Something about the middle of January kicks me into full Valentine planning mode. It's the perfect excuse to preoccupy our minds with something positive, as opposed to the dreary, cold weather, right?
There are plenty of fun, inexpensive Valentine's Day decor out in the party stores and dollar stores. We have some of those and happily put them up. But this year, I really wanted to make something that my children could get involved with and was hoping they could learn something along the way.
Last weekend, I took Daniel and Mia outside for some fresh air. We went to the far end of my yard where there were remnants of trees that had been torn away during Hurricane Sandy. It was a perfect opportunity to teach them about parts of a tree, and very neat for them to see the inside of a tree trunk and the growth rings.
They were especially amazed at the sea of pinecones that had fallen recently and covered the ground nearby. So we got to picking,
and picking,
and picking!
We picked so many that I thought we could turn them into something special for Valentine's Day. Our own little pinecone heart, if you will. Here it is and here is how we made it.
1. Collect lots of small pinecones.
2. Spray paint them red, or your favorite color. I'm sure white would look very lovely too.
3. Next, find a thick piece of card board. I used red craft paper I had left over from Christmas.
4. Fold your paper in half and draw the outer and inner outline of a heart.
5. Cut out your heart.
6. Tie or glue a ribbon to the top of the heart.
7. Using a hot glue gun or strong adhesive, glue on your pinecones.
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