Our Valentine's Parties Journey...
I have mentioned before how much more meaningful life is when the special things happen organically and are not manufactured. Holiday parties are clearly more on the manufactured side, but as I did not set out to have some yearly homeschool party traditions, these parties also feel to me that they have happened naturally.
Noelle & Micah used to go to school at Penobscot Christian School & they have some pretty awesome 'special' days. Parties & celebrations & school spirit week plus all the cool dress-up days in Kindergarten. Noelle went there for K-2 & Micah went for K. Then came the decision to homeschool. Noelle was excited to try homeschooling but she mentioned that she was going to miss having the 'special days' with friends. So I promised her that we would have some special days at home. And we have tried to celebrate as many things as possible: 100 days of school, Leap Year, Olympics, all holidays, etc. This year we celebrate landmarks reached in math! My friend Susan also started homeschooling the same year we did. Noelle & Evan are in the same grade and have also grown up in teh same church together, so they were the first addition to our circle of homeschooling friends.
That first year, we decided to have a Valentine's Day party for some homeschool friends. I did not remember until we looked back at pictures, but I believe it was also the day we celebrated 100 days of school and it was also a day Kevin & I had volunteered to go to D's school & do something special with her class! Anyway...
...it was the beginning of something good.
The next year we had lots of wonderful snow, so not only did we eat yummy food & exchange Valentines, but we played in the snow together.
This may have also been the year that the snowball fight tradition began! We have a water balloon fight each year for our field day. Both things have a tremendous potential for 'violence', but most of the kids really like them!
Also this 2nd year, those who wanted to come prepared with something to share, could. Not at all a talent show, but more of a showing of talents, if that makes sense at all! One guest brought some great artwork which I really enjoyed. We were in the middle of studying Abraham Lincoln, so Noelle & Micah recited the Gettysburg Address.
By this time, my kids really looked forward to this yearly Valentine's Day party! By our third year our circle of homeschooling friends had grown. Field Day was a 'bigger' event and Valentine's Day was a smaller circle of people. This is mostly because Field Day is outside & the Valentine's Day party is not!
Our 3rd year was also the first year that we added some party games to the mix. I hope these pictures don't embarrass these now-more-'grown-up' kids, but they were all great sports! One of the challenges of homeschool parties is the wide variety of ages. I don't want the oldest kids to feel that it's all 'little kid' stuff & I want the littlest ones to feel valued & included. However, the age span is also one of the HUGE benefits to homeschooling, in my opinion. In school, you often associate with kids that are just your own age. That's not anything like real life! I am thankful for the age range.
This was also the year that Micah was babysitting a blue-tongued skink, so that was an added attraction!
I guess I must have tried packing a lot in that year, (no way, right!?), because we had a President's Day themed party & the students who wanted to shared about a president. We even watched a video about presidents. Noelle & Micah were learning about George Washington & shared a bit about that.
That brings us to last year. Without a doubt the kids really get into making their Valentines each year.
(This picture makes me laugh. The magazine picture shows neatly rolled madlibs. At the top of the picture you can see Micah's effort!)
Last year our attendance really bloomed. The more kids you have the more scheduled it needs to be, in my opinion. 5 kids running around shooting nerf guns, (kinda like today), doesn't bother me at all. 20 kids running around is too much! So we try to plan accordingly. We had a super party last year, in my opinion. My friend Jill was an enormous help, as she provided the craft for the kids. We split them up into 'olders' and 'youngers' and geared things that way. Also, for the first time, (not sure why I didn't think of it earlier), we invited my southern-Maine, homeschooling cousins to come stay with us & join the fun!
Last year Kevin gave me 2 ducks for Valentine's Day, (how perfect is that?), so they were an attraction at the party as well.
For our 'educational portion' last year, we offered a muskrat/taxidermy/animal lesson at the end, for those who wished to stay.
This year, our fifth year of homeschooling, is the first year that winter weather has put a wrench in the works. We planned a Winter Olympics-themed Valentine's Day party. We ended up postponing it for nearly two weeks and I will probably re-work the plan some. The kids were super disappointed, but that is a lesson in itself. In the end, two close friends came anyway and we snowshoed & watched an episode of Duck Dynasty & ate oodles of popcorn, (cheapest party food ever). Nerf gun fights & a card game and some much-needed but never-enough chat time for the moms!
I believe, whole heartedly, in finding the extraordinary in the ordinary & that the best things in life aren't the parties but the everyday moments. However, these Valentine's Day parties are treasures for us. I will never, ever regret doing them and I will miss them when they are gone. I love helping to provide JOY for my kids, (as we all do!).
I imagine that when the kids are in school & these homeschool parties are a thing of the past that Kevin & I, not exhausted from party-planning & party-doing, will enjoy a lovely evening out together, celebrating our love. And that will be sweet too.
