Executive Moms is on vacation this week, and so we thought we would reprise a favorite earlier Momorandum, well-timed to the week after Valentine’s Day.

As professed, we like to range from the practical to the esoteric… and occasionally to the sublime.  The latter is the intent of the following, which had been shared with us a while ago.  Consider it a (procrastinator’s) Valentine’s card, or just a nice smile for the end the week…

From a survey of children ages 4 to 8, here were some of the best answers to the question, ‘What Does Love Mean?’

“When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn’t bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That’s love.” – Rebecca, age 8

“When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth.” – Billy, age 4

“Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other.” – Karl, age 5

Love is…

“When you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs.” – Chrissy, age 6

“What makes you smile whenyou’re tired.” – Terri, age 4

“When my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK.” – Danny, age 7

“When you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more.”– Emily, age 8

“What’s in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen.” – Bobby, age 7

“When your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.” – Mary Ann, age 4

“…Like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well.” – Tommy, age 6

And a few more of their best thoughts on love:

“If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate.” – Nikka, age 6

“When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.” – Karen, age 7

“You really shouldn’t say ‘I love you’ unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget.” – Jessica, age 8