Some fun Valengtines ideas!!

I hope you all have fun with these fun Valentine ideas that I found!!

Valentine's Playdough
Well, all the snow has melted (except for the giant snow ball in our back yard) and the Oregon rain has returned making me a little stir crazy. Yesterday I was looking for an activity (besides tv) for our kids and I decided to make some playdough. I like homemade playdough so much better than the kind you buy in the stores...and if you've ever tried to get the store bought kind out of your carpet, I'm sure you'll agree with me.

You will need:
1 cup flour
1 cup water

1/2 cup salt

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

2 tablespoons oil

a few drops of food coloring

Mix the dry ingredients first, then add the liquids and stir on medium heat.

eventually it will start clumping together, so you need to stir it constantly...cause no one wantes to play with burnt playdough, right?

After it all clumps together in a ball, remove from heat and kneed on a table until it cools down. I like to add things to the playdough. This time I added red glitter (for Valentine's Day of course!) Once for my daughter's teddy bear party (3 years old) I made brown playdough and added ground cloves and cinnamon...mmm, it smelled good.Store playdough in an airtight container in the fridge.

Cute Cinnamon Rolls

For instructions go here:

http://gourmetmomonthego.blogspot.com/2009/01/lovin-from-oven.html

Cute Valentine party

http://meandmyinsanity.blogspot.com/2008/02/love-bug-ball-valentines-party-for-kids.html

A Valentine's Family Home Evening
by Georgia Warren
For Family Home Evening we had a special family Valentine Party. We do this annually because it is so much fun. First we have a special dinner with a Valentine's table cloth, napkins and heart shaped placemats. Then I serve a candlelight dinner for the family. We had heart shaped meatloaf, heart-shaped Jell-O, potatoes and broccoli (each served in a heart shaped dish). We had a red punch and my husband always gives a great toast. After the dinner, we sing a love song and have our family scripture reading (approximately 17 verses about the heart) and prayer. Then we have a Valentine game night with home made games that I made the first year of our marriage.

We play: Ring toss, (they through rings around a pot with a heart shaped flower)

bean bag toss (into a can decorated with valentine paper).

Clothespin drop (red painted clothes pins dropped into a decorated bottle)

Calendar drop (a February calendar where we drop pennies onto the calendar and add the score)

Musical hearts (pass a cardboard heart around the circle, when music stops the one with the heart is out, I usually give a Hershey kiss as someone leaves the circle)

Heart puzzle (several large hearts cut into puzzle pieces each person gets one and we see who can put theirs together the fastest)

-Heart toss (35 or more small hearts put on a 45 x 45 inch cloth each person take hold of the cloth and when I say Hearts fly we toss the hearts into the air and everybody tries to get as many as they can)

-Pin the arrow on the heart (heart shaped bull's-eye with felt arrow to put on closest to the center wins)

-Heart Archery (using a play set of bow and arrows we try to hit the center of the heart shaped target)

-Hidden hearts (heart cutouts hidden in our living room and everyone tries to find them)

-Refreshments are heart shaped ice cream sandwiches We really enjoy this home evening and once you have the games it's easy to do each year.

Love Letters

So in the same spirit of the Gratitude Tree, I am hoping to make loving actions a part of our home for the whole month of February (and this week, too.). Last night, at Family Home Evening, the kids and I decorated these mailboxes that I found at the dollar spot at Target. They were decorated with supplies from the dollar spot, as well, and a glue gun. (I heart Tarjay! Should I send them a Valentine?) I had to explain to the children how the flags on a mailbox work (HOA lock boxes just aren’t the same), and we discussed how we could use them to leave each other notes, pictures, or little gifts or goodies, either anonymously, or signed by the giver. Each night at dinnertime, we can look and see if any of the flags are up. I have decided I need to go back and get a couple more boxes for their Dad and I, because they need to be loving to us too!

"Why I love you" photo books

Carey writes, "Here's my idea from last year's Valentine's Day 2008 - "Why I Love You" photo books. I embellished the covers, which took some time, but left the pages within pretty basic. They were a huge hit and my six year old still whips it out for friends and babysitters to admire!"

Other fun ideas!!

Catch the Drift with Mama Snow

http://hail2thesnowqueen.blogspot.com/2009/01/valentine-ideas-are-in.html

http://www.redathome.blogspot.com/

http://redathome.blogspot.com/2009/01/conversation-heart-cuties.html

http://www.prekfun.com/

I LOVE THIS ONE!!!!

http://www.hair4myprincess.blogspot.com/

http://hair4myprincess.blogspot.com/2009/01/valentines-day-hairdos.html

http://www.cutevalentines.blogspot.com/

www.tipjunkie.blogspot.com

http://www.craftster.org/

www.kari-youcanmakeit.blogspot.com

When the kids were little we had meatloaf in the shape of a heart for dinner with catsup or tomato sauce spread on top to make it look like a red heart. It was always a hit. I would sometimes try to make the rest of the dinner with red or pink color, like red jello salad, and beets for a vegetable, but of course the mashed potatoes were white, (you could color them with red food coloring if you think they would eat them.)Also we would made Valentines for grandma and grandpa with lace doiles and cut outs of the kids hands decorated with Valentine stickers. Just recently my mom has been cleaning out her boxes of keepsakes and found those little homemade Valentines, so they are definately a keeper!!

Have fun and go crazy for your kids on Valentines Day!!!!