Hi Friends! I know I’m late again! I was working on some things for my family book club and had to get them in the mail to have any hope of getting them there in advance of our Monday virtual meet up. But that doesn’t mean I haven’t been thinking of you all! I got a pin maker. So shoot me a message in the comments with any pins you think would be fun and I can maybe make your dreams come true…
So I promised last week to tell you about my crazy idea for Julius’ Valentine’s. Julius’ 1st grade teacher is the science focused teacher. He loves all the science experiments she does and you may remember that he invited his whole class to his birthday which was science themed. His teacher had everyone bring in their lab coats and goggles from the party for a class photo. Basically they all love science!
So Julius said he wanted to give a science experiment out for his birthday. I decided a fizzy potion experiment (made with household ingredients) would be fun. Of course I tested it out on Julius and Patricia by putting it in their Valentine’s mailboxes. It was just mix the two ingredients (citric acid and baking soda) to form a fizzy chemical reaction and some explanation of the science. Julius thought everyone would love it.
But then I started thinking about it… Giving the kids two baggies of white powder… Might not be the best idea. I did end up contacting his teacher to ask (because a friend convinced me people might make a mess before they got it home, not, surprisingly, because it looked like I was giving the kids drugs) but then wimped out and just decided on a different valentine. Instead we did secret message Valentine’s using red cellophane. They came out cute! Julius was a bit bummed he didn’t get to give out the chemical reaction though…
Secret Message Valentine’s
What you’ll need (for 24 Valentines):
- 2 sheets white cardstock
- 6 12″x12″ sheets Valentine’s themed cardstock
- cricut pattern here
- Secret encoding sheet
- 6 red acetate sheets
- ribbon
1. Have your child write a note in light blue marker in a post it note sized square. (My son wrote his on the laptop.) Then scan to your computer. (Note: Julius’ Valentines say friendship day because that’s what his teacher called it.)
2. Make an even sized grid of the post it note sized squares in word so you can later cut them out. (Use my decoder sheet to line up where the photos should go.) Print on white cardstock
3. Insert page you just printed back into printer face down. Print secret encoding sheet on top.
4. Cut sheet into squares. Hole punch one corner of each.
5. Use a cricut or other die cutter to cut out the heart shaped decoder (you will need 2 cut outs per person).
6. Cut a piece of acetate to fit in the heart shaped window of the decoder. Using a glue stick glue the acetate to one side of the decoder (on the wrong side of the paper). Repeat for second side.
7. Glue all around the edges and handle of one side of the decoder (again wrong side). Sandwich both halves together.
8. Use the ribbon to attach the decoder to the secret Valentine’s message.
9. To decode the message simply place the red acetate decoder on top of the squiggles.
