Are you tired of giving your kids candy? It seems every holiday or special occasion revolves around giving our children sweet treats. Jelly beans for Easter, cake & ice cream for birthdays, chocolates for Valentine’s Day and the biggest culprit of them all, Halloween!
When you think about it, there are so many other fun and meaningful gifts we can give our little ones other than sugar. British Swim School Chicago has created our ‘Top 5 Favorite non-candy Valentine’s Day Gifts’!
Books
Anytime time we can sit down with our kids to share a great story, it is a win. Especially a book that relays a purposeful message or sparks laughter. I know, it isn’t quite as exciting as chocolate, but there are some great Valentine’s Day themed books that your kids will enjoy reading over and over.
Childen’s Books to Celebrate Valentine’s Day
We personally love, The Secret Life of Squirrels; A Love Story by Nancy Rose. Nancy Rose’s photography with real squirrels make the book a lot of fun for kids of any age.
The Don’t Laugh Challenge: Valentine’s Day Edition by Billy Boy is also a great book for your kids age 6-12. They will go back to this book time and again.
Stuffed Animals
Stuffed animals, characters and superheroes are so much fun. Not only do they make great companions for your kids at bedtime, but there is such a variety on the market to choose from. Spend just a little extra to get it personalized, your kids will find it hard to give that present away for years to come.
Amazon is full of personalized stuffed animal options. We personally loved the Curious George pajama and bag stuffed toy and the personalized sock monkey. Some characters will never go out of style.
Personal Creations also has a large selection of cute, customizable options for all age ranges.
Board Games
This gift idea might seem a little ‘left field’; however, board games are about family time. Sharing time, sharing laughter & love, as well as, creating memories. Some of our families’ best memories have been, and continue to be, board game night.
Bounceback Parenting & Mom Junction have created a wonderful list, with a variety of board games, that the whole family will enjoy. From brain games to memory games and even physically challenging games, this list has it all.
Art Supplies
Construction paper, glue, pompoms, googly eyes, paper towel rolls, rocks, yarn, crayons, tape… the variety of materials you can use to create art is endless. Art supplies, as a gift, makes our list because it’s a great way to get your kids involved in the preparation of family time. Each year, my kids sit down with their gifts to make the center piece for our Valentine’s Day dinner. We all have so much fun with this project each and every year; perhaps it’s an activity that could become a new Valentine’s Day tradition with your family too.
Pinterest is full of amazing ideas on creating little Valentine’s Day gifts and centerpieces.
Eighteen25 has a fun idea for creating little valentine’s day monsters!
We also loved Tatertots & Jell-O’s idea of using jars to create little centerpieces (and don’t you just love their website’s name?). Your family could create their own little Valentine’s Day collage in a jar for the center of the table.
The Experiences
We love giving our family the gift of experiences. Trips, plays, parks, lessons or classes, our kids really enjoy getting out and trying new things.
We especially love theater. Alphabet Soup is bringing back James and the Giant Peach to the Chicago Science and Industry Museum (performances in February and March); we can’t wait to be there!
Classes make a wonderful gift too. Swimming lessons, in particular, are a great way to get your kids active. They provide skills that your children will utilize and enjoy for their whole lifetime. Whether at pool parties, vacations by the beach or just for plain exercise, swimming lessons are the gift that keep on giving; not to mention, swimming is good for your heart. Water acclimation, water survival or swim stroke enhancement are all part of the starter goal for our swim school. We hope that when the time comes to get your little ones safe in and around the water, you will choose British Swim School.
British Swim School Chicago offers premium water survival lessons and swimming lessons for infants, toddlers, children and adults, starting at just 3 months old. Our swim school proudly serves the Chicago and North Shore communities of Hyde Park, Bronzeville, Bridgeport, Chinatown, the Loop, South Loop, Rogers Park, Sauganash, East Loop, West Loop, River North, Streeterville, Gold Coast, Uptown, Lincoln Park, Bucktown, Ravenswood, East Lakeview, Lakeshore East, Lincolnwood, Skokie, Niles, Evanston, Wilmette, Glenview and Morton Grove. Group classes, small class sizes, swim team, special ability programs, private lessons, birthday parties, lifeguarding courses, corporate rentals, & more. Call 708-613-5179 to enroll or you may register for swimming lessons by using our class wizard.