Valentine’s Day has evolved over the years. What used to be a day stressing about flowers, fancy dinners, and gifts, has turned into a simple, frugal, family day. Oren started the weekend off by bringing home a slew of heart-themed preschool crafts. A mini photoshoot ensued. V-day started off with some pastries from Panya at Ala Moana, then some shopping (for others). Side note: Miki House has some cute stuff, but how can they justify a $175 dollar t-shirt?

Then it was off to Ward Center for some lunch at Kakaako Kitchen and chocolates at the Honolulu Chocolate Company… for me! Yes, I’m a chocoholic. The darker and bitterer, the better!

My wife selected a Vosges Oaxaca Bar as well as a Mo’s Bacon Bar. Bacon you say? Not as exotic as you would think. Think of it as bits of chewy, salty peanuts. The Oaxaca was dark, bitter, and spicy. Wonderful. Oren scored a chocolate-covered strawberry, as well.

We chilled the rest of the day. I watched the NBA All-Star Game while wifey read a book. Shaq performing with the Jabbawockeez was awesome! Oren went nuts playing with the balloon we picked up for her, and we held yet another photoshoot with her V-day crafts. It was just another low-key Valdez family day, and I loved every minute of it. Happy Valentine’s Day!

I attended my first “geek” event this past weekend; the annual tech Unconferenz at JAIMS in Hawaii Kai. It was such a blast! The break-out sessions were informative and fun (particularly the gadget show & tell, in which I even got to demo my Kodak Zi6), but the best thing about it was meeting all the great geeks of Hawaii, including all the people I’ve only messaged on Twitter, and some of which who purchased my personalized Twitter shirts! Something about seeing your work appreciated by so many people is humbling as an artist, and I just want to thank everyone for their support! Twitter is an awesome community and I’m glad to be a part of it!

For more pics from the Unconferenz, check out my buddy Jon’s photostream here.

Thanks to @Quilldancer for the group shot above!