Make this easy and fun “You Rock” Valentine’s Day card from your rock collection.

Today I’m joined by my childhood friend and communication strategist, Tenaya Wallace, who is sharing her eco-friendly pet rock Valentines, and her unique sense of humor. Welcome Tenaya!

When my son was three I learned the importance of unique Valentines. Xan attended the most parent-involved co-op in the hippest hood in America (seriously, it was in Forbes) and we sent him to school with store-bought cards from the local CVS pharmacy. I think they were Sponge Bob-themed.

What we received back, from every single kid, were hand-made Valentines, including a painted rock, that we still have. From that point on I made sure to never be outdone by these crafty moms of Silver Lake. But this year I ran out of ideas. My husband joked, “why don’t you paint rocks” and we laughed at the reminder of our store-bought ways.

The kids and I turned to Pinterest, searching “DIY no candy kids Valentines” (because candy is as passé as pre-fab cards). There were super-cute ideas but all involved little plastic toys and since I am 1) unemployed and don’t have spare change for plastic toys, 2) working under a tight deadline and don’t have time to order said toys and 3) a former environmental activist who should despise plastic toys, I decided to put in a search for “pet rocks.”

The results where mostly pictures of smooth round stones painted to look like sleeping cats, but there was one photo of a ragged little rock with googlie eyes glued on. The kids loved it. We were making pet rock Valentines 

My son collects rocks and keeps them in a box that doubles as an end table. He is possessive of his rocks, picked up on camping trips or walks around the block. But he saw wisdom in paring down his collection and actually got excited about using some of them for this year’s Valentines. Score for mom who has been trying to get rid of those rocks for years.

Step 1: Collect Rocks

We selected 38 rocks for Xan’s class (yes, 38…but that is another story) and 26 for my daughter’s. We washed them and set them in the sun to dry. The next day I took a quick trip to Jo-Ann’s Fabrics and spent $4 on googly eyes, which was more than I needed but I decided to get both the small eyes and the really small eyes just to get crazy.

When the kids got home from school I put out the rocks and eyes. They each selected rocks they liked and placed the eyes where they wanted them. I was shocked at how good they were at transforming little nuggets of nothing into personality-filled friends by just placing eyes in a certain place. This part of the process really let them be creative and made the project their own.

Step 2: Glue Down Googly Eyes

I glued the eyes on, because no mom needs to take their kid to urgent care for googlie eyes crazy-glued to fingers. The crazy glue worked like a charm on both porous and smooth rocks.

Because I am poor and lazy and a former environmentalist, I suggested to the kids that instead of putting the rocks on notecards, we could cut up cardboard boxes from the recycling bin. They loved the idea and thought I was a brilliant environmentalist, not poor or lazy in the least. My son even went out to our blue bin pull boxes and my daughter helped cut them up. They liked the idea of each card being different for each different rock. My only issue was that now some of the Silver Lake moms are going to know that my kids eat Honey Nut Cheerios and frozen pizza, but whatever.

Step 3: Attach to Cards

Next I hot glued the rock to the cardboard. That way it will stay for now but can easily be pulled off later to keep as a pet forever. I did this step because again, no need for urgent care, but older kids who can be trusted with glue guns could totally do this on their own.

When I went to JoAnn’s I looked for stamp that said “You Rock” but they didn’t have one. I didn’t want to print “You Rock” on paper, because that started to defeat the eco-ness of the project and I didn’t want to argue with the kids about writing the cute catch-phrase 64 times. Once I glued the rock on the cardboard I realized they could just write “U” above it with the rock under. My daughter added an exclamation point with a heart on the bottom for added effect. Easy peasy.

Step 4: Write U *Rock*!

So now we have 64 pet rocks and they are so fricking cute that I kind of want to keep them all. But we won’t. I will, however, be adding googly eyes and crazy glue to my camping kit so that whenever we are out in nature the kids can make some brand new eco-friendly friends. And I won’t be worried that my kids don’t have the coolest Valentines in town.

More Valentine’s Day Ideas for Kids

30 Valentine Activities for Kids

Handmade Valentine’s Day Card: The Amazing All-in-one Envelope

Deconstructed Valentines for Toddlers

Self-serve Valentines Buffet

Heart Sewing Cards

To learn more about Tenaya, you can find her at Tenaya Speaks.

My littlest one is four years old, and we hang out A LOT! The sidekick and I do a lot of crafts, cooking, and activities to fill our days, and this project came out of a sudden burst of gorgeous weather, mixed with thoughts about Valentine’s Day.

After one too many chilly days, it was so nice to jump around outside. Check out those flip flops! It truly wasn’t warm enough for the clothes she has on, but the girl has no fear of coldness. If you happen to live somewhere with just an ounce of snowless weather this winter, heart hopscotch may be just the Valentine’s Day activity for you.

Why this Valentines Day Activity for preschoolers?: It’s beyond simple to set up and it encourages little ones to burn some energy.

Grab some chalk. We keep ours in a Bonne Maman jam jar (affiliate). Not only is the jam delicious, but these charming, wide mouth jars are spectacular for storing craft supplies.

Draw your hopscotch.

Jump away!

Easy peasy, right?

Valentine’s Day, oh how I love you! This holiday is so cheerful and gives my family an excuse to craft with loads of red and pinks, which I find to be such uplifting colors. I selected 8 of my favorite Valentine Crafts for Kids of all ages. Stay tuned and bookmark this page because I have plenty of new Valentine crafts coming up soon.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Valentine Crafts for Kids

Folding, Gluing, and Baking…

Valentines Day Cards: The Amazing All-in-one Envelope – This is a card and envelope, all made from one sheet of paper…in the shape of a heart. My kids love these!

Deconstructed Valentines Day Cards for Toddlers – Small children won’t get as excited about a ready-made card as they will about cutting colorful paper into tiny pieces and glueing the pieces to doilies. Try it — it’s so easy and age appropriate!

Easy Valentine Bookmarks – If you’re making gifts for a large group of friends, these simple bookmarks are kid-friendly and oh-so-cute.

Mini Heart Pies – Baking and crafting go together, and every crafting session needs a snack. These mini heart pies are easy to make and a great way to include kids in the kitchen.

Valentine Crafts for Kids

Stamping, Cutting, and Sewing…

Cardboard Roll Heart Stamp – So simple! All you need are cardboard rolls, paint, and some paper.

How to Cut a Heart out of Paper – This simple tutorial is for kids who are just learning how to cut out a heart.

Set up a Self-serve Valentines Day Cards Station – There is nothing quite like sitting down to a smorgasbord of supplies and then coming up with your own designs. This is easy to set up, and kids love it!

Valentine Sewing Cards for Preschoolers – For kids new to sewing, poke holes in chipboard or card stock and sew your own cards with embroidery floss.

For more Valentine’s Day ideas, you might also enjoy 30 Valentine Activities for Kids.