Nothing says love like giving into your child’s pleas to host a Valentine’s Day party for a few of her closest first grade friends. It’s either love or a momentary lapse in sanity, one of the two. Either way, if you are scrambling to find ways to entertain a house full of pint-sized partygoers this weekend, consider these, quick, easy and affordable Valentine’s Day-themed activities:
Heart Tree
If your last minute party is truly being put together with moments to spare before guests arrive, then put your partygoers to work by having them help with the decorations. A simple project that makes a stunning centerpiece is a heart tree. Simply place a few bare branches into a vase and hold them in place with marbles, rocks or floral oasis. Next, have the kids cut-out hearts from construction paper. Let them decorate each paper heart with glitter, sequins, buttons, stickers or other embellishments, then use a hole puncher to make a hole at the top of the heart. Use a bit of yarn to make a loop and hang the hearts on the branches to create a tree of love.
Heart Sticks
This game is cheap, easy and can be put together at the last minute. Simply pour a bag or two of candy hearts (depending on the number of guests) into a large bowl. Next, hand each guest a paper of wooden chopsticks. Set a timer, and then have guests try to pick up as many candy hearts as possible using just the chopsticks. The person with the most collected hearts after the timer goes off is the winner.
Candy Hunt
Collect a bunch of red items and hide them in various spots around your house. Each time a child retrieves a red item he can turn it in for a piece of candy. For older kids, you can turn the game into a scavenger hunt by hiding wrapped candy in hard to find spots and having guests find them by using a pre-printed list of hints. Just be sure all of the candy is found, so you don’t end up finding melted chocolate hearts under your couch in the middle of May.
Related Articles:
Simple Valentine’s Day Projects for the Entire Family
Easy Last-Minute Valentine Projects
Fun Valentine’s Day Projects for Kids
Simple Valentine Crafts for Preschoolers
Spending Valentine’s Day At HOME