Wow, y’all. I am exhausted!

But I love a good day of kid-partying!

Yesterday morning, our third-grader’s class had a special snack scheduled, so we hosted a mini pancake buffet. It was a big hit!

All the parents sent in a couple of bucks each to cover the costs, and we got plates, napkins, two 80-count bag of mini pancakes, some chocolate syrup, pancake syrup, chocolate chips, and whip cream! [I scored these 80-count bags of pre-cooked mini pancakes for just a few dollars each: SCORE!]

The kids loved it!

Then it was on to Li’l Bro’s preschool party…

Here’s what Li’l Bro’s valentines ended up as (Big Bro did the Star Wars ones).

Li’l Bro also got several cute valentines. I can tell some of my fellow moms are crafty pinterest-lovers, too!

We divided the nineteen kids into five groups and they rotated through the party stations. This was my favorite craft from the party, I think! The kids laced together two hearts, then cut & glued the cover verse on and filled with several other “love” verses. It’s just lovely! and I’m so thankful for the amazing mom who thought of it and put it together!

We also traced and cut the kids’ handprints and had them write “I love you this much” to make Valentine’s Day cards to give to a loved one. [This is my model one… The kids’ ones were much more endearing and perfectly imperfect!] We accordian-folded the written strip and stapled it between two hands, so when the card is opened, it’s like two wide-stetched hands showing how much the giver loves the recipient.

We had also seen a variation of a cupid’s arrow game using straws and q-tips, so I modified that to work for us and added a heart-shaped cut-out target for Cupid’s “arrow.” [It was a bit more like Cupid’s dart gun… But the kids weren’t sticklers for details.]

Not only that but the kids got to rotate through playing bingo and decorating (and eating) yummy cupcakes! [I think I may want to go back to preschool!]

Meanwhile, I came home to find a most generous and thoughtful gift from my hubs–chocolates galore plus Girl Scout thin mints plus the most amazing card and long love letter… not to mention a little blue box. Wow. I am a little overwhelmed. [Why on EARTH did that man marry me?? I. Am. Blessed.]

Wheeee! So, I hope your Valentine’s was just glorious! I must say I’ve come a long way from that time as an undergrad I hosted a chocolate-filled “You Might As Well Get Fat ‘Cause He Doesn’t Love You Anyway” anti-Valentine’s party, haha!

So, what are the favorite valentine ideas you’ve seen this year? Do tell!