picture books, meal ideas, and other traditions big and small for Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day with kids can be a lot of fun! There are some truly great picture books around the holiday, red and pink food items are everywhere, and themed crafts, treats, and events pop up at stores and venues all over the county. In no particular order, some ideas to celebrate with kids big and small, at home or out and about in Westchester!

Valentine's Day traditions at home

Head to the dollar store and pick up a red, pink or heart patterned tablecloth and themed paper plates and napkins. Set the table with these festive items the night before and you have a high-impact, low effort holiday breakfast celebration!

Serve pink, red, and white foods all day. Lox on bagels, tomato and mozzarella, strawberries and cherries, spaghetti with red sauce or salmon for dinner...the list is endless! And finding desserts couldn't be easier - we love Stew Leonard's in Yonkers or Norwalk, Shop Rite of Tuckahoe or Scarsdale, or DiCicco's (Armonk, Larchmont, Pelham and other locations) for these special treats. Think cupcakes, chocolate dipped berries, fruit tarts...

Dollar and discount stores are also great spots to pick up some red, white and pink home decor. Garlands, foam hearts, and more can be found for low prices with big impact. Decorate the whole house, the kiddo's rooms while they're at school, or just one living space (a little shiny red goes a long way!)

Love Posters - starting on February 1 and each night until Valentine's Day, take the time to appreciate each member of the family. Start with one page of construction paper (red or pink, of course!) for each family member, write his or her name nice and large at the top, and have the other members of the family write one thing per day that they love about that person. For those too little to write, you can go around the dinner table and have an adult make notes! We love to save these from year to year and reflect on what has changed and what hasn't about our favorite things about each other (and watch your kids' handwriting progress!). Thank you Busy Toddler for the inspiration!

Valentine's Day craft party - set out a folding table and some chairs, pick out all the red, pink and purple markers/crayons/colored pencils/stickers/construction paper, set out some foam hearts or doilies from the dollar store and let the kids go to town! Invite a few friends over, set out some easy snacks and juice boxes, and have a valentine making party for your crew. Make sure to have a separate table for all that gluey-ness to lay out to dry (we speak from experience...)

Valentine's Day Picture Books

Some silly, some funny, some sentimental and some just plain cute.

• Mouse's First Valentine by Lauren Thompson
• Love Is by Diane Adams
• The Day It Rained Hearts by Felicia Bond
• Little Blue Truck's Valentine by Alice Schertle
• Snowy Valentine by David Petersen
• Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch by Eileen Spinelli
• Hug Machine by Scott Campbell
• XO, Ox by Adam Rex
• Mouse and Mole: Secret Valentine by Wong Herbert Lee
• Here Comes Valentine Cat by Claudia Rueda
• Plant a Kiss by Amy Krouse Rosenthal
• Happy Valentine's Day, Mouse by Laura Numeroff

Valentine's events in Westchester and the surrounding areas

Stepping Stones Museum for Children in Norwalk, CT hosts THE cutest event for littles in the area with their annual Children's Sweetheart Ball. Best for 6 and under, past celebrations have featured carriage rides, crafts, magic shows, and of course a big dance floor and a DJ spinning kid-friendly bops. It starts and ends early in deference to preschool bedtimes, and most of the museum features stay open throughout. Get your tickets here for this year's event (3-7pm, February 8th, 2025).

Yonkers' own Blue Door Art Center annually hosts Valentine's Day themed crafting events appropriate for all ages. The event is free but registration is required.

For something really different, take a short drive up I-87 to Bear Mountain State Park, home of the Trailside Museum and Zoo. On February 15th from 11:00am-2pm you can celebrate Valentine's Day with the zoo animals! Their website notes "make Valentines for the animals, put together special treats and watch them get delivered! Join us for fun activities, presentations, and crafts." Learn more at https://trailsidemuseumsandzoo.org/events/.