Have a healthy Valentine's Day!

I used to work very closely with the PE and music teachers when I was an elementary Spanish teacher. I actually learned a lot from these ladies, both in teaching, and in life in general (they were a big factor in me finding my way back to God; I've mentioned them before). One of the small things that has stuck with me from working with the PE teacher, though, is the childhood obesity issue. She, of course, taught exercise and eating healthy, but she also helped to make me aware of the fact that it isn't just what kids eat at home, or even at school, but how we treat food in our everyday lives. We celebrate nearly everything with candy and junk food- good behavior, good grades, birthdays, and holidays like Halloween, Christmas, Valentine's Day, and Easter. Many of the holidays, Halloween and Valentine's Day, for example, seem to only be celebrated for the candy. Teachers can be the worst, using promises of candy and pizza to get kids to cooperate. I stopped using candies and food as rewards in my class and started using stickers (you would not believe what a kid will do for a sticker!). I also stopped passing out candy at Halloween; we have passed out silly bands (remember when those were popular?) and Play-Doh (I actually had teenagers come BACK to my house to ask for more... who knew??).

So, when we got notes from Drew's teacher that they were having a Valentine's party and to please send  cards and/or goody bags, I knew I would NOT be sending candy. Healthier options, like pretzels, are great, but I still feel like kids can learn that "treats" don't have to be food at all! Thanks to Pinterest I had plenty of inspiration for finding a non-candy treat. This was our inspiration:

Peeling and cutting up crayons for someone who is slightly OCD (especially about things like pretty colors and school supplies) is like running nails on a chalkboard for any normal person, BUT these turned out so cute! I added my own touches to these Valentine's cards; I thought if we were giving out crayons, the kids needed something to color! So I printed out little pictures of dinosaurs and Hello Kitty on drawing pad paper (the kind that has a coloring book texture), cut them up, and stuck them to colored paper (I used a paper slicer with fancy blades to cut a wavy texture on the sides, and a corner rounder for the corners of the white paper). I stuck the cooled crayons on with rolled up glue dots (I had to roll them up to get enough "lift" because my crayons were a bit concave on the back). And voila (NOT viola), cute Valentine's cards that include a treat that is NOT candy!

I bought the ice cube tray/baking mold on Amazon for $4

They say, "Color your heart out, Valentine!"

On top of that, we were told the kids would be decorating cookies during snack time and asked to please send juice boxes and candy hearts for the party. I figured they would have MORE than enough candy and refined sugars, so I bought a watermelon, sliced it thin, and used a heart-shaped cookie cutter to make somewhat healthier treats for the class (to accompany the rest of the sugar).

This was actually my own idea, though I'm sure it's on Pinterest as well

And don't worry, I didn't waste the "scraps". Those are for us! Yum!

I am not the kind of mom who refuses to take my kids to McDonald's, but I try to make healthier choices as often as possible. Thanks, Jana, for teaching me to be aware of not only the meals I provide, but how I treat food in my house as well! I'm certainly not perfect, but I try!

If you're looking for more Valentine's day ideas, here are some others that I pinned on Pinterest:

If you don't feel like making something

Bouncy balls!

Aren't these adorable??

Without the lollipops, of course

Have a wonderful and healthy Valentine's day!