First Valentines

It occurred to me last week that Ryan needs Valentines this year to hand out to his preschool class. This is new territory for us. I thought about buying the generic ones that are attached to candy. Those would be totally fine and easy. However, I try so hard not to let my boys have tons of candy. I let them eat treats when they are out at school or birthday parties or friends' houses. But I control what they eat when they are at home. And candy is a rare treat around here. For something like handing out Valentines, I was conflicted. Do I go with the standard candy loaded with sugar and artificial ingredients? Do I avoid handing out a sweet treat at all? (No fun!) I finally decided that Valentine's Day deserves something sweet. Just not artificial.

I saw this idea on the Facebook page of Real Fit, Real Food Mom. I feel like it is the perfect compromise of a sweet treat that doesn't contain a bunch of artificial junk. It is a honey stick through a heart with a bow and arrow. We wrote "Bee Mine!" on them and I plan on finding some heart or bumble bee stickers to put on them. I am most definitely NOT crafty, but these were pretty simple and I think they turned out cute.

How do you handle Valentine's Day and other holidays? Do you let your kids eat as much candy as they want, avoid it all together, or find a happy medium? Who knows what I'll do next year....I may end up buying the artificial candy just because it is easier! For this year I'm happy with Ryan's first Valentines.