Valentine's Day is often seen as a day for romance, but in our family, it's also a time for creativity, fun, connection, and a little bit of adventure!
Valentine's Day is not just about romantic love; it’s also an excellent occasion to celebrate the love and friendships that exist in our lives, especially with children. For us, we kick off the holiday by crafting easy, often DIY decorations using materials we have on hand. For instance, the black and white banner you see in the photo? It's made from a repurposed pocket folder! One side had some doodles from one of the kids, but the rest was perfect for our project. We also stumbled upon some paper honeycomb hearts during a clearance sale, which added a cute touch to our mantel and dining room table. There’s no need to go over the top and purchase a ton of décor. Just a few simple decorations can effectively set a happy and loving mood for the day.
Over the years, I have tried to make Valentine’s Day fun by doing various special activities. One year we took a walk around the downtown area of our city. Another year we made a blood model as we learned about our heart and circulatory system, a year or so ago we went to a Lego Brick Convention. But our favorite Valentine’s Day family activity is hands-down the scavenger hunt!
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When our oldest daughter was about 18 months old, I stumbled upon a charming idea on Pinterest: a Valentine’s Day Scavenger Hunt. It was so adorable that I couldn’t resist trying it out.
I found some cute plastic heart containers at a big box store and created little clues for her. Of course, she wasn't able to read the clues at that age, so my husband assisted her, and they had a blast searching all over the house together.
A couple of years later, our daughter took on the role of guide, helping her younger sister decipher the clues. While they worked together to find the prize they were creating a beautiful bond through this shared experience. Fast forward to today, our "littles" are now a teen and a tween, and they still cherish this tradition! It has become a beloved activity that brings laughter and joy to our home every year.
How to Create Your Own Valentine’s Day Scavenger Hunt
You’ll first need to decide on a location. I have always had ours inside our house. It just makes things easier for this tired Momma. You know what I mean?
Next, you’ll need to figure out a good time. An hour or less before nap time or bedtime probably isn’t the best idea. It may take a while for the kiddos to calm down from all of the excitement. When our kids were little, I would set up the clues during nap time and then we would do the scavenger hunt when my husband returned home from work around 5 PM. The whole thing took about 10 minutes. By bedtime, the excitement had died down and we were able to continue with our normal nightly routines.
Of course, you’ll need to have some clues! You can use these or create your own. You’ll want the clues to be easy to read and understand for your children, so short and sweet is best. Keeping the clues in order is key to having a successful hunt. I like to print out my clues and number them on the paper. Then I write the corresponding numbers on the bottom of each of the heart containers. I give the kids a container to start with that holds their first clue.
Want to Know How We Make Other Holidays Fun? Check out How We Create Halloween
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A couple of tips for hiding the clues. First, you want to put them in places that are safe. If you live on a busy street, putting a clue in the mailbox probably isn’t a great idea! You want to make sure your child is able to find the clues fairly easily and able to reach them with little effort.
The sky is the limit when it comes to prizes. I’ve given fun stickers and dollar store stuffed animals, new books in a series they were reading, a yard sale find (always check there for American Girl garb!), and small Lego kits. It doesn’t even need to be a store-bought or a yard sale find. It can be a seashell from a special trip to the beach together, a fun photo of your family, or a little note to remind them how much they’re loved.
If your clues get a little out of order or the kids aren’t sure about the riddles, don’t stress. This is supposed to be fun for you and them. In the 15 or so years I’ve been doing this; I probably have a total of 4 years where everything went completely smoothly (likely thanks to my husband keeping the containers in order). There was a year when we found a couple of those heart containers with the clues in their original hiding place months later! You kind of just have to laugh it off and make it part of the fun. At the end of the day, you just want your kids to have a fun memory of being loved. And to me, that’s what Valentine’s Day with kids is all about!
If you enjoyed learning How We Create Valentine’s Day Fun, check out our other shenanigans!
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