How will you spend time with your littles this month?
Regardless of how you spend time together this month, just giving attention to and asking questions to get to know your child and see their perspective is priceless. When genuine connections are made, they will feel the sincerity and love. Spend time doing something you know your child(ren) enjoy. Do they enjoy being outside? Go on a walk or to the park or play on the grass or in the snow, depending on where you live. Do they enjoy playing with toys? Maybe you could join them and help them create something?
One of the easiest ways to spend time together is with a book. Since February is all about LOVE, we have included some of our favorite books with a love or valentine theme for you to consider.
Guess How Much I Love You
(ages 1-6) A sweet story of Little Nutbrown Hare and Big Nutbrown Hare as they compete to show who has the most love for each other.
LOVE from the Very Hungry Caterpillar
(ages 1-3) Give your favorite little valentine some love with Eric Carle and his Very Hungry Caterpillar’s style! As always Eric Carle’s bright collage illustrations are bursting with sweetness and color! Short and sweet . . . you get the message that you are loved.
I Love You Stinky Face
(ages 1-6) A young boy wants to know if his mama would still love him even if he had some strange animal behaviors or characteristics. His mama reassures him with the love only a mother can show as she sweetly responds to each imaginative thought.
Sugar Cookies – Sweet Little Lessons on Love
(ages 4-8) Amy has such a way with words and simplifies their meanings into relatable concepts using experiences with baking cookies. With her passion for cookies combined with her love for relationships of people and pets, she beautifully shares some sweet little lessons on love. Includes a recipe for some delicious sugar cookies that must be baked with your favorite little person. Practice the lessons of support, forgiveness, tenderness and adoration to help your family be sweeter and share more cookies.
Love, Z
(ages 2-6) What is love? When young Z finds a clue and realizes he has something important to find out, he sets out to learn what LOVE is.
Love Monster
(ages 1-5) When you’re a funny-looking monster that lives in a world of cute fluffy things, it can be hard to find love. So monster sets out to find love . . . Will he find it? We think you’ll fall in love with Love Monster just as much as we did!Since February is also National Chocolate Month, we’ve done a few posts with an emphasis on chocolate. Be sure to check them out and see if one of these chocolate activities interests you and your family as a way to share quality time.
We posted specifically about the Chocolate Museum in Brussels, Belgium with a tutorial for making amateur heart chocolates. https://experiencebee.com/chocolate-hearts-and-a-chocolate-story/
We also posted about chocolate covered strawberries because they are a signature treat this time of year with the sweet red heart-shaped berries and the decadent chocolate coating. https://experiencebee.com/chocolate-covered-strawberries/
And, we shared a post about fondue which includes dessert fondue of chocolate. What do you like to dip in chocolate fondue? https://experiencebee.com/family-fundo-fondue/
How about with some heart themed activities?
- make heart shaped sugar cookies (a traditional favorite at our house)
- make valentines – for grandparents, friends, neighbors, family
- make heart arts or crafts (simply draw heart pictures and cut out hearts from folded paper)
- make a list of things you love
- recite a nursery rhyme . . . we recommend Queen of Hearts and follow up with some heart shaped tart treats of your own
Queen of Hearts – nursery rhyme
Queen of Hearts images for use as a story board or stick puppets to engage in simple rhyming and oral repetition activities of language arts
Make a meal using red or heart-shaped components. Check out this post where we made a salad with heart-shaped radishes and cucumbers. https://experiencebee.com/radish-heart-salad-with-yogurt-dill-dressing/
How many red fruits and vegetables can you think of?
Some red fruits – cherries, strawberries and lychee – kinda look like a heart. Some other red sweets from nature: watermelon, apple, raspberries, pomegranate, blood oranges, red grapes . . .
How about vegetables? How many red vegetables do you know? radishes, red peppers, tomatoes, beets, red onion . . .
Did you know some red fruits and veggies actually promote better health? Lycopene, which is found in some red produce, helps improve heart health, while potassium in red potatoes and cherries helps manage blood pressure.
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