Updated for 2022
Valentine’s Day is Monday, February 14th. A day of love and friendship. In honor of this special day, we’ve compiled a list of Ways to Celebrate Valentine’s Day at Home. You’ll find sweet books to read, tasty food to eat, fun things to do, and ways to share the spirit of the day with others.
Valentine’s Day, the day of love and friendship, is known as a romantic day for those who are in love, and when you have children, it’s also time to celebrate as a family.
Celebrate Valentine’s Day 2022
Books To Read:
- Love From the Crayons by Drew Daywalt and Oliver Jeffers. Love comes in all shapes and sizes and colors in this fun-to-read-together children’s book.
- Happy Valentine’s Day, Mouse! by Laura Numeroff. The famous mouse from If You Give a Mouse a Cookie is back, making Valentine’s Day cards for all his friends.
- The Littlest Valentine by Brandi Dougherty. Emma Valentine may be the littlest member of her family, but there is still plenty she can do to help get ready for Valentine’s Day.
- Click, Clack, Moo I Love You! by Doreen Cronin. This cute book is part of the popular “Click Clack” series. Little Duck is ready to celebrate on the farm and inviting a newcomer to join in.
- The Night Before Valentine’s Day by Natasha Wing. Part of “The Night Before…” series. See what fun preparations these kids are up to as they get ready to celebrate at school.
- How Do Dinosaurs Say I Love You? by Jane Yolen and Mark Teague. Another charming edition in the “How Do Dinosaurs…” series. No matter what kids, or dinosaurs do, their grown-ups always love them – and always have hugs and kisses for them.
- The I Love You Book by Todd Parr. Who can resist the bright colors of a Todd Parr book? A sweet reminder that parents love their children all the time when they’re sad or silly or close together or far apart.
You can find all these books (and more) in our MomsLA Amazon Shop via this affiliate link.
Related: Fun Valentine’s Events in Los Angeles
Valentine’s Day Fun To Eat:
Sprinkles Cupcakes Message Boxes
Multiple Locations including
The Americana at Brand, 889 Americana Way, Glendale, CA 91210
Sprinkles makes it easy to say “I Love You” with one of their message boxes (available daily). The I Love You standard dozen box includes 5 red velvet cupcakes, 4 dark chocolate, and 3 vanilla. Each cupcake either has a letter on it (to spell out I Love You) or heart shapes.
Heart-Shaped Pizza for Valentine’s Day
Papa John’s
Multiple Locations
Most of us are staying in this Valentine’s Day, but that doesn’t mean you still can’t enjoy a no-cooking, family-friendly dinner. Papa John’s offers the pizza you already know and love, but now in a sweet heart-shape.
Heart-Shaped Donuts
Primo’s Donuts
2918 Sawtelle Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90064
Heart-shaped Donuts! Breakfast, snack, or dessert. In addition to all the other yummies you’ll find at Primo’s Donuts, they seasonally offer special heart-shaped donuts.
Heart-Shaped Pasta
Available in our Amazon shop, you can find packages of heart-shaped pasta. Great for dinner. Great to use in art projects.
See’s Candy
Multiple locations around SoCal and in our Amazon shop
The classic heart-shaped box of candy from local favorite See’s Candy is always a hit. They’ve got special Valentine’s assortment boxes for kids and the simple, yet delicious, individual chocolate hearts.
To Spread Love and Friendship:
- Chalk Messages. Leave chalk messages and/or drawings on the sidewalk outside of neighbors’ homes. Whether it’s a heart with a happy face drawn inside, a cursive “Happy Valentine’s Day,” or something else entirely, the chalk message is a fun, easy way to celebrate and bring happiness to others.
- Send Cards. Classes may be celebrating Valentine’s Day differently this year. If your child isn’t able to exchange cards in class, does your child have the email addresses for his/her classmates? Why not send everyone a digital Valentine’s Card? And don’t forget handmade cards – the perfect gift for grandparents, aunts,, and uncles.
- Create Care Packages. Everyone is handling covid somewhat differently. So if you’re not able to visit with extended family and exchange hugs and kisses, you can still share the chocolate kind! Create care packages filled with Hershey’s Kisses and Hugs. Include some drawings and notes, too! Drop them off and don’t forget to leave some outside for your mail carrier and delivery people.
To Create:
- Art with Candy Conversation Hearts. Especially great for little hands, have kids glue Candy Conversation Hearts to make different designs. They can spell out their names, make a happy face, hearts, messages of love and friendship, and more.
- Cut-out, color, paint, print hearts. There are so many ways to create hearts. Start early. Make a few a day until you’ve got quite a stash. Then decorate. Tape them to windows. Hang them from the ceiling.
- Make Heart-shaped crayons. You’ll need all the kids’ broken crayons for this project. Peel off the wrappers. Place several crayons into heart-shaped molds. Place in the oven at 250 degrees for 10-20 minutes. Keep checking until the crayons are completely melted. Remove the pan from the oven and give them time to cool before popping them out of the molds.
To Do:
Children’s Hospital Los Angeles – Valentine’s Day Cards
It’s super easy to spread some joy and help fundraise for Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. Now until February 12th, families can go online and send a “dino-mite” e-card to a patient at CHLA. For every e-card sent, an anonymous donor will donate $1 to CHLA up to $25,000.
Let’s Make Valentine’s Treats! With BLVD KITCHEN – Virtual Event
Show your love with some homemade valentine yummies made through a special Zoom class on Saturday, February 12th at 2:00 pm. This 90-minute workshop is designed for children 5 and older. Families will be “making and decorating OREO Truffles and our famous Sugar Cookies.” Registration information is available online.
Big Sunday’s 2nd Annual Week of Love
Big Sunday
6111 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90038
Big Sunday is hosting its 2nd Annual Week of Love from Monday, February 7th through Monday, February 14th. The week includes both in-person and at-home projects. The festivities include an in-person Valentine-Making Party and Community Breakfast, a special food drive, a raffle contest, and more. All details are available online.
Wendy Kennar is a mother, writer, and former teacher who has lived her entire life in the same Los Angeles zip code. You can read more from Wendy at her website WendyKennar.com where she writes about books, boys, and bodies (living with an invisible disability).
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