Valentine’s Day Party Ideas

With Christmas and New Year’s over, you and your kids may be experiencing a bit of a winter let-down: that “blah” feeling that happens when the parties are over and it’s months before the next major holiday. What better way to break up the months and shake things up than having a party? Valentine’s Day is right around the corner and that’s a great reason to host a little get-together for your kids and their friends. It will give everyone a chance to have some fun and shake off the winter doldrums. Here are some fun and simple party ideas to help get your Valentine’s Day party planning started.

• Decorations. A Valentine’s Day theme is easy, fortunately. All you need are hearts. Your child can help you cut them out of pink, white, and red construction paper. Use double-sided tape to hang the hearts around the room. If you want some extra flash, cut some hearts out of cardboard and cover them with tinfoil. If you have or want to buy a Cupid-shaped stencil, you can also hang construction paper Cupids around the room. Add in some balloons or streamers and some inexpensive tablecloths in colors to match the decorations, and you’ll have a perfect Valentine’s Day party room.
• Games and activities. Teach the kids to play “Catch My Heart” – a fun and relevant Valentine’s Day game. Have the kids sit in a circle, and give one of them a red ball or beanbag. The child holding the beanbag has to say another child’s name and toss the “heart” to them. The idea is to see how long the ball or beanbag can be tossed around without being dropped. Once they’re comfortable with the first “heart”, introduce a second one into the game, then a third. Kids will also enjoy some Valentines Day crafting. Set out pre-cut hearts with markers or crayons, glue and glitter, stickers, and stamps, and have each child make a Valentine’s Day name tag to wear (this will also help you keep track of who’s whom!)
• Food. Serve red or pink drinks like fruit punch or pink lemonade. A Valentine’s Day party is a finger food sort of occasion. You can easily find heart shaped cookies, pretzels, and even crackers in the stores during the month of February. If you pre-bake cupcakes, you can combine eating and an activity in one by letting the kids frost and decorate their cupcakes before they eat them. For a hot treat, make English muffin pizzas – those will fit nicely in with the red color scheme.

A Valentine’s Day party can be fun and entertaining without requiring too much effort and money. Simple decorations, games, and treats will make it an enjoyable event that will create a diversion for the day without breaking the bank.