Just because Love Day is in Lockdown doesn’t me our love has to be… Wait, stay with me!

I am convinced that Valentine’s Day this year will teach us a few things. Don’t get me wrong, a day dedicated to love is just that: lovely, but the need to celebrate it with spending lots of money and doing really extravagant things in the name of romance has never appealed to me. And who said it has to be just for the grown ups? I guess what I’m trying to say is that this year, as everything will be dialled down a lot, we will see first-hand just how much difference those things really made to the hallmark holiday and perhaps adopt some new traditions in the process.

In a time where we can’t go or do everything to our romantic heart’s desire, here are a few things we can do with our little ones in tow that are fun and get to the essence of what Valentine’s day in 2021 should be about: Expressing love and gratitude in every sense.

So here’s my Family Valentine’s Day list of things to do this year. Activities will depend on the age of your little ones of course, but there’s always room to adapt and make it work for you:

1.     Make heart-shaped Pizzas

You can buy the dough pre-made from the supermarket or if you have become a domesticated God/Goddess during lockdown, you could make it yourself. Then it’s just the small matter of rolling and cutting the dough before adding your favourite toppings. chef’s kiss

2.     Order in for Breakfast

Personally, this has been a bit of a lockdown classic – you know when you wake up and just can’t face another day in lockdown. Well on Sunday, you will order breakfast in because you are feeling so full of love you’d rather just order in all your favourites 🙂 Lots of local businesses have created Valentine’s Day special food hampers. Definitely worth having a look around and not just on Uber Eats. Here are a couple that have been recommended to me, feel free to share you’r’s below:

• Hot Milk (Instagram)

• London Graze Company (Instagram)

3.     Build a Den and Watch a Family Favourite

With the weather as cold as it is, you can’t go wrong with building a cosy den. It’s my favourite pastime and I love watching the kids get as excited as I once did when I was their age. (It is as good as I remember, and now you’re older and thus wiser, so you can come up with half decent architectural ideas). Throw in a hot chocolate and put the fire on (or YouTube a fireplace if you don’t have one) you can just pretend you’re in a luxurious cabin.

Some family favourite films of our’s include:

·      Soul (Disney+)

·      A Dog’s way Home (Netflix)

·      Over the Moon (Netflix)

·      Fearless (Netflix)

·      Dolittle (Amazon Prime)

4.     Customise Your Own Valentine’s day Sundaes

Get creative with Valentine’s Day themed ingredients for your mega sundaes. Think raspberry sauce, strawberry ice-cream, raspberries, red velvet cake – there’s so many delicious sweet red foods out there that are likely cause a sugar rush, followed by a strong sugar crash – time this accordingly!

5.     Family Love Notes

Depending on the age of your little people, this could be a lovely activity.  Have everyone write down what they love and appreciate about each other. No need to say who it’s from, just write the person’s name on the back of the piece of paper and hand them out. Once everyone has their notes, read them out loud to each other. A good way to get the oxytocin flowing in your home. I’ll definitely be adopting this idea as my little girl gets older.

6.    Mocktail Station

Delicious and fun beverages, remember those? Make up for some loss time with this activity. Get creative with names, ingredients and methods. Crushed ice, herbs, fruits, the lot! Get your little ones to open up their own Valentine’s Day Bar, and get them to play bartender (it’s genius, I know, thank me later!)

7.     Order in a Sweet Treat

Perhaps after the hot chocolate, apple juice and sundaes, these sweet treats can be reserved just for you! Just like breakfast, so many local businesses are doing Valentine’s inspired treats. Here are my faves, but feel free to share your’s in the comment section below.

• Kardy’s Cupcakes (of course!) (Instagram)

• Prestige Patisserie (Instagram)

• Phebe’s Bakes (Instagram)

Try at least one activity or try to merge some of these together and you’re guaranteed for a lovely day/evening with the family. It’s important that we show our little ones that it is not just about being in love or feeling loved by someone, but also recognising the love you have for someone and taking the time out to appreciate them. With the way this last year has unravelled, it’s absolutely vital that we instil this in our young people at every opportunity and Valentine’s Day makes for a great centre stage.

Please let me know and share any activities you end up trying. I’ll be sharing any recommendations on my Instagram stories and Facebook over the weekend :).