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Can you believe it’s already February?! Valentine’s Day is around the corner! I’ve been trying to bring some holiday spirit into my house for every holiday since Josie was born… but honestly, there’s only so much fun you can have with a 1-year-old.
Specifically, Josie will be about 16 months old on Valentine’s Day, and she doesn’t have the attention span (or really the desire) to do any themed activities with me yet. So I’ve been trying to keep things short, simple, and fun.
Heart Shaped Treats
One quick and easy way I plan to celebrate Valentine’s Day with Josie is by cutting her favorite foods into hearts! Josie adores hearts – it’s currently her favorite shape! So I know if I use a small cookie cutter to cut different snacks into heart shapes, she will be so excited! Pictured are some beets, cheese, carrots, and a grilled cheese sandwich. Josie loved this meal!
Valentine’s Day Outfit
We bought a cute Valentine’s Day themed onesie for Josie to wear on February 14th. It doesn’t have to be fancy or expensive – ours was a cheap purchase from Walmart, and it’s adorable! I’m planning to dress it up with a red tutu and a red heart headband. Then I’ll take some cute photos of Josie wearing this outfit. This is a fun and easy way to get your little one involved in Valentine’s Day when they don’t really understand it or care to participate!
Valentine Gift
There were lots of stuffed animals available at Walmart when I was shopping for Josie’s Valentine gift. But I try to avoid buying even more toys that will clutter up our house. And let’s be honest, stuffed animals usually just end up collecting dust in the corner anyway, am I right?
So I took a minute to think… what Josie would truly enjoy for Valentine’s Day? Josie simply adores books, so in the end I decided the best gift would be a couple of board books that are Valentine’s Day themed. I purchased You’re My Little Cuddle Bug by Nicola Edwards and Happy Valentine’s Day, Mouse! by Laura Numeroff.
Josie loves to turn the pages of books, look at the pictures, and learn new vocabulary as we read together. So these little board books will definitely get a lot of use in our house.
I also bought Josie a set of pink and purple Munchkin Raise toddler silverware as part of her gift. Josie is just starting to learn how to use her spoon and fork, so I know this silverware will come in handy in the months to come.
Handprint Art
I haven’t made any handprint art for Valentine’s Day with Josie yet but I think I might – it all depends on Josie‘s mood! (I’m sure you toddler parents out there understand!) When we made footprint art for Christmas, she absolutely HATED having paint on her hands and feet, so I’m just going to play this one by ear. There are tons of examples of cute Valentine’s Day toddler art on Pinterest!
Heart Window Decals
Lately Josie has been absolutely obsessed with the refrigerator magnets. She takes the magnets off the fridge, carries them around for a while, then brings them back and sticks them on the fridge again.
When I saw these window decals at Walmart, I knew they would be perfect for Josie. I stuck them on our sliding glass door and she’s able to peel them off and carry them around just like the magnets. She loves to point at the heart stickers and she thinks they’re so pretty.
If you’re looking for something simple to celebrate the holidays with your toddler I really recommend these window decals. It’s an easy way for young children to “decorate” the house without messing with breakable objects. Josie loves to move them around, carry them, point at them, and simply look at the pretty hearts on the glass door. You can even stick them on mirrors and other glass surfaces for extra Valentine’s Day pizzazz. And as a bonus – this whole sheet of heart decals only cost me one dollar!
Family Lunch Date
My last idea for celebrating Valentine’s Day with a young toddler is to simply take her out on a Valentine’s Day lunch date with mommy and daddy. Josie doesn’t get to go to restaurants very much because we prefer to cook at home to save money. However, on special occasions, we like to take her with us to restaurants so she can experience a new environment and taste some yummy new foods.
For this Valentine’s Day, I’m planning on taking her with us on a lunch date. I know she’ll have so much fun seeing new things and going out on the town with mommy and daddy. Maybe she’ll even get a taste of a chocolate dessert that I’m sure I’ll order for Valentine’s Day!
So those are my ideas for celebrating Valentine’s Day with a young toddler! I can’t wait to see what Josie thinks of all the heart shaped fun. What do you like to do to celebrate holidays with your young children? Give me some new ideas that I can use with Josie in the comments down below, and have a great Valentine’s Day!
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