‘Spreading The Love’

The 2021 Options For School Valentine Messages

When I was little, I fondly remember folding along the corrugated lines and pressing out the style of valentine in the pic shown here.

They came in a large paper book of sorts and there would be a few different ones to each page.

I always looked forward to the afternoon before Valentines’ Day when we were allowed to design and staple together our ‘mail’ folders. The desktop yellowish-orange tote trays waited to be filled with paper and sometimes candy surprises.

Back then, there were no emailed class lists for inclusion purposes and we got what we got. Yes, unfortunately there were often tears from time to time and I’m glad the lists are now a thing.

I can’t remember when giving candy treats came about. Handmade or bought paper cut-outs were all I ever gave in elementary school.

As the years went on and Braden started school, we would purchase the notes with stickers and maybe a sucker on some years.

These days we have to consider allergies, budget/class sizes and Luke’s feelings about his decision to choose this or that based on what he thinks his friends will prefer.

Like birthday party goody bags, I’ll admit I’m not the hugest fan of stuffing them of spending my money on a bunch of plastic items or whatever candy at the dollar store just for the stuff to end up in the trash. A large box of Smarties with a ‘thank you for coming’ note is usually Luke’s go-to now…if the kids don’t eat it, a sibling or parent will.

And likewise with the birthday give-aways, Valentines Day poses some of the same issues. The other day at the store, though, there were game options!

Yes! Connect 4, Candyland, Operation etc. were stacked along side the Avengers cards with stickers and the gummy heart packages that you can write on.

I thought that was a really cool way to spread the love…but we still settled on the mini individual Valentine-version Smartie packs.

-Becky