Friday, January 30, 2015

Spring-y Valentines!


I few years ago I made this slinky valentine for my son.  I really liked the whole idea, especially the cute little saying: "You put a spring in my step, Valentine!"  But buying a metal slinky for over $2 for every classmate is a no go.  Fortunately, the dollar store has these colorful slinkies in a 6 pack in the party favor area.  That's more like it!


If you don't like the smaller, plastic slinkies, you can also get sparkly slinkies at the dollar store for a dollar a piece.

All you need to do is print out the tag, slide it through the slinky and tape it together in the back!

Easy as pie.  And cute to boot!

Here are the printables!  Make sure you overlap the tag with the "to/from" part on top!
slinky valentine photo slinky_zpsf1ea35fd.jpg


This post is part of a series about Dollar Store Valentines!




You may like these slinky valentines, too! 



Thursday, January 29, 2015

You Blow Me Away Valentine!


Bubble valentines.  Ok, so I never claimed that all of these valentines would be new and original ideas, just that you could get them at the dollar store. Ha!  Anyway, you've seen these right?  Some of them are so cute it's ridiculous, with their pink bottles and heart shaped wands and stuff...
But, as I said, my main concern is price.  And these babies?  1 dollar for 12.  1 dollar for 12!!!  That's $2 total for a cute little gift for my daughters whole class!  


And I think they've got a ton of potential for cuteness.  Even minus the heart wand.

First, I made the tags in my word processor.  I love free fonts and have a ton that are perfect for Valentine's Day.  
Then I punched them out with my circle punch.  
Easy.
I wrapped each bubble bottle with different washi tape.  I have to admit, I loved it.  In my opinion, this is the perfect use for washi tape!
Then I punched a little hole in the tag and tied them around the top of the bottles with red and white twine.

Done and done!

Another cute idea would be to put a little heart sticker on the very top of the lid, or a print off something cute on some circle sticker labels.

Here are your printables!


 photo bubblevalentine_zpsf79dc9da.jpg


This post is part of a series about Dollar Store Valentines!



*Be sure to check below for all the fun parties I link to!*

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Dino-Mite Valentines!



Ok.  Has this valentine idea been done to death?  There are literally 100's of adorable dinosaur valentine ideas out there.  Seriously.  So why am I doing it again?

All right.  So the dollar store had BIG plastic dinosaurs - a dollar each.  Which would still get kind of pricey, right - buying 24 of them and all.
But then I saw this pack of little STRETCHY dinosaurs and I thought they were pretty cute and fun.  They came in a pack of 8 - 8!!  So I snatched them up.


I was a little unsure of how to stick them on the cards... they are an odd shape after all.  In the end, I poked two little holes vertically right in the middle (where it's blank).  Then I wrapped twine through from the back, placed the dino on and tied the twine in a knot and bow.  Cute!  Because the dinos are squishy, the twine works really well because you can tie it really tight.


The t-rex was a challenge.  I had to bend his legs all together.  Very uncomfortable.  



Here are the printables!  If you have a die cutter, oval punch or more patience, you could cut them out as ovals, which is what I originally intended but I have the cutting abilities of a 4 year old so that didn't happen.


dino-mite valentines photo dinomite_zpsdd60950b.jpg




This post is part of a series about Dollar Store Valentines!



*Be sure to check below for all the fun parties I link to!*

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Stuck On You Valentines!


I buy stickers at the dollar store ALL the time (because apparently kids love stickers more than air.  I don't think I knew that before I had my own.  Kids.  Not stickers.)
And you could totally do this with stickers.
BUT on one occasion, I found a bunch of sparkly tattoos in with the stickers and thought the kids would have a blast with them.
I was right.  They loved them!  And since there were about ten bazillion in a pack, I had a lot left over.


So.  Get some clear celo bags - like treat bags.  You can find them in the party/fancy baking section at Walmart.  Or online.  You may need to cut the tops off to make them smaller.  (though they do sell multiple sizes, it just depends on what's available in your area).

Print out the label, slide three or four tattoos inside the bag, file the back down and staple it shut.  Then, fold the label over the top of the folded down bag, and use double sided tape to stick it shut.



Done!  Easy as that!

Bug loved handing these out last year.  Though I have to admit, I'm not sure many kindergartners got the double meaning without asking!

Here are your printables!


Tattoo Valentines photo tattoovalentine_zps0770c6b2.jpg


This post is part of a series about Dollar Store Valentines!



*Be sure to check below for all the fun parties I link to!*

Monday, January 26, 2015

Froggy Valentines!


You've likely seen frog valentines hopping around pinterest and the internet in various forms.  I usually see valentine's with the plastic toy frog figures and the "you're toad-ally cool" saying on them.  Which is cute, and I like.

This guy is a little different.  At my dollar store, I found a pack of these "hopping" frogs - the kind you push on the little piece on the back and let go and they jump up?  They were in the party favor section in a pack of 6, which in my opinion, as far as price goes, you can't beat.


I made the tags in my word processor.  The front says "hoppy Valentine's Day!"  And the back is a simple "to/from" for the kids to fill out.  All you have to do to put it together is punch a small hole in the corner of the tag and use some twine to tie it around the frog.  


I tied it just behind the front arms? legs? whatever.  I tied it there because that's where it was the most secure and wouldn't slip off.

Here are your printables!  Just feed your paper in and print the front, then turn your paper around and print the back!


