Valentine's Fun

Actually, a fever is getting in the way of the fun today but we had lots of fun leading up to today.

We began the month with a family night (yes, we still do those even if I don't post them) about emotions/feelings.  I downloaded this preschool lapbook from Carrissa at 1+1+1=1.  I just put all the emotions on a regular piece of poster board and we had fun discussing all the emotions/feelings.  I encouraged the girls to understand that none of these emotions are wrong in and of themselves but that what we do with them matters.  We practiced what we should do when we feel angry or frustrated and chose some constructive ways to deal with our emotions. 

I also reused the "love bug" from last year.  Throughout the month as I see the girls handling their emotions well they get to add a dot to the ladybug.  They have been doing well and just having this chart to look at helps them identify what they are feeling and put words to it.  I think we will keep it up longer than just this month.

We have also been counting down to Valentine's day with a countdown calendar that I made.  Same concept as my Advent calendar but with a different Valentine idea for each day.  I also printed out these cute love Bible verses from the Happy Home Fairy and we have been reading one each night at dinner.

My parents,  my sister and brother in law and their kids came over on Saturday.  We made a care package to send to my sister in Nevada.  We also played eskimo bingo with the kids.  They had so much fun just being together.  We ate lunch and decorated our own cupcakes for dessert.  Something as simple as that was a huge highlight for all the kids.  They thought it was great to spread, sprinkle and eat. 

The only picture I took all day.  "The Cousins" as we call them in our house.

We will end the today with a scavenger hunt for a very small present for each of the girls.  Fun for all!

So Sweet

I have NEVER cared about Valentines day very much. I know that makes me terribly unromantic but that doesn't bother me. This year however I am feeling very inspired to celebrate love. I am so immensely blessed in my life and I want to pour out love on my family big time this year.

We focus on a virtue each month in our family (most months) and this month we will be focusing on love. As a family we will be memorizing Romans 12:9-10 though the girls will only memorize verse 10. As the girls show love to one another they will receive a black spot for their "love bug" and after the bug is filled they can take a trip to the reward bin.

I also have a heart poster which has a special activity each day leading up to Valentines day. I will do these activities with the girls and I will also add in a few extras as I find them and time allows.

I am so excited about this that I can't wait till Lydia gets home to see what is in store for tonight.

I wrote a note to my Husband and to my girls in lipstick on their mirrors and Emma's face said it all when she saw it today. Can't wait till everyone else sees theirs.


Here is our virtue memory verse and "love bug". (This is in the same area as their chore charts.)



Here are the 14 hearts with different activities for each day.
The activities are as follows:
1. Decorate valentines mailboxes (from the dollar spot at Target)
2. Love Bug craft
3. Valentine/heart Tic Tac Toe
4. Tissue Paper heart
5. Mail Valentine Cards
6. Play with Heart Stamps
7. Make Valentines Play Dough
8. Valentine Beads
9. Make Heart Shaped Cookies
10. Make Valentines for friends
12. Tomato Soup and Heart shaped Grilled cheese
13. Exchange Sister Valentines
14. Special Pancake Dinner

I want to add in some other special touches over the month but don't have a real plan as to how often or what they will be. I just want to be a blessing but don't want to stress about it.

Here is the set up for a different Bible verse about love just waiting for candles and the verses to be printed out. We will do this all month not just for 14 days.

I am so excited. A lot of my inspiration is coming from the Happy Home Fairy, a blog I just recently discovered and from No Ordinary Moments Little leaps of love challenge.

May your month be filled with lovely things!