All posts tagged Valentine’s Day

NEST … have a lovely day !

by Julie on February 14, 2013 in NEST with No comments

happy-valentines-day

This is one of our favorite tree stump perches in the forest behind our house and it just happens to be in the shape of a heart. It makes me happy every time I pass by.

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I spotted this lovely rock on a hike with my kiddos yesterday. They were so thrilled that we found a heart shaped rock the day before Valentine’s Day. I told them that it must be a sign of God’s love. It also reminds me of this great story of a family who collects heart shaped rocks and displays them in their home.

Have fun starting your own nature collection, maybe even a collection of hearts.

Have a beautiful day!

- julie

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NOURISH …. with dark chocolate almond milk + banana ice cream | by five and one

by Julie on February 13, 2013 in NOURISH with No comments

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How about a little rich dark chocolate ice cream to celebrate the holiday?  This recipe is so simple, rich in antioxidants, and really tasty!   Made with just two ingredients, Silk’s brand of Dark Chocolate Almond Milk and bananas + a few dried cherries on top.  If you want to make it extra special for Valentine’s Day add a fruit strip heart punched out with a cookie cutter to top it all off.

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DARK CHOCOLATE ALMOND MILK + BANANA ICE CREAM

3 cups cold Silk Dark Chocolate Almond milk ( usually found in the milk section of the grocery store)

2 bananas

Directions …

Blend almond milk and bananas in a blender and pour into your ice cream maker.  Freeze according to manufacturers directions.

Top with dried cherries and for a fun and easy heart topper use a heart shaped cookie cutter and punch out hearts from a fruit strip.

Enjoy!

- julie

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NEST + CREATE … with lovely notes wrapped in sycamore bark | by five and one

by Julie on February 11, 2013 in CREATE, NEST with No comments

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If you really must have an occasion to write a lovely note to someone you love, then I encourage you to go find a sycamore tree and wrap your note in sycamore bark.  The texture is amazing and what a simple way to incorporate a bit of nature into your valentine giving. This tree is in our backyard and I collect mounds of bark just waiting for ways to use it. This bark is from the branches which makes it perfect for slipping in a note.  Look for bark that has a large enough opening to slip your rolled note in and tie a decorative ribbon around it. It doesn’t get much simpler than that! I also added a stamped heart on one of my pieces of bark.

Ohhh yes,  now you have to masterly craft that perfect love note!

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happy sycamore bark hunting!

julie

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CREATE … stick around valentines | using 100% pure honey sticks | by five and one

by Julie on February 2, 2013 in CREATE with 2 Comments

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Lately the boys have been seriously practicing their archery skills and we thought it would be fun to use this theme as our valentines this year.  They came up with the catch phrase “stick around valentine” when I mentioned including the honey stick as a treat.  I so enjoy having my creative helpers around.

I used a corrugated cardboard coffee sleeve to make the original arrow collage and then made a printable sheet for you to download and use.  One template has the to: and from: and the other does not, in case your (younger) child prefers just to sign their name.

We had so much fun creating this for you and hope you enjoy!

DIRECTIONS

You will need creme or white colored card stock.  I like the warmer quality of the creme color, but feel free to experiment printing on various papers.  100 % pure honey sticks are available at health food markets or here. (these are what we decided to use).

Print the Template and cut each valentine out. Cut at the 2 dotted lines on the arrow with an x-acto knife or utility blade and then let your children slip in the honey stick.

printing note: be sure to click on the template links below and save to desktop or acrobat before printing for best results.

Template 1 | with To: and From:

Template 2 | w/o To: and From:

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Happy Creating!

- julie

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NOURISH + CREATE … with wrapped biscotti and truffles for valentine’s day | by five and one

by Julie on January 29, 2013 in CREATE, NOURISH with No comments

VALENTINES-DAY-BISCOTTI-WRAPPERS

Here is a simple way to add a creative touch to homemade sweet treats and also an easy one for the kiddos to help with. Have them help with the baking of the truffles and biscotti and let them wrap up their own creations.  Wax crayons also work fantastic on wax paper!!

Wrapping supplies and directions for wrapped biscotti

wax paper

paper or vellum for cutting hearts and strips

washi tape for securing

Cut wax paper to desired size and wrap around two biscotti. Secure with washi tape and a heart or washi tape and strips of paper.  Experiment with items you have on hand.

The Biscotti recipe is from Jen Altman. I made ours gluten-free by using a gluten free flour blend, but the original recipe is quite tasty too!

 

VALENTINES-DAY-truffle-WRAPPERS

Wrapping supplies and directions for wrapped truffles

wax paper

decorative scissors (optional)

gold paperclips or mini wooden clothespins

assorted papers

washi tape

Cut out triangular pieces of wax paper approx 5 x 5 x 7 and roll into cone shapes. Secure with your desired fastener. For one design I used a gold paperclip and strips of red and hot pink colored vellum. The next I cut out a red heart from vellum paper and used gold washi tape to secure. The last design is a strip of brown card stock stamped with hearts and attached with a brown mini clothespin. The edges can be cut with decorative scissors or kept straight. Again, experiment with items you have on hand. Two truffles will fit into each cone.

The yummy recipe for the date truffles is from Green Kitchen Stories.

Enjoy!

- julie

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CREATE …. recycled collage valentines | by five and one

by Julie on January 18, 2013 in CREATE with No comments

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These Recycled Collage Valentines were inspired by the cardboard art of Blanca Helga.  Be sure to share her designs with your children, they will definitely spark some creativity!! This was another Valentine craft that was posted before the blog was ready, but I wanted to include it because it is one that the kids really love. It is a simple craft using materials that you most likely already have.  It would also be a great one to place in a frame and take out and display every year, or for giving to a grandparent.

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Simply cut apart boxes from the recycling bin, then draw and  cut out heart shapes.  Have your child peel away some of the paper to reveal the ribbed layer of cardboard. Now supply paper, buttons, string, punched paper dots, and whatever you can find that is red, white, and pink that they can glue to their collage heart.

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Enjoy creating!

-julie

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CREATE …. naturally sweet valentine DIY with healthy fruit strips | by five and one

by Julie on January 10, 2013 in CREATE with 2 Comments

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Thinking of crafty Valentines lately and what to create with my boys this year that would have a cool boy factor.  Still working on THIS, but I’ll let you know if I come up with an idea.  Meanwhile, I posted this one on Facebook before this blog was ready, so I wanted to share it with you again along with the templates. It’s a simple card that is folded over a healthy fruit snack, held together by a clothespin wrapped with washi tape or a child’s own design.

NATURALLY SWEET VALENTINE DIY

you will need ….

- traditional wooden clothespins | I bought mine at hobby lobby, but you can also purchase yours here.

- Stretch Island Fruit Company fruit snacks (or similar fruit strip) – found in the natural foods section of most stores

- assorted washi tape  for decorating clothespins or have your children use markers to make their own design.

- templates below

directions …

Simply click on the links below for the templates and print as many as you need on card stock.

template for Naturally Sweet Valentine red | shown above printed on brown card stock.

tempate for Naturally Sweet Valentine pink | shown above printed on white or creme colored card stock.

Cut out designs from template and fold over fruit strip. Decorate clothespins and then attach the decorated clothespins to the wrapped fruit strip.

Enjoy!

- julie

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