FRONT:
Frog Valentines Front photo frogvalentinefront_zpsfbf03d66.jpg
BACK:
Frog Valentines Back photo frogback_zpse03bb276.jpg


This post is part of a series about Dollar Store Valentines!



Check out the other frog Valentines my son and I made - perfect for little guys to hand out!


Sunday, January 25, 2015

Dollar Store Valentines


I'm almost always just a little too late to join in the holiday fun as far as blogging my creations go - for EVERY HOLIDAY.  This year, I vowed to get some Valentine ideas out there, by hook or by crook!  

Looking through my Valentine "to post" folder, I realized I actually had quite a lot of ideas for classmate Valentines, which of course, led me to create a series!  

Yes!  The very first series of the year on bugaboo blog!  And I call it:

dollar store valentines photo dollarstoreValentines_zps8ad2c7dd.jpg

Why?  Because here's the deal.  I, like you, love all those stinking adorable Valentine ideas out there.  All those awesome DIY classmate cards that have the witty sayings and the cute little gift attached?  Love em.  Can't get enough.  Have a whole board devoted to, well, Valentine's Day in general, but MOSTLY those classmate valentines.  

What I don't love is that my kids each have approximately 24 students in their classes.  That's 48 kids altogether - in case you weren't up for mental math today - and I can't say that I like the idea of buying a bunch of amazing Valentine themed toys individually or even on a site like this when it's going to cost me an arm and a leg to get one for everybody.  
Sorry, maybe I'm alone in this but I just can't spend $2-$3 per child.  I can spend about $1 per 5 or 6 kids.  About that.  I call it frugal.  You call it what you want.

So.  I've decided to show you how you can create those adorable Valentines with items from the dollar store.  Granted, these are items at MY dollar store which may be slightly different than the items at YOUR dollar store, but I think in general the ideas will transfer pretty well.  

So.  That's the deal!  That's what we're going for.  Dollar store valentines that are still cute and DIY.  PLUS multiple free printables per Valentine!  Stay tuned.


(For your knowledge and - let me stress - PERSONAL use, you can find and download most of my recent printables here.)






****


Want to see ideas from past Valentines? 

Sucker Super Hero Valentines!


And these Valentine Stick Bookmarks are so easy to make, your kids can do it on their own!




This post is part of a series about Dollar Store Valentines!

Saturday, January 24, 2015

This Tiny Girl.


Before my long absence, I shared bug's "beginning of the school year photo shoot."  You know, the shoot I do every year just before school starts for some "new school year" photos?  Yes, these are from September.  Yes, it's been a long time.  But it's just not right to share only one kids portraits, so here's the second kid.  I'd put them all in one post, but there's too many.  I don't want to break the internet.  
This is the last year I can consider my daughter so little and "tiny."  She's in 4K this year - and goes to school every day for a few hours.  Most days she still seems so little to me.  Then I look at the pictures and realize how old she really is.  Next year she'll start kindergarten and that'll be a real eye-opener...

I find my daughter stunning.

It's very likely I'm completely biased in the way most mothers are.  And it should be like that, I suppose.  But that doesn't change the fact that I really do find her stunning.


Her small features, petite frame, shiny golden hair, chameleon eyes that are sometimes slate-gray, sometimes earthy green and sometimes the clearest light blue sky.
Her quick smile, the way her eyes alight, the adorable crinkle in her nose, and that infectious giggle.  The three small freckles on her chin and cheek.


The way she dances everywhere.  The way she sings instead of speaks - turning her schedule, her routine, her menu, even blowing her nose, into an operetta for an invisible audience.


What she lacks in physical stature, she more than makes up for in personality.  There is a lot of that stuffed into this tiny package.

One minute she is laughing at her own joke, the next she's stomping to her room and slamming the door and the very next she's sobbing about how adorable you were in your wedding photo.

I'd call her a drama queen, but I'm not sure even that does her justice.

Her world is full of imaginings and friends and visions of her own creation.  She will never be lonely, because she is truly never alone.

She burst into the world with confidence and enthusiasm.  It was as if she couldn't wait to begin.

As if she knew the world needed her.

She smiled quickly and often.  As a newborn, some might have argued she was full of gas, but I know she was really full of mirth.

There are few things she doesn't approach with the same gusto - the exception being dinner.

She was stunning that first time I held her in my arms and hushed her quietly.  Stunning as her gaze found mine and she immediately stopped her cries.  Stunning as she reached her tiny arms for me.  And she is stunning still.

But do you know what I find most stunning?  
Her ability to love beyond measure every living creature she happens upon; most of all her family.  Her overflowing love for worms and frogs and birds and flowers and the poor, poor leaves as they fall from the trees.  Her love for things that don't always love her back - like Bob the neighbor dog who couldn't possibly love her as much as she adores him or our cat Delilah who doesn't love anyone.

Her ability to forgive.  Immediately and without looking back.

And her fierce loyalty to those she holds dear.  Never say a word against her dear brothers, because only SHE is allowed to fight with them and call them smelly.

Those are the qualities that take my breath away.

My tiny girl... and in comparison here you can tell she isn't such a tiny girl anymore...

There is no baby left in her.  She's grown into a girl.  A loving, animated, fierce and stubborn, independent and silly girl.

Who still laughs freely and smiles with that crinkle in her nose.






*Be sure to check below for all the fun parties I link to!*


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