Valentines Day is coming up and if you live here in Canada, between the colder weather and the various provincial health orders restricting us, it leaves us wondering how we can celebrate this special day.
Here are some ideas on how to make this day special for the whole family and give you some options for how to celebrate it with your partner. While, like everything these days, it will look a little different, it can still be really special. In a few years we will look back and cherish the extra time we have been able to spend with our children.
- Valentines Crafts:
Make homeade Valentines for each other, create gift certificates for one aother (ie. I will do one extra chore, free bear hug etc, yarn -wrapped hearts, make a heart wreath or make heart shaped bird seed valentines. - Decorate rocks with Valentine themes and put then around your neighbourhood.
- Make a special Valentines-themed breakfast
Waffle bar with all the fixins’ (especially red/pink items)
Heart-shaped and/or pink pancakes. To get the heart shape use a heart cookie cutter with some oil on it to keep batter from sticking or use a bottle with a spout to allow you to squirt the batter into a design. For a list of some amazing recipies check out my recent blueberry pancake day article or this heart-shaped recipe. - Valentines Day picnic lunch or dinner – inside. Get the whole family involved in the preparation.
Some ideas for food: Charchuterie board, fondue station, sandwiches or fill bento boxes for each person with special treats inside. You can even make many of the items heart-shapped or colored red/pink. From heart shaped veggies, sandwiches, calzones, chocolate covered strawberries. - Participate in Dine Out Vancouver – happening now until March 7th at various participating resteraunts.
- Play board games or trivia as a family
- Do a virtual painting class
- Bundle up and enjoy smores and hot chocolate around a firepit outside.
- Do a couples/family spa day a home. From bubble baths to soaking feet to face masks and give each other a foot massage.
- Get outside- go for a hike or a walk.
- Make a family/couples scrap book together.
- Bake something special – heart shaped cookies, red/white/pink cupcakes etc, marshmello pops, choclate strawberries, heart-shaped rice krispie pops – there are no shortage of ideas.
- Random acts of kindness – do something covid-safe for someone else. Send a special message, flowers, buy a stranger a coffee etc, put your Valentine-themed rocks around your neighbourhood.
- Take in the Hot Chocolate Festival in Vancouver. Its last day is Feb 14th.
- Have a Valentines day movie marathon. (Valenines Day, You’ve got mail, Sleepless in Seattle, 50 first dates, About Time, The Notebook, Crazy Stupid Love, A Star is Born, Pretty Woman, The Princess Bride, The Proposal, The Vow, Love Actualy. The First Wives Club. The Half of It, The Object of My Affection, Sylvies Love, Always Be My Maybe, Waiting to Exhale. When Harry Met Sally. Bridget Jones Diary, The Notebook, The Big Sick….. oh I could go on forever!
- Have a family or couples treasure hunt – hide little notes of affection around the house – leave trails of rose petals. (Local dollarstores always have a great selection of inexpensive fake petals and treasures)
- Sing and have a dance party to some all-time classic Valentines songs – Criusin, Islands in the stream, Your the one that I want, crazy, always on my mind, your still the one!
- Plaster your bedroom doors with red/pink and white hearts containing special messages for each other.
- After the kids are in bed, have a candle-lit dessert or a special cocktail/wine just the two of you. Check out Modern Mama’s recent list of festive cocktails !
- Looking for other things to do? Check out Modern Mama Vancouver and Modern Mama Fraser Valley’s list of events and things to do (updated weekly).