Sending Love: Crafting the Perfect Valentine's Day Care Package

Hello and Happy February!

I took a bit of a break from the blog in January because life sped up really fast and I couldn't keep up! New business ventures, hubs going on work trips, sickness striking our home and just trying to keep up with it all!

But I'm so excited to be back just in time for one of my favorite Holidays, Valentine's Day! I feel like I say this every year, but I think I like Valentine's Day more than the average person. Where most people tend to think of it as another reason to spend money we don't need to be spending on unnecessarily lavish gifts to show just how much we love our partners, I see it as an opportunity to spread love to everyone in your life! Whether you have a romantic partner or not.

Back in 2020, I sent out Valentine's Day treats in the mail to my friends, and this year I decided to do that again!

So many of my friends are new moms who live far away from us, so I find it really important to send things in the mail to stay connected and show them I'm thinking of them.

I've also been thinking about how, when we're in elementary school, Valentine's Day is something that everyone gets to enjoy and participate in. It's not about just giving a Valentine to your crush, but also to your best friend, your favorite teacher, or your parents.

Then, as we get older, the meaning shifts, and we stop giving Valentine's gifts and treats to each other. We stop telling our friends how much we love and care about them. And it becomes all about our romantic endeavors, or lack there of.

But there is so much fun to be had with this holiday and it's a great excuse to show your loved ones that you care.

For these care packages, I wanted them to feel incredibly homey, warm and inviting. Filled with homemade touches, thoughtful notes, and sweet treats.

I opted for:

• Heart shaped Reese's Peanut Butter Cups

• Red & Pink M&M's

• This heart shaped chocolate chip cookie

• This jelly filled shortbread cookie

• Books!

I really lucked out because in our fast paced society, stores are always about two months ahead in terms of what they're selling, so majority of the Valentine's Day decor was 50% off at Michael's!

I also hit up The Dollar Store for these perfect cookie tins and little plastic baggies with heart designs on them.

Michael's had these festive shipping boxes on sale and they were the perfect size! But you can also grab some at your local post office! I love nothing more than a theme, so it made me so happy that I could use Valentine's Day themed boxes to send my packages as opposed to a plain one.

Both of the cookie recipes I made were incredibly easy, festive and delicious! I haven't had sweets since the holidays, so maybe they tasted better because of my lack of sugar, but I was able to whip up both batches of cookies in a few hours.

The key with cookies, is the prep. And making sure that your ingredients are prepped the way they need to be before starting. There's nothing more frustrating than wanting to make a cookie recipe and realizing your butter needs to be softened, and it's been sitting in the fridge all day. Or it needs to be chilled and it's been on the counter all day! Read through the instructions first, before deciding to make the recipe, and you'll save yourself a lot of heartache.

There are a few more V-day inspired cookies I plan to make this month. You can find them on my "Sweet Treats" page on Pinterest, or in the list below!

• Valentine's Day M&M cookies

• Valentine's Rice Krispie Treats

• Pink & Purple Tie Dye cookies

• V-day Sprinkle cookies

• Slice and Bake heart cookies

Thank you for reading this post! I hope you use this Valentine's Day to show your loved ones how much you care with a homemade care package or card!

F.