a quick Valentine's Day table to love

the truth is, incorporating seasonal decor in my home

all started for the simple reason of making my four children smile.

i loved doing things each month that would delight them, and make them feel special...

every month of the year, there is a holiday - some are major, some are minor.

and if there wasn't one on the calendar, i'd make one up: "It's SUNSHINE day!"

on the 'big day' (whatever that was - including birthdays), 

the kitchen table would be decked out colorfully in the theme for the day.

a fun breakfast table and a special treat like cookies, stickers, or a tiny stuffie from the dollar store

started their day off in a happy mood and let them know that they were special to ME... 

worth the effort to make things fun just for them.
(what can i say? decorating is my love language!)

now, i'm not ashamed to say that we had very little money while raising our four kids.

so i didn't run to the store and grab a bunch of new decor each month...

i simply looked around the house and pulled together things we had that were the right color

(toys, books, crafts made by the kids, decor accessories, flowers, etc)

and made little decor elements out of scraps (sweaters!) and trash (paper!) to coordinate.

i literally 'shopped the house' to create a fun atmosphere for my kids.

today, i'm sharing how i did exactly that with what i have on hand right now!

 continue reading to see how to simply pull together a few items from your home

and instantly create a sweet table to enjoy on Valentine's Day...

a scrap of fabric, bedsheet, or a large scarf can become a tablecloth or runner.

i didn't have enough of those red felt heart place mats (Dollar Tree, btw) for each place setting today,

so it's just sitting on the end of the table that is seen first - along with the gift bag wall art i made.

idea: cut large heart shapes out of gift wrap or craft paper to make place mats!

you've seen my white dishes in SO many tablescape posts - because they work with everything!

the red plastic heart dishes and bowls are Mom's, but plain red paper ones would look just as cute.

TIP: because i tend to buy paper napkins at the dollar store in patterns and solids 

rather than those with specific holiday messages,

i can bring them out for many different seasonal uses! 

the centerpiece is simple: 

it's made up of that faux food sweater cake that i made,

as well as the bundt mold faux cake - i added a pompom-trimmed tea towel as 'whipped topping'! 

both sit on glass cake pedestals and a vintage polka dot apron circles one of them.

red heart cookie cutters and the LOVE box add small details.

 each place setting has a little treat tucked into the bowl or cup... 

when my kids were small, it was stickers or a few cookies.

for this post, i grabbed some of my original 'Sweet Sweater Snowman' creations as stand-ins!

breakfast on these days was usually muffins or hot cereal - something simple.

before they came to the table, i'd put a drop of food coloring in their glass,

and when i poured milk into it, there was suddenly MAGIC MILK 

that turned pink or green or yellow right in front of their eyes!

i have such fond memories of doing this for my kids...

and one of the best things ever is to see photos they share on facebook or in a text

showing me that they are doing it for THEIR kids, my grandkids. 

believe me, friends, it's not about what you can do with money.

 it's about making the effort to show your love... however you can.

i hope these ideas inspire you to look at what you have and what you can do with it!

wishing you all a very Happy Valentine's Day!