Celebrating Valentine’s Day and Family Day with Your Baby

In this special month of celebrating love, let’s honour one of the most special of all: a mother’s love. Across the world of Nature, mothers are essential for survival and nurture. They give birth, provide and care for, play with, and teach their young. It’s not just our human species that relies heavily on a mother’s care for survival and comfort. Other animals do, too.

Think about animal mothers that teach survival tactics and hunting skills to help their offspring develop independence. These are huntress mothers like polar bears and snow leopards. Then, there are mothers that teach their young about the ancient rhythms of seasonal migration, like elephants and whales. There are also mothers that painstakingly teach their babies the complex code of social life, like chimpanzees and other primates.

Human mothers do all these things and more, from the first days of bonding through decades to caring for their own grandchildren. The mother-baby connection is deep and enduring.

Thanks to science and research, we now know that the love hormone, oxytocin, is a powerful force at work in the mother-baby bond. It influences family bonding in animals and is part of all human relationships, from friendships to romantic partnerships and the parent-child connection. Oxytocin builds during pregnancy and is triggered by touch, nursing, and even the smell of a new baby to her mother (this might explain why some of us can’t get enough of the scent of a new baby’s head).

Now that we know that mother-child love is expressed across Nature and is partly driven by the love hormone, let’s look at how to celebrate it in this special month of honouring love.

February is for celebrating love

The original Valentine’s Day honoured Saint Valentine, a third-century Roman saint. But in the hundreds of years since the establishment of his saint day, Valentine’s Day has evolved into a holiday for celebrating love in all forms. It’s become recognized in all relationships, from romantic to platonic (between friends, like “Galetine’s Day”) to family relationships. Coming as it does in the depths of winter, Valentine’s Day is a reason for happiness and cheer.

It’s not the only reason to celebrate love in the month of February, though—at least if you’re Canadian. Family Day is celebrated on the third Monday of February in several (but not all) Canadian provinces, including British Columbia beginning in 2013. The holiday was created to give people more time to spend together as a family and in 2021 falls conveniently the day after Valentine’s Day. Many Canadian families will spend the long weekend together as a way to celebrate family love.

Fun ways to celebrate Valentine’s Day with your baby

If your baby is very young, he or she won’t really remember this Valentine’s Day—but you definitely will. This is a good time to establish the traditions you’ll share as a family.

Here are a few ideas for celebrating Valentine’s Day with your baby:

• Photo booth. Dress your little one in pink or red and have a home photo session. Simple props like a favorite blanket or stuffed animal, or a pop of color from a balloon or big bow can make your pictures memorable. Or choose a few printable photo booth props like these, which you can stick to a simple onesie. (Be sure to snap a photo or two with you in the picture.)

• Love letter. The simple act of writing a love letter to your child can be the beginning of a beautiful tradition you share. You can save these in your child’s memory book.

• Special treat. If your baby has started solids, you can share a Valentine-themed treat together. These recipes are suitable for babies aged seven months and older, but of course always check with your pediatrician before introducing new foods.

• Sing-along and read-aloud. Singing and reading to your child is fun. It also promotes language learning and brain development. Make time to do both together on Valentine’s Day. Read-aloud book suggestions can include Snuggle Puppy by Sandra Boynton, You Are My Happy by Hoda Kotb and Suzie Mason, Besos for Baby by Jen Arena and Blanca Gomez, and If Animals Said I Love You by Ann Whitford Paul and David Walker.

• Simple craft. Older babies, toddlers, and kids can make a simple Valentine’s Day craft with heart-shaped potato stampers made from a raw potato. Use paint or a little flour and water paste with food dye to make a dip for stamping cards and paper.

Ideas for Family Day

Depending on the ages of the children in your family, Family Day could look really different. Here are a few ideas for ways to celebrate Family Day:

• Build a fort and play with your child.
• Go for a hike or walk.
• Make a special meal or treat together.
• Create a time capsule with a few items like photographs, a lock of hair, a picture your child draws, and a newspaper clipping. Put them in a box and seal with tape. Decide when you’ll open it as you seal it up.
• Read books together.
• Write a letter or a story together.
• Call or visit (safely) with grandparents and extended family to share Family Day.
• Interview your child if he or she is talking and write down answers to some questions like “How old are you?” and “What is your favorite colour?”

Celebrating this special season of love with your family can become a wonderful tradition you all share together as your little one grows. Happy Valentine’s Day and happy Family Day!