stash).

When I got home, I had even more sugar excitement waiting for me! My prize for winning BSI: Spinach had arrived from Brandi, wrapped like the treasure it was:

That’s right, my truffles from The Chocolate Spike are here!

I wanted to dive into this goldmine the second I opened it, but I decided to wait until I sober up from all the sugar I’ve already consumed today. The treats are currently resting/hiding safely in my freezer until I am able to appreciate them in the way they deserve!

In the meantime, however, I snacked on several things I did not need  — pita chips, cookie crumbs, other items that are hiding in the freezer, etc. — while I was puttering around in the kitchen. I also made a new centerpiece for my table. My coworker Nitza received this beautiful rose from a parent today:

She’s going out of town, so she gave the rose to me for safe-keeping. I combined it with the conversation hearts I received yesterday from my blogger secret cupid:

The full effect:

I’m still stuffed to the gills, so I’m blogging in bed with a mug of gingerbread spice tea, my cupcake t-shirt (designed by a little girl from the nursery school where I worked last year), my cupcake tattoo (designed by the tattoo guy around the corner and pinkified by my cousin Rachel), and my flannel cupcake pajama pants (a gift from my sister Emily).

I’m big on symbolism.

Anyway, I’ve got loads of plans for this long weekend, the most exciting of which (for me) is the prospect of a kitchen deep-clean and organizing-fest while the roommates are out of town! I’ve also got some single-girl Valentine’s fun lined up and plenty of homework to keep me busy.

What should we bet that Monday night I’ll still be whining, “Where did all the time go?”

Enjoy your Valentine’s day tomorrow!