Hi everyone! Sorry for the radio silence for the last few days. I was immersed in the goodness that was the Dad 2.0 Summit in Houston, TX, where I moderated a great panel about the changing roles — and media images — of moms and dads. Fascinating to recall now that many of us are mentally processing Super Bowl ads. (For more on this topic, read Liz Gumbinner's great conference + ad wrap-up.)

Also, Christine and I are gearing up for some big-time Minimalist Parenting announcements later this week! (Surely you've already signed up for Minimalist Parenting updates, right?)

And my in-laws were visiting. And stuff.

What I'm trying to say is that my juggling skills hit their limit and I forgot to get these Valentine's Day ideas ready for you last week. Enjoy!

Turning leftover kid art into Valentines

From Stephanie:

When my daughter was 2 her daycare did a Valentine exchange. I took some of her (many many!) finger painting creations and cut them into big hearts. Voila. Cards made by Annika that were appreciated, unique, and took hardly any time at all.

Let me just butt in here and say that several folks on Twitter have also suggested turning leftover kid art into Valentines. A variation on this hack, which I used for thank-you cards: Kid art as wrapping paper. Now, back to Stephanie:

Photo credit: Gingerbread Snowflakes (who calls them "Danish hearts")

Swedish Hearts

But when she gets a bit older, I'll teach her to made Swedish Hearts. Learning how to make them with my grandmother is one of my fondest memories. They aren't that hard, but look impressive, and create a neat pocket where you can put some candy or a note. They are really Christmas decorations, but work well for Valentine's Day, I think, if you use red and white paper.

Valentine's Day Bottlecap Magnets

Lucy of the fabulously-named site Lulastic and the Hippyshake created a tutorial for Valentine bottlecap magnets:

So much fun to make and kids can join in collecting the bottletops and filling them with special things. 

Mosaic Heart Valentines

I always love crafts even toddlers can make themselves. Judy shared a clever idea for Mosaic Heart Cards (using old magazine scraps) at her blog, What I Live For.

More Valentine's Day crafts at Parent Hacks

• Heart-shaped pasta bracelets
• Valentine placemats
• Turn fabric scraps into heart-shaped window decorations
• Cut out magazine "lipstick lips" to make a kissy collage
• Valentine's Day "mistletoe"
• Clear Valentine clutter by making a collage
• Heart-shaped cookie cutters are useful for more than cookies

Any more ideas for easy Valentine's Day crafts? Please tell us about them in the comments (plus links, if you have them…including links to your own blogs)!