Cheap & Easy DIY non candy Valentine
We call it I Love You Day at our house.  Valentine’s Day is a time that I can let my boys know why I love them so much.  In the past, I have decorated the breakfast table and served heart or cupid shaped pancakes.  I have written them poems.

When the triplets were six months old, I used their footprints with washable red ink to form 3 hearts on the front of cards I sent to the grandparents and Auntie Em.

Since Kindergarten, we have crafted our own Valentines for school classmates.  It not only helps us save money, but the boys enjoy the creative mess making. One year I even let them use glitter. (Notice I said one year.)

Yesterday, I realized that we are out of construction paper, and took the boys to the store after school.  I evaluated the pre-made cards trying to rationalize the cost of buying them for 4 classes since PB is in preschool now.

I couldn’t do it.

I live in a small town, two hours from civilization big box stores. It was $6.97 for a small package of construction paper that probably wouldn’t have made enough hearts for 4 classes. I needed a cheap & easy DIY Valentine.

Eyeing bags of candy, I thought about all the classmates who don’t eat dairy, or gluten or sugar. There are a lot of them. (My kids still have Halloween candy left. That’s mostly because I quit sneaking pieces after Thanksgiving when I started running again.) The packages of superhero pencil Valentines were $4.99 each… and only included 16 each. I don’t have $20 to spend on something that will probably end up in the trash. I needed now, because I didn’t want another trip to the store with four boys in tow.

Then, I remembered the roll of pennies I had left from the smashed penny fund. I bought some index cards lined on one side. I used the clear Avery 8660 labels we had from years ago when we used to send out Christmas cards. The Avery website even had a heart theme template I changed from an address to a phrase.

I’m lucky you’re my Valentine!

I hot glued a penny on the front after the boys addressed the cards.  As a bonus, the lines on the back of the index cards made it easy for the boys to print To and From.

Over 70 Valentines for under $2, including the index cards. I repurposed items we already had, didn’t have to buy more Scotch tape for $4.89. Plus, no one had to cut out hearts.

Genealogy Jen’s Challenge of the week- Celebrate I Love You Day. Valentine’s doesn’t have to be about romance and expensive roses.  Take a moment to write a note to someone you love, and tell them why.

Bonus Points- Bust out the art supplies and add some personality to your card… it’s less expensive than buying a card, plus it’s fun.

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