when pinterest fails are a Win

It all started when my son – my oldest and least crafty of the crew – announced he wanted to DIY his valentines this year. This boy not only NEVER requests to craft, but he  also wanted to re-use the Minecraft valentines I’d created for him last year. This, even after I offered to buy the store bought kind. Be still my crafty heart! This called for a celebration!

I decided that over the weekend I’d surprise all the kiddos with a sweet valentine breakfast and then have a crafting workshop. Okay, I have a way of getting a little carried away…but food is my son’s love language and I wanted to have a little fun with this rare opportunity.

When they woke up I treated them to breakfast banana split sundaes: yogurt with bananas, strawberries, and fresh whipped cream topped with sprinkles and a cherry on top. Why can’t breakfast be like this every day?

And, for a little extra special treat, some donut holes. Because, donuts.

You’d think I was a master chef the way these kids rave when I do a little something special like this. A little effort goes a long way in this house.

While we ate, we had a little family talk about what love is and isn’t, and shared examples of how we can love one another better. The world could use a little bit lot more of that these days!

And the cherry on top was these personalized Valentine’s Day gifts I got for the girls.

I thought it was very appropriate to use their nicknames of endearment for Valentine-themed gifts.Now, don’t get me wrong, I don’t see every holiday as an opportunity to spoil the kids with gifts. But when a Valentine’s Day gift doubles as an easy way to clear the dinner table year-round, it’s really a gift for me. And these girls are m-e-s-s-y.

You might be thinking I left Dub out, but he is a very clean little dude so we agreed we’d create a little something special for him together…

For our craft “workshop” I decided I was going to try something a little different for us.  I was going to step back and let them go. It may or may not surprise you that I can sometimes be a little too….Type A for my own good. I’d been thinking about how the kids will often ask me to finish a craft for them so it looks good, and I wondered if I was a little too enthusiastic about assisting in their creations. So this time I laid out all the materials and let them figure it out on their own.

Evie had to make a valentine box for school, and she decided she wanted to make the Poppy Corn Shopkin. I wrapped a shoe box in freezer paper, provided some red glitter paper we had on hand, and printed out a face and a logo I’d found online. She glued all the pieces to her liking, and then glued balls of yellow tissue paper “popcorn” on top. She did it all her way, and she was so proud!

Baby ‘Belle wanted to make the candy bracelet valentines Evie had handed out a few years prior, which was a perfect age-appropriate activity for her.

But let’s be honest. She was in it for the candy. 

And, of course, my son made his “Be Minecraft” valentines as planned. 

Since the girls had gotten their personalized placemats, he made his own no-sew chair cover. We used a pillow case as the cover, folding it to fit the chair and form a pocket to hold his notebook and crafts. We used outgrown t-shirts to cut the phrase “Happy Heart Day.”  I like using jersey fabrics for projects like this because they don’t fray.

He placed the letters and a fun border on the cover, then glued them down with flexible fabric glue. He also glued down the folded sides of the pillow case, for good measure.

When I look at these crafts, I see all the indications of the perfect kid craft: the way they are off-center and crooked, the extra dried globs of glue, and the crumpled paper.  But mostly I think about our fun morning together and how it was easy and laid back. The smiles of pride on my kids’ faces for accomplishing something they dreamed up. The happy chatter over breakfast and the sweet words of how we can love one another better. These are the moments. At least, when I let go and let myself appreciate them.

Thank you to GiftsForYouNow.com for sponsoring this special Valentine’s Day breakfast. As always, all content and opinions are my own.