Valentine's Day Activities

Valentine's Day activities need not be elaborate and expensive. Here are some fun projects for all ages that will meet any household budget. The projects increase in level of difficulty as you scroll down the page.

Valentine's Day Cards

Homemade Valentine's cards are a great way to express our feelings to friends, family members and those who are in need. Here are two types of cards that we enjoyed making this year.

Sponge Painting

	Cut a household sponge into the shape of a heart. Pour tempura paint into a shallow plate or dish.
	Dip the sponge into the paint, wipe off a bit of the excess, and press it onto a sheet of construction paper.
	Decorate the card with traditional sayings like, "Be Mine," or include jokes, poems or scripture.

Be Mice!

	Cut black, white or gray construction paper into the shape of a heart. Make two smaller hearts out of pink construction paper.
	Fold the larger heart in half. Attach a pink pipe cleaner to the wide end of the heart to form the mouse's tail.
	Glue one pink heart to either side of the larger heart to form ears. Add an eye, and a couple of wiskers to each side. This may not be the best card to give Grandma!

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Valentine's Day Decorations

Homemade Valentine's decorations are fun to make and display. These suncatchers will brighten any room. Tissue paper suncatchers are a great preschool Valentine activity. Older children may prefer to use crayon shavings.

Tissue Paper Suncatchers

	Cut or tear brightly colored tissue paper into squares. Glue the squares onto a sheet of wax paper, and allow it to dry.
	Cut the paper into hearts, attach yarn or string, and hang the final product near a light source or window.

Melted Crayon Suncatchers

	Sharpen crayons with pencil sharpener and save the shavings. (We found that lighter colors work best.) Place the shavings between two sheets of wax paper.
	Place the wax paper between two pieces of brown paper bag, and run over it with a warm iron. Cut the cooled product into hearts, and hang them from yarn or string.

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Valentine's Day Gifts

Expensive flowers and chocolate candy only last so long, but homemade gifts are priceless treasures. These heart shaped magnets were by far my children's favorite activity.

Heart Shaped Magnets

	Make playdoh by mixing 2 cups of flour, 1/2 cup of salt and 3/4 cup of warm water. Mix the dough until it forms a ball, then knead on a floured surface.
	Roll the dough to about 1/4 inch and cut with heart shaped cookie cutters. Bake on a foil lined baking sheet at 325 degrees for one hour or until hard.
	Paint the cooled hearts, and decorate as desired.
	Use a hot glue gun to affix a magnet to the back of the hearts. These magnets make great gifts for relatives.

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Valentine's Day Meals

Make a special Valentine's meal by making themed treats. Make heart shaped cookies, or use a cookie cutter to cut sandwiches into hearts. Add a few drops of red food coloring to your favorite dip, and drink red punch or Koolaid.

Older children may want to make a tablecloth, menus and place cards. Here are some of our favorite Valentine's treats. Enjoy!

Heart Shaped Cake

	Make a cake using your favorite recipe or pre-made mix, and pour half into a round pan, and half into a square pan. (Use an 8" round pan with an 8" square pan or a 9" round pan with a 9" square pan.)
	Bake the cakes according to recipe and allow them to cool. Cut the tops of both cakes to make them level. Cut the round cake in half. Turn the square cake so it looks like a diamond.
	Attach one half of the round cake to the top right of the diamond, and the other half to the top left. Decorate with icing and red hots or sweet tarts.

Heart Shaped Pizza

	Unroll a prepackaged, retangular pizza crust, or make your own. Using a knife, cut off the bottom corners to form the V shape of the heart.
	Cut the top of the dough to form the top of the heart. Roll the leftover dough into a snake and attach a border to the edge of the heart. Pre-bake the dough according to package directions, and add your favorite toppings.

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For more pictures of my family's celebrations, visit my homeschool blog.