“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart.” – Helen Keller
No matter what your take on Valentine’s Day, one thing is for certain: our kids L.O.V.E. it.
Yet, it pains me when my kids come home with dozens of those supermarket Valentine’s Day cards, all filled with junk that will soon scatter all over the floor of their room — the lollipop sticks and wrappers, mini erasers that don’t actually erase anything, and stickers that all just end up in the trash.
. . . And you know how we at The Parent Diary feel about waste and unnecessarily filling landfills!
I totally understand that these mass-produced Valentine’s Day packages make it easy for busy parents to pick up something for their kids to hand out at school. But, when you think about it, it’s just as easy to give your kids a stack of recycled paper and have them draw a simple heart to color in.
Here’s our Eco-Friendly, No-Waste Approach to Valentine’s Day
During a family walk in the woods, Ricardo found a fallen branch, which gave me an idea. We brought it home and cut it into lovely thin discs. The kids and I worked to draw hearts on one side of the disc, and I let them fill it in with red paint. I added a tag with “Wood You Be My Valentine” printed on it and there you have it, an easy-peasy, plastic-free, eco-friendly, biodegradable, no-guilt Valentine’s Day gift for 45 kids and four teachers!
For the class party celebration, we created our own Pretzel Heart Candy with this simple, kid-friendly recipe. We melted white chocolate on the stove, then carefully poured it inside of each pretzel. The kids were in charge of placing a candy conversation heart in the middle before the chocolate set, and together we made paper origami envelopes to contain each gift.
Say ‘I Love You’ With a Special Valentine’s Day Lunch!
I just hate individually wrapped candy, and I refuse to buy it. Aside from the excessive plastic waste, it’s just simply not healthy. Instead, I keep it simple and healthy by cutting carrots and sandwiches into heart shapes and placing a sweet note into their silicone lunch box. Our reusable, dishwasher/microwave/freezer-safe lunch boxes are completely free from plastic and BPA, are made to last, and are perfect for your family and the planet!
How do you celebrate an eco-friendly Valentine’s Day?