I made these treats for a Valentine’s Day play date last year, and they were a smash with the little ones! Several of my girlfriends texted me later to say how much the treats were a lifesaver on the car ride home. This is a great option for little ones who aren’t quite ready for candy—and they’re a cinch to put together, so they’re mom-friendly too! 

Since all of O’s friends are around her age (i.e. not really old enough for sugary candy valentines), I started thinking of what we could do for Valentine’s Day that would be toddler-friendly. After walking through Target for about 45 minutes trying to come up with something brilliant, I found Quaker Whole Hearts cereal, which is basically heart-shaped Cheerios, lightly sweetened. Perfect! What toddler doesn’t eat cereal?! But it needed a little something extra. Then my husband suggested freeze dried strawberry slices. Even more perfect! Not only are the strawberries all natural with no added sugar, they add a pop of Valentine’s Day color and they’re (kind of) heart-shaped themselves. Done and Done. I think these turned out really cute! They aren’t exactly my most time-consuming or elaborate project, but I think they’ll be a hit with the little ones!

I took today off work so that little O and I could spend the day together and join our friends in a Valentine’s Day playdate. We rarely get to do this sort of thing, so we’re really excited! I volunteered to bring a dessert, so I thought what better than red velvet cupcakes?! (Though I may regret this depending on how messy things get!) I made mini cupcakes for the little ones and large cupcakes for the mamas.

My original plan was to just pipe on some frosting and throw on a few Valentine’s Day sprinkles, but that plan went down the tube when I saw the chaos that was the Valentine’s Day aisle at Target last night. {Holy craziness! Why people wait to buy their kids’ valentines until the night before is beyond me, but judging by the remnants, I don’t recommend it.} There wasn’t a single solitary sprinkle left. So. . . I moved on to plan B. My friend Stacy had told me about a quick icing trick for cupcakes that produced a smooth surface for decorating, so I figured I would give it a try.

Using store-bought or homemade cream cheese frosting (or whatever kind you want), microwave it in 10 second intervals in a microwave-safe, shallow bowl until the frosting is smooth and liquidy (not sure if that’s a word, but I can’t think of a better description). Hold on to the bottom of each cupcake and dip the top, making sure to coat the edges, in the frosting. Turn the cupcake as you lift it out of the frosting to keep it from dripping everywhere. The top will set as a smooth surface, similar to Royal Icing. Then you can use decorating gel, candies, piped frosting, etc. to decorate the cupcakes.

I don’t think these turned out too bad for my first attempt! Granted, I’m not showing you the 4 or so cupcakes that are in my frig right now because they look too heinous to share. Word to the wise, don’t try to get too artistic using decorating gel or you could end up with a cupcake that looks like you tried to draw one of those little Quiznos rat things from the old commercials—and this is seriously the first thing that came to my mind when I looked down at said cupcake!

My friend Stephanie is probably one of the craftiest people I know (in a creative way, not a devious way!). She whipped up this adorable felt heart garland one weekend to decorate her cube at work and since the tops of our work spaces are glass and I sit directly across from her, I get to benefit from it as well.

It made me think what a fun activity this would be to do with the little one—when she’s a little older and can sit still for more than 28 seconds, of course! But if your little one(s) are static enough to tackle this project now, you can find the  tutorial here. Here are some other fun Valentine’s Day crafts I have pulled together to do with your kids.

Teach Mama, another DC blogger, had her children create a love tree, which is not only sweet but allows for lots of practice with fine motor skills. I love this idea and can’t wait to make one with my daughter when she’s a bit older!

Via TeachMama.com

For easy valentines, get paint color strips from your local hardware store in varying shades of red and pink, and use rubber stamps to spell out messages like “XOX” and “I♥U” in black ink. Honestly, I think this idea is more for my designer friends than for my daughter, but it was too cute not to include!

Via Country Living

For Valentine’s Day crafts that my one-year-old and I can do together now,  heart stamps seem to be the way to go. You just need some paint, paper and a little creativity.  Rust & Sunshine used a toilet paper roll to create a perfect heart stamp for her artsy toddler, and Homemade Serenity helped her kids get creative with a celery heart to make rosy valentines!

Via Homemade Serenity

Via Rust & Sunshine

Have you come across or done other fun Valentine’s Day craft projects with your kids? Please share—I would love some other ideas!