{"id":76455,"date":"2023-01-20T15:36:15","date_gmt":"2023-01-20T15:36:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/make-valentines-day-special-for-the-whole-family\/"},"modified":"2023-01-20T15:36:15","modified_gmt":"2023-01-20T15:36:15","slug":"make-valentines-day-special-for-the-whole-family","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/make-valentines-day-special-for-the-whole-family\/","title":{"rendered":"Make Valentine&#8217;s Day Special for the Whole Family"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>While February 14th may bring up visions of a romantic dinner date and flowers with a significant other, parents know this holiday can be about the entire family. It&rsquo;s the perfect opportunity to enjoy <a title=\"time together \" href=\"https:\/\/www.care.com\/en-gb\/profiles\/childcare\/babysitters\"> time together <\/a> and show how much you love each other.<br><strong>Looking for a sitter? <a href=\"https:\/\/www.care.com\/en-ca\/profiles\/child-care\/babysitters\">Find one in your area now<\/a>.<\/strong><br>However, it can be difficult to come up with activities that everyone will enjoy. Here are a few creative ways to celebrate Valentine&rsquo;s Day:<br><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"\/c\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/07\/Family-Valentines-Day-.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"670\" height=\"522\"><\/p><h2><span style=\"color: #00b8b8\"> <strong> Say &ldquo;I love you&rdquo; with a delicious meal <\/strong> <\/span><\/h2><ul style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><li style=\"list-style-type: none\"><ul style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><li><strong> Whip up a Valentine&rsquo;s Day breakfast: <\/strong>A&nbsp;festive way to get the family into the Valentine&rsquo;s Day spirit is with food. Make heart-shaped pancakes for your family by pouring batter into a large, metal heart-shaped cookie cutter. Top with strawberries and whipped cream. Why not go a step further and add a face on the heart with blueberry eyes, a strawberry nose and a whipped cream smile!<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><p>&nbsp;<\/p><ul style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><li style=\"list-style-type: none\"><ul style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><li><strong> Send love to school (or work): <\/strong> For kids (and partners) who take their lunches, cutting sandwiches into a heart or an X and O is a fun way to let them know you&rsquo;re thinking of them. Send your brown baggers off with rice crispy treats (tinted pink, of course) cut into heart shapes. Pack a box of conversation hearts for the kids to share with their lunch buddies.<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><p>&nbsp;<\/p><ul style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><li style=\"list-style-type: none\"><ul style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><li><strong> Make dinner special: <\/strong> Many families use dinner as an important part of their Valentine&rsquo;s Day. Some families dress up and eat out at a favourite restaurant, but there are still a lot of moms who prefer to celebrate with their family at home . Why not try and make individual, heart-shaped pizzas for Valentine&rsquo;s Day dinner.<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><p>&nbsp;<\/p><ul style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><li><strong> Give sweets to your sweethearts: <\/strong> Other fun food ideas include serving raspberry-cranberry juice in wine glasses, frosted heart shaped sugar cookies with fun messages on top, chocolate-dipped strawberries, bananas or marshmallows and red velvet cupcakes topped with conversation candy hearts or Hershey kisses.<\/li><\/ul><h2><span style=\"color: #00b8b8\"><strong> Spread the love by caring for others <\/strong> <\/span><\/h2><ul style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><li style=\"list-style-type: none\"><ul style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><li><strong> Deliver holiday treats to the needy: <\/strong> Valentine&rsquo;s Day is a time for spreading love, so it&rsquo;s a great opportunity for families to reach out to those who could use a little extra attention. Spend some time this Valentine&rsquo;s Day delivering a variety of heart-shaped cookies, brownies and rice crispy treats to locals in need at shelters and assisted living facilities.<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><p>&nbsp;<\/p><ul style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><li style=\"list-style-type: none\"><ul style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><li><strong> Care for man&rsquo;s best friend: <\/strong> Don&rsquo;t forget about all the four-legged friends who need a little love. Deliver a bag of pet food (and other items) to a pet shelter in your area. Try calling a pet shelter a few days ahead and inquire about their needs, from cat litter to toys to food, to make sure they have a purr-fect Valentine&rsquo;s Day. If the need arises why not foster a pet, the kids will love it.