There are two kinds of parents: the Girl Scouts that are “always (be) prepared” and the Others. The Others are barely scraping by and forgot that their kid has 25 kids in their class to prepare Valentines for.
If you’re reading along and nodding about that second type of parent, this post is for you. (And me.) With only two days left until the holiday that celebrates love and friendship, you may be scrambling to figure out what in the world you’re going to craft and assemble. Fear not friends, these three easy Valentine ideas will look like you put a lot of effort in, but really, you didn’t. As an added bonus, these are all junk-free/candy-free treats, there’s no sugar high involved. I call that a parenting win!
You are special
In a world where there is negativity all around, isn’t it nice to give a little positive reinforcement? Simply buy little tubs of Play-Doh (you can basically buy them anywhere), print the free template found here (“Doh-not forget how special you are!”), have your child write their name (or do it for them if they don’t know how to write yet), cut out the tag to fit the top of the tub and voila! You’re done.
DINO-mite!
Kids love dinosaurs. And who doesn’t love a cute little dino figurine? You can find them at Dollar Tree, Target, Walmart and on Amazon. This template uses a dinosaur eraser so it doubles as something useful for school, too. In addition to the dino, you’ll also need a hole punch, baker’s twine like this and colorful cardstock. You can find the dino-mite template here as well as the short and sweet directions.
Color me happy
Crayons are cheap and kids love them. Why do you think they give kids crayons at restaurants when you’re trying to remember what it was like to eat out before kids. Anyway, crayons. This cute valentine celebrates friendship in a colorful way. Go nuts and buy a ton of crayons — you’ll want to use at least 2-3 per kid/valentine. Get some funky washi tape (these are super cute), print the template and you’re done.
Now, you can walk in with a little more swag in your step when you drop your kiddo off at school.
