Now that the year just started, soon it will be February and boom Valentines’ Day! Valentine’s Day, named after St Valentine has a controversial history but what it always stands for is that it is a day for celebrating love.
I was recently going through my stored up items and I came across a valentine card I received from my partner some years ago. Fast forward we are now married and raising our two children together. Our priorities and views on Valentine’s Day have changed with the entry of our children . They have completely changed our dynamics of love, making us feel numb with just how much we love them.
Out there am sure there are millions of mothers who share such unconditional love and bond with their children. Many have gone ahead and celebrated Valentine’s Day with their sons and/or daughters. As I was thinking about this, a thought came across my mind, what if I make my daughter and son my Valentine this year?
But then I happen to have mixed feelings towards it. What will it mean for my children or my partner? Are there concerns that I need to be aware of? In this post, I share what it means to have your child as your valentine, the positives as well as the negatives.
What It Means When Your Child Is Your Valentine
Often Valentine’s Day has been considered a grown-up affair, celebrating love between a couple. Others feel that Valentine’s Day is a scam and overrated, only designed to make couples feel compelled to make love gestures, which ends up making the singles feel like they are missing out.
Nonetheless, parents have over the years taken up the trend of celebrating Valentine’s Day with their kids. This is not only among single parents but, married parents as well. When you as a parent chose your son or your daughter as your valentine, there are some important messages you are communicating.
Benefits of Celebrating Valentine’s Day with your Child
1. Celebrating Valentine’s Day 2024 with your Child Enhances Parent-Child Bond
It has been proven than celebrating this special day with your child creates and enhances a special parent-child bond. The connection even encourages friendship which leads to freedom. We feel fulfilled when we are connected with those that we love, especially our children on valentines day. It also makes your child feel special.
When this gesture is consistent in the child’s life, the child learns to love and trust their parent. The freedom created opens them up to share their experiences with their parent. You will hence find the child communicates their feelings well with their parent and can share important experiences with them. All thanks to making your child your special valentine.
2. Valentine’s Day with your Baby Models them into Love
Secondly making your child your valentine effortlessly models him or her into love feelings. When love is not treated as an enigma, it is free to talk about and express love. As a parent, you become a motivated leader expert when you are open about love feelings with your child.
Making your child your valentine offers the most valued and long term motivation that is hard to achieve through other means. It makes it okay to make your child your valentine.
Read: How to Emotionally Get Ready for a Second Child
3. It is a Guaranteed Communication of Priority
Lastly, you communicate an important message that your child (ren) is your priority and no one else. There are various ways that this is communicated but it is often done through Valentine’s cards and gifts. On this love-filled day, candy, flowers and other gifts exchanges rule the day. It hence becomes okay to make your child your valentine.
Valentine Gifts Ideas for your Child 2024
If you go the gift way, choose them well, but remember the most precious items are those that personally made by you and customized to fit your child. Ensure that you makes your child’s valentine day by doing the following special things.
- You can write cards with a personalized message or a personal letter to your child. Just like on their birthday, let them know how much you love them on this valentine’s day 2024. It is totally fine to get your daughter or son a valentines card.
- Another option would be dedicating a song to them. Choose a song that contains the right message and words you want to convey to your child. If you can sing that is even better. Write your words well and sing for your child on this valentine day 2024.
- You can also record your song for your child to listen to later. If you have wanting to show that you love your child, this is a perfect way of doing so.
- Find you own special way of communicating to your child of your special feelings. What you do or say should demonstrate your special feelings for your child.
- Valentine gifts for toddler and preschool girls can include a bouquet of flowers, chocolate, candy, stuffed animal,
- Valentine gifts for toddler and preschool boys can include a toys, book, balloon, candy, stuffed animal,
Read: Cheap Non- Traditional Gift Ideas for your Colleagues
Dangers of Celebrating Valentine’s Day with your Child
1. Celebrating Valentine’s Day with your Child May Misplace Love
Expert warn of dangers related to this trend, mainly on misplacing and substituting love feelings. With no judgment whatsoever, it is common most parents celebrating their children as Valentine are single parents.
As such it is very important therefore that when you chose your, child, as your Valentine, your intentions must be pure and that you are not just using your child as a consolation prize. As such it may not be okay to make your child your valentine.
2. It Create Co-Dependence
Secondly, you could be unknowingly creating a codependence on your child when you choose them as your valentine. As a parent, you can project your experiences, insecurities and other views about love on you how to treat your child on Valentine’s Day. Therefore it may not be okay to make your child your valentine.
You may be unconsciously filling loneliness in your child by diminishing the place for partner’s love in your life. As much as we love our children they will never take the spot of a partner. The secret is to let your children know you love them and appreciate them every single day and not just on Valentine’s Day.
Read: Reasons to Send Older Child to Daycare on your Maternity Leave
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