sincerely yours, dena

My nephew Eric (Edog) and I had some fun crafting with finger paint. Once he went to bed, I cut hearts out of his masterpieces and put together valentines for his parents to send out. A few weeks later I got my valentine in the mail personalized with his picture. Once he’s able, I plan on naming him the Chief Executive of the Finger Painting painting division of SYD.

My valentine was extra great to me this year….

Don’t forget Fido the dog or Fifi the cat! Every year Rubbles gives out valentines on the playground to his playmates. He is a sucker for the ladies.

A yummie cupcake is the perfect valentine for anyone: neighbors, co-workers, friends, etc. Depending on the type of person you are (see below) there is a cupcake to fit any schedule.

• “I’ve got all the time in the world” person – you are the bake it all, make it all person. There are thousands of recipes and such for all different kinds. It all depends on what you plan on making.
• “I’ve got some time but I sure as hell not going to spend making icing” person – Buy Betty Crocker cake mix and frosting. While in the aisle at the grocery store, check out all the other cool sprinkles and cake decorating gear they might have. Use the time you do have to decorate, not fabricate. [This was me]
• “Time, what’s that?” person – Buy them. If you are in the Boston area, the best cupcakes by far are from Party Favors in Brookline. Not only are they delicious they are crazy cute.

I packaged them in a gift box and keep them separated by a makeshift paper divider. Using 4 pieces of cardstock, make slits in each piece where they intersect. If necessary, use a bit of tape to secure the dividers to the sides of the box.

I rarely throw things away which makes my husband very angry. It’s hard for me to justify throwing anything away when I know it can and will be crucial in a future craft project. Here are a few resources to give you ideas for recycled valentines. (Pictured is a brush holder I made out of the tin cans left over from the French Onion Soup I made.)

• Make-Stuff
• Recycle your heart - Valentine’s Day Card Contest
• Trash to Treasure Crafts
• Recycling Crafts from HGTV

Who ever your sweetheart may be, they will appreciate that you thought of them and took the time to make a “ho made” valentine. These petal enclosures from Paper-Source are great because they serve double duty as card and envelope. I cut a square the same size of the inside of the envelope out of a contrasting color and affixed with glue. I grabbed a bag of heart doilies from the 75% off bin after last v-day and have found them useful this year. After writing the message of your choice, fold the petals closed and secure closed with a sticker. If you are sending these directly in the mail it may require extra postage because of the size.

Join the Mother Bear Project, a group of caring individuals who want to reach out to help victimized children in South Africa, by providing comfort in the form of a teddy bear. This is your opportunity to knit a simple, heart-felt bear to send to South Africa to infants and children needing comfort after brutal crimes have been committed against them. Totally inexperienced to accomplished knitters welcome. –Mother Bear Project
The pattern is simple and can be completed in a few hours.

I saw this idea in Feb’s issue of Better Homes and Gardens. This would be a great project to do with the kids.

You’ll Need:

• Several pages of colorful paper
• one piece of cardstock
• scrap piece of ribbon
• tape
• glue stick
• heart punches (or you can cut them yourself like I did)

Here’s How:

1. Using all the colorful paper cut lots of hearts of different sizes
2. Cut a donut shape out of the card stock
3. secure the ribbon to the donut cardstock piece
4. glue the paper hearts randomly to the cardstock donut. Be sure to cover up the taped ribbon.

When I was in college, my mom used to send me a valentine’s day care package every year. I remember a few years when they also sent me a dozen roses on v-day. Now that I’m older it’s time to repay them. So this year I’m sending my parents a little love from 1,000 miles away. In the package I included homemade cookies, a cd of pictures I took of the family farm and some music mixes that I burnt off of itunes that I thought they would enjoy.

Showing how much you love someone is important, it’s just as important to show love for someone you don’t know.

Here’s How:

• Give a hug
  Because “sometimes, a hug is all we need.”
• Wear a Name Tag
  A social experiment facilitated by Neighbors for Neighbors involving wearing a name tag in public. The experiment’s mission is to: Encourage people to get to know each other.

If these 2 ideas make you squeamish, instead try something less physical like:

• letting a person cut in front of you in traffic
• give up your seat on the subway to someone carrying a heavy load
• say thank you to a someone and really mean it