Sharing God's Love on Valentine's Day

We never were too big on Valentine's Day. My husband and I would do small gifts, maybe a dinner out the weekend before or after; but other than that, we kept it simple.

A few years ago, however, we decided to change things up a bit for the children. I was inspired by our preschool curriculum : A Year of Playing Skillfully to put together a tea party, so we invited some of our closest friends and got started with the plans.

The children began with the decorations, making paper heart banners and these canvas hearts. We simply placed heart stickers on the canvas and painted around them with red paint. When the paint dried, the children removed the stickers to find their unique designs.

The children then worked on the valentines for each guest. If you're looking for some inspiration, click here or here for some extra special Bible verse printables. They're such a neat way to share a scripture and an extra bit of love.

For the big day, we bought pretty mugs so that each of the girls could take home. We also prepared cupcakes, a variety of teas, along with heart-shaped pieces of cantaloupe and cheese. (Look how teeny my daughter was here!)

Lastly, we set out a number of valentines craft supplies, including foam hearts, construction paper, stickers, ribbon, and more. In front of each chair, we placed plain paper bags with a pink or red ribbon, along with this John 3:16 printable.

As the girls arrived, we invited them to color the printable and decorate their valentines bags. We also set out some red, pink, and white water beads to play with afterwards.

The girls then played for a good while before gathering for our main craft, which was to paint these clay hearts we had prepared in advance.

We used Air-Dry clay and filled each heart mold with the clay. We then placed a small piece of straw one one side to make a hole. As the girls painted, we discussed the scripture from the John 3:16 printable they had colored and how God loves them so very much.

I then read a sweet book on love and kindness. Click here for a great list of Valentine's Day books!

I then asked the girls, "What makes a girl beautiful?"

Some said it was her hair or her eyes. Others said it was her smile.

We then looked at what the Bible said in Proverbs 31:30: "Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised."

I explained how it is what is inside of us that makes us beautiful. God looks at our hearts. He calls us to love Him with our whole heart, and to love others as ourselves. (Matthew 22:37-39) This clay heart was to serve as a reminder of this. The girls each looped a ribbon through their hearts and set them aside to dry.

We then discussed ways to show love and kindness to others. We also talked about how good manners was one way to show love.

Together, we sang the "Please and Thank You" song to the tune of "Are You Sleeping?"

Please and thank you,

Be ye kind,

Kind to one another,

Be polite,

Be polite.

Then, they sat as the moms and I walked around with the special treats. We served the cupcakes and fruit and cheese, along with a variety of teas from which to choose. The girls kindly asked for what they wanted and giggled when they said "please" or "thank you."

They had such a great time visiting with one another, while the moms and I sat and talked. After a bit more play time, we exchanged valentines and sent each girl home with their mug, printable, Valentine's bags, and clay hearts.

They were each a small reminder of our time together and God's love that we should share each and every day. . .