Valentines Crafts for Kids

The girls both woke up with sniffles Wednesday morning, so we canceled all our appointments* and had some quiet time at home.

I helped Ernie make valentines for her classmates, and they turned out cute! For her preschool class she made the suckers you see above- I flattened a toilet paper tube and sliced it into 5 pieces. Ernie decorated all the pieces with marker, and I pushed the pieces into heart shapes and punched holes so she could thread each heart onto a sucker. (I'm not sure where I first saw these TP hearts, but I know the Filth Wizardry girls were having a lot of fun with theirs!) Unfortunately it looks like Ernie is going to miss the class party due to her cold, but that just means the girls in her class can see these next week!

For her church class we made a double batch of our favorite playdough- it's soft, and if we keep it sealed tight in the refrigerator it will last for months and months. The recipe is below, and it's from my friend Mama Papaya. I mixed gold glitter in with the flour, and red food coloring in with the liquids. A stand mixer makes quick work of this, without any burned fingers. Check out the original post for lots of ideas to gussy this up, M. Papaya is awesome :)

We'll divide this up and punch it into heart shapes before bagging it up for all her classmates.

*Mama Papaya's Easy Playdough*
1 cup flour
1/2 cup salt
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup water

Heat everything except the flour- either in a pot on medium low, or in the microwave. Mix into the flour until a dough forms, and let cool. (Note: A stand mixer with the paddle attachment makes this really easy!)

*Seriously, we canceled our appointments- Wednesday is always Great-Grandpa day in the morning, with a long afternoon of piano lessons.