Valentines Celebration

I love Valentines Day. I can't resist a celebration of love and friendship. Here at the Purple Twig, we usually celebrate Valentines Day with a kid's neighborhood bake sale and a printed Valentine workshop. This year the kids spent the morning baking and icing their cookies to sell.  

Who could resist these delicious cookies with vanilla buttercream topped with pink sprinkles. Unfortunately I can't.

Or who could resist this face while selling her cookies. She really enjoys the experience of selling. It's such a great way for her to learn about money, counting, adding and subtracting in a rewarding way. 

Inside kids were busy printing away. It's such a great way to make many prints but each are individual.  It's great for ages 3 and it's great for ages 45. The kids learn the basic techniques of printing and the idea of multiples by making a printing plate from styrofoam. They roll on the ink and print on different colors of paper. We also had a few different colors of ink for experimenting.

This guy proudly printed 26 counting each one as he printed them. By the chocolate on his face I'm guessing he also got himself a little treat at the bake sale outside.

Happy Valentines Day!!

Valentine Fortunes

Oh my! Look at these sweet Valentines that my daughter made for her classmates. We love Valentines Day around here. It's such a lovely celebration of friendship and love. We offer Valentine making workshops at the Purple Twig along with having a neighborhood bake sale each year in celebration. I also love to help my children make Valentines for their classmates.  

My daughter wanted to make felt fortune cookies for her classmates. I think she was looking for an excuse to use her typewriter. I found the typewriter in a second-hand store and thought it a wonderful tool for her while learning to read and write. She has written many poems and every once in a while each of us in the family find a type-written letter on our pillow or in a pocket. I love getting those letters. She delighted in coming up with the fortunes for her Valentines sometimes playing on words and sometimes mimicking actual fortunes. She made up about six and repeated them. 

I cut out the red felt circles, each about 4 inches in diameter. We just used self-adhesive velcro circles on either end.

She typed up her fortunes and cut them out adding some hearts on the end.

With the fortunes in the middle she folded the felt with the velcro on the outside. Then she pressed the velcro together and there you have a delightful Valentine.

Happy Valentines!!!!