Class Valentines The Easy Way

Valentines for my children's classes this year took me sooo much effort. I mean, I had to park my car and walk half the length of the parking lot into Target. I had to walk from the front of Target to the opposite rear side and locate the Valentine's Day aisles. I had to spend a whole three minutes deciding which pre-made candy Valentines to choose. Then, as if all that wasn't enough, I had to walk back to the front of the store and pay. Whew! Wasn't that just so hard?

The dawn of Pinterest ushered in a massive barrage of "cutesy" ideas, projects, and plans for perfect everything. Perfect homes, perfect parties, perfect tablescapes, perfect teacher gifts, and perfect class Valentines. A great majority of us, myself included, bought into it. We decided that we needed to do everything little thing up to the standard of the magazine editorial's and full-time blogger's spreads. I mean, I have friends who try to craft and DIY every class party and get so anxious when they can't make it just how they want it or how they saw it on Pinterest.

What happened to the simple birthday parties of pre-Pinterest years? You know the ones I'm talking about. They consisted of cake, ice cream, chips and dip, and something to drink. You might have had balloons and streamers and a matching tablecloth, all bought in a themed package for your convenience. Kids just played together, ate, opened gifts, played a little more, and that was it. Piece of cake. Clean up was a breeze and you hadn't spent hundreds of dollars and hours and hours of time preparing for a two hour party.

I'm not saying that putting in extra time and effort on a party or class Valentines is wrong or bad. Not at all. I love to make things with my hands, to be creative and put something special together. What I am saying is that it's still okay NOT to do these things. That to put so much pressure on ourselves to make everything perfect and cutesy is not healthy. When you're getting anxious and stressing out about what you're sending to school with your child for their Valentine's Day party, or any other occasion for that matter, it's time to take a step back and simplify.

Sometimes, maybe you really don't have the extra time to devote to DIYing everything. Maybe mentally and emotionally you just don't have it in you spend so much time on a project. Maybe financially, you need to find ways to save money. Or maybe it's just not your thing. IT IS OKAY! Stop putting so much pressure on yourself.

My girls ready to bring their store-bought treats and Valentines to their classmates and I'm not even stressing. Ha!

In years past, I've made DIY Valentines for my kids' classes. I've made special treats for them to eat. But this year, I decided to simplify, to give myself a break. I need a break from the Pinterest-DIY-perfection-is-everything mindset. I'm a blogger who shares ideas to inspire others and I straight up bought pre-made Valentine's from Target. And the treats for their class parties? I bought....wait for it....something from the bakery at a local grocery store!

It's okay to give yourself a break from cutesy and perfect.

It's okay to buy pre-made items.

It's okay to not spend tons of time crafting DIY everything. 

It's okay to simplify. 

This is just a friendly reminder to cut yourself some slack sometimes. 

It's okay!

Valentine Snack Mix

 

 

Each year for Valentine's Day, I like to send a treat for both of my girl's classes.  This year, I made a sweet-n-salty treat that anyone would love. And I made sure I included lots of chocolate to please Katlyn, my oldest daughter. She is our chocoholic. She could even rival me for the Lover-of-All-Things-Chocolate title. 

By the way.....what do you think about the M&M bag? I just noticed it as I type this post. Rose in the mouth, monogrammed robe. That is quite funny!

Ingredients:

• 3 cups of Cheerios (or store brand)
• One bag of Mini pretzel twists
• One bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips
• One bag of Valentine M&Ms
• 3 cups of Cocoa Puffs Cereal

***Makes approximately 30 half cup portions. 

I love recipes like this that are simple and taste good!  Combine all of your ingredients into a large bowl, mix and your are ready to serve.

 
This year, I measured out half cup portions into re-sealable bags. Then, I added a cute Valentine sticker to the front.  Bam! Valentine's Day class treats done. (I ordered the personalized sticker and bag sets from Jane.com a couple weeks ago.)

Valentine's Day Wreath

 

 

 

A couple of weeks ago, I was perusing the aisles at The Dollar Tree when I spotted some bags of some adorable little pom poms. I starting brainstorming about what I could possibly use them for. I wasn't exactly sure what I would use them for, but I grabbed a few bags anyway.  When I got home, I remembered that I had some wreath forms and wanted to make a wreath for Valentine's Day. Ding ding ding!! I could make a pom wreath.

 

 

Materials Needed:

• Wreath form
• 6-8 bags of pom poms
• fabric
• hot glue gun and glue sticks
• Embellishments like ribbon is desired

 

I covered a wreath form with white fabric just in case there were any spaces that might peek through the poms. I began by hot gluing the poms all along the inner and outer edges, then began filling in the wreath.

 



The finished product is a cute, fuzzy, little wreath for the month that promotes all of those fuzzy feelings of love. To top off the wreath I added a heart shaped cookie cutter in the center by tying it to a ribbon and hot gluing to the back.

 

 Linking up to:

Creative Spark Link Party

DIY Digital Valentines

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!  It was a mad rush to get off to school this morning with brownies, Rice Krispy treats, and valentines for classmates in tow.  Although I do like to plan ahead, sometimes things sneak up on me. Especially when I am crazy busy like I have been this week.  And as far as getting any cards in the mail for out of town relatives, that just didn't happen. 

I decided to make digital valentine's for my out-of-town family.  You know, just to let them know that we love them and they are definitely not "out of sight, out of mind."  

Here's how I did it:

1. Start by taking photos in front of a backdrop. I used wrapping paper my mom left at my house. I think it came from Target. I also used paper doily hearts from the Dollar Tree as a prop. Be sure to take a picture of the backdrop by itself. You will need it later. 

2. Using PicMonkey, edit photos if needed. Save and click on the collage tab on the home page. 

3. Design your collage.  Choose the layout that best suits how many photos you are using.  Once you have your photos in place, and the collage to your liking, you are ready for the next step.

4. Add text and overlays to finalize digital Valentine. Above the collage, there is an "edit" tab.  Clicking on that will allow you to add whatever text, overlays, and effects you want.  

All done! So easy.  This would be great for any occasion; holidays, birthdays, or just because.  Email your digital valentines or tag on Facebook.  

Have an amazing Valentine's Day! Hope to see you all back here Monday for Part 2 of Sweet Gum Bottom redesign. 

Simple Valentine Door Hanging

There are two things that I like for my husband to give me for Valentine's Day....flowers and chocolate.  And when I was trying to come up with something simple to hang on my front door for V-Day, I looked over and saw my sheet music wall hanging that I made about three years ago.  I immediately saw that if I added a fabric rosette to the middle, it would look like a pretty V-Day flower.  That's right up my ally.  

I don't usually decorate very much for Valentine's Day, so this was a great compromise for me.  It was something fresh, but I didn't have to make something completely new.  I used a fabric scrap to make the rosette, then hot-glued it to the center.  It now hangs on my front door in all its' floral glory.  (My front door is completely covered and even if it rains pretty hard, it doesn't get wet.  This sheet music is safe.)

Do you go all out for Valentine's Day, or keep it simple?  Do you make plans ahead of time for your loved ones, or do you wing it, rushing to the store at the last minute for gifts or candy?  I'm trying to plan ahead a bit this year, and I have some special plans for my little family for Valentine's night.  I look forward to sharing!