<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><p>&nbsp;<\/p><ul style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><li><strong> Volunteer your time:<\/strong> Other ways to reach out and share the Valentine&rsquo;s Day spirit include delivering flowers (or treats) to your children&rsquo;s teachers, elderly neighbors or the volunteers at local food banks. Head to children&rsquo;s hospitals or nursing homes and see if they can use any volunteers to help make cards or crafts.<\/li><\/ul><h2><span style=\"color: #00b8b8\"><strong> Stay entertained <\/strong> <\/span><\/h2><ul style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><li style=\"list-style-type: none\"><ul style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><li><strong> Host a movie night: <\/strong> Grab the caramel-covered popcorn for a sweet treat and snuggle up on the couch with the whole family. Watch family-friendly Valentine&rsquo;s Day movies like &ldquo;Lady and the Tramp&rdquo;, &ldquo;Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown&rdquo;, &ldquo;The Love Bug&rdquo; or &ldquo;Stardust&rdquo;.<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><p>&nbsp;<\/p><ul style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><li style=\"list-style-type: none\"><ul style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><li><strong> Glide around: <\/strong> Whether your family prefers skating on ice or on hardwood floors in a roller rink, open skates at your local rink can be a fun and active way to spend the evening. Dance along to the music, laugh and enjoy each other&rsquo;s company. And if you&rsquo;re lucky enough to live somewhere with an outdoor ice skating rink, take advantage! There&rsquo;s nothing more romantic than bundling up and holding hands as you skate on the ice. And if you&rsquo;re lucky, you and your sweetheart may just be able to steal away for a quick, <a title=\" romantic trip \" href=\"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/st-valentines-day-pre-vs-post-kids\/%20around%20the%20rink\"> romantic trip<\/a>.<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><p>&nbsp;<\/p><ul style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><li><strong> Pack a picnic: <\/strong> If you&rsquo;re fortunate enough to experience a warmer climate abroad with family, pack a picnic with everyone&rsquo;s favourite snacks and grab a Frisbee for a fun-filled day at the park. End the afternoon with a trip to the ice cream shop or your favourite cafe for a sweet treat.<\/li><\/ul><p>Years down the road, it&rsquo;s not the treats the kids will remember, but the rituals and time spent with their families. Build traditions now to create memories that will last a life time.<br>&nbsp;<br>Read Next: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/10-signs-its-time-for-a-date-night\/\">10 Signs It&rsquo;s Time for a Date Night<\/a><br>Read Next:<a href=\"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/6-tips-for-a-great-valentines-date-night\/\">6 Tips for a Great Valentine&rsquo;s Date Night<\/a><br>Read Next: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/romantic-ideas-for-date-night-at-home\/\">Romantic Ideas for Date Night at Home<\/a><br>&nbsp;<br><a href=\"https:\/\/www.care.com\/en-ca\/profiles\/child-care\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"\/c\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/07\/Childcare-banner.png\" alt=\"A clickable icon where you can search available childcare\" width=\"657\" height=\"250\"><\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ideas for fun and family-friendly Valentine&#8217;s Day plans<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1404,"featured_media":76456,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"enable_toc":false,"care_reviewed_by":0,"care_post_updated_flag":false,"care_updated_date":"","last_update":"2023-01-20","view_count":25,"footnotes":""},"categories":[825,602],"tags":[],"member-type":[313],"vertical":[314,316],"platform":[2],"class_list":["post-76455","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-date-night","category-everyday","member-type-seeker-en-ca","vertical-children-en-ca","vertical-child-care-advice-en-ca","platform-resources"],"acf":[],"created":null,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76455","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1404"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=76455"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76455\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":91214,"href":"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76455\/revisions\/91214"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/76456"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=76455"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=76455"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=76455"},{"taxonomy":"member-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/member-type?post=76455"},{"taxonomy":"vertical","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vertical?post=76455"},{"taxonomy":"platform","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.care.com\/c\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/platform?post=76455"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}