15 Fun Ways To Celebrate Valentine’s Day

Got the February blahs? If so why not turn this Valentine’s Day into a little more than just an ordinary day. Here are some of mine and Crystal’s favourite ways to make Valentine’s Day special for all family members.

• Wake your kids up with a kiss. To be awakened by a kiss on Valentine's Day is considered very good luck.
• Dress in red, pink or white.
• Decorate you home with some homemade heart garland. With a little creativity you can turn simple red chenille sticks (pipe cleaners) and coordinating ribbon into a unique garland to decorate your home this Valentines Day. Shape each chenille stick into a heart, secure by twisting together. A couple of dozen hearts should make a nice garland. Using equal pieces of ribbon tie bows between each heart until you have an impressive collection of hearts strung together.
• Make your own Valentine cards from paper, fabric, tinfoil or lace.
• If you have some red paint, white heavy paper or cardboard and some sugar you have the making of beautiful Valentine hearts. With a pencil draw a large heart on the paper or cardboard then colour with red paint. Now sprinkle on some sugar. No sugar? Salt works too.
• Make heart shaped French Toast with a large heart cookie cutter. Go one step further and sprinkle the French toast with a little icing sugar. Serve with a bowl of fresh or previously frozen strawberries.
• Make heart sandwiches using a large heart shaped cookie cutter.
• For a snack, serve apple sauce with cinnamon hearts.
• For a special Valentines Day beverage pour a 50/50 glass of cranberry juice and ginger ale. Top off with heart shaped ice cubes made with cranberry juice (heart shaped ice cube trays are available in many dollar and department stores).
• Decorate the family dinner table with red or white napkins. Fill a vase with handcrafted red and white tissue paper flowers or coordinating construction paper hearts taped to Popsicle sticks.
• Fill red and white balloons with heart shaped confetti and have a popping contest after dinner.
• Make heart shaped pizzas by creatively working your dough into a heart. A slight modification to a round ball of rolled dough will do the trick.
• Serve ‘love pasta’ (spaghetti noodles shaped into a big heart with a tomato sauce centre)
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• Make heart shaped garlic toast. Using a large heart shaped cookie cutter cut heart shapes out of several pieces of white bread. Spread on a little butter or margarine mixed with some garlic powder, Parmesan cheese and some dried Parsley. Broil until brown.
• Make a heart shaped cake. Don’t have a heart shaped pan. Don’t worry making a hear shaped cake is easier than you think. Start with your favourite double cake recipe. The secret is to pour on half of the batter in one 8 or 9 inch square cake pan, and second half into the same size round cake pan. Bake. Once cooled, slice the round cake in half so you have two equal semi circles. The heart is created by placing the round halves on each side of the square cake. Decorate with your favourite icing and some candy decorations. Or, if using chocolate icing, top with chocolate shavings.
Written by Sherrie Le Masurier, Lifestyle Columnist and Co-Owner of
Family Sanity Savers.com. Copyright 2005.