I love romance. I really do. But when February rolls around each year with its obligatory infusion of pink hearts, red roses, and candy, I tend to get a bit overwhelmed by all the Valentine’s Day commercialization. I get particularly distressed when little ones get caught up in this swirl of chocolates and paper hearts, largely because I think it’s sad to, in essence, tell children their lives are empty if they don’t have a “valentine.”

So as an alternative to doing a Valentine’s Day themed-craft, I decided to focus on friendship. After all, February is International Friendship Month – a fact that is often overlooked. So I decided to go old-school and teach my kiddos how to make friendship bracelets: the kind I learned how to make in summer camp back when I was their age.

You can find friendship bracelet making tips anywhere on the web. However, due to the hand-eye coordination required, I’d recommend this as a craft for 8-12 year olds.

To accommodate our preschoolers, we also set up a “Friendship Frootloop Bracelet” Station. That way, they could make bracelets too and not feel frustrated by the more difficult craft. 🙂

Finally, because kids do love sweets and associate them with Valentine’s Day, we let our kiddos decorate “friendship cookies” and subsequently gobble them up!

We had a tremendous amount of fun – even without the valentines. 🙂 I’m greatly looking forward to repeating and expanding this craft next year.