10 Ways to Make Valentine's Day Special For Your Kids

Valentine’s Day is all about love, and that love extends to your kids, right? I have always celebrated Valentine’s Day with my kids, from the time they were very small, because it is a great occasion to remind them of how much I love them. Plus, I just enjoy holidays. Like, a lot.

I am on a health kick right now, and I don’t want to give my kids a bunch of candy. So what else is there to do?

Well, you and I are in luck because there are tons of things to do for your kids this Valentine’s Day that do not involve candy at all.

10 Ways to Make Valentine's Day Special For Your Kids

Make them a Valentine’s Day coupon book. This might be my favorite idea on the list because my kids go gaga over it. I made them these perforated coupon books the last three years, and they saved their coupons to use all throughout the year. The coupons are for things like extra cuddle time and a special date with mom and a special date with dad - all simple things that make a big impact on our kids.
Make their milk extra special. Use a heart-shaped ice cube tray and some red food color to make red ice hearts. Put a couple into their glass of milk, water, or even cereal bowl on Valentine's Day for an extra special burst of cheer. Be sure to use whatever liquid you'll be putting them in to make the cubes so that the drink doesn't get watered down. Red milk hearts, red apple juice hearts, red water hearts, etc.
Make special heart-shaped crafts together. Have you ever heard the saying that kids spell love T-I-M-E? Take some time out of your busy schedule to do some crafts with them on Valentine’s Day. Cut some hearts out of construction paper or cardstock and make the hearts into all kinds of animals using these instructions.
Give them a heart attack. I have done this for my husband, but this Valentine’s Day, I’m going to extend the fun to my kids. The idea is super simple. Make hearts out of construction paper, write something you love about your child on each one, and then tape them all over a surface where she will see them. For my husband, I laid them all out on our bed (about 50 of them!). For my kids, I will do around 20 and use their bedroom door, the tv, or maybe the computer.
Surprise them with balloons. Cover their bedrooms or the dining room with red, pink, and white balloons so that they wake up on Valentine’s Day with a sea of color. I’ve seen this done with gifts on the strings, but I don’t think that’s necessary. You could combine this idea with the heart attack above and attach the hearts to the balloons.
Make them heart-shaped foods. Heart-shaped pancakes for breakfast will make anyone feel special, so break out your metal or silicone heart-shaped cookie cutters (you can even buy pancake molds nowadays!) and use the instructions in this blog post to make your pancakes or even eggs into hearts for love.
Do Valentine’s Day Mad-Libs together. This blog has tons of free Mad-Libs for all different occasions, and one of those occasions is Valentine’s Day. They are fun printables that you can save and do with your kids. Laughing together bonds people and just makes them feel good, so get writing!
Get playful with Valentine’s Day fortune cookies. All you need is scrapbook paper and a pair of scissors to make these cute Valentine’s Day fortune cookies. Your kids will love the novelty - and you won’t have to buy Chinese food to get them!
Make sun catchers together. If you are short on time, this is the perfect craft. All you need is a piece of cardstock, some washi tape, and 10 minutes to create really cute heart-shaped sun catchers that will stick to any window. We made some in 2017, and they are still hanging on our sliding glass door because I love them.
Set up a Valentine’s Day cookie bar for your kids. Who doesn’t like to decorate cookies? You could bake or buy some plain sugar cookies and pink and red frosting in decorator tubes along with a few different kinds of pink, red, and white sprinkles and candies. Set it all out on the table and let your kids go to town decorating cookies. They would probably like it if you joined in and made cookies for them, too!

Valentine’s Day does not have to be about candy or expensive gifts if you have a few minutes to spend preparing or playing or crafting with your kids. The day is about your love for them, not about sugar or money, and they will eagerly accept whatever you can manage to do for them.

And if the ideas above don’t suit, you could check out this list of 75 ways to love your kids. They’re bound to spark some new ideas!