Valentine’s Day is right around the corner! If you’re looking for some fun ideas for your kids or the man in your life, I have rounded up some of our tried and true favorite items. I also went through all my stocking stuffer and gift guides and pulled the reader favorite items (*) to include too!
Gifts For The Kids
While Valentine’s Day is really more about fun and festive treats for us, we do like to surprise the kids with a few small things — usually a new book, rain boots or natives (something we’d need to buy them anyway for warmer weather ahead), a board game or something disposable like a fun bath bomb so it doesn’t take up more space in the play room.
For the kids, my top 3 favorite items from this list:
- Pokemon Gold Plated Collector Cards (#7): Hands down, this is absolutely both kids’ favorite item on this gift guide. Read the description for more info.
- The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs (#24) tied with Disney Princess Cookbook (#25): Caroline has absolutely loved the princess cookbook and Thomas is getting the young chefs cookbook for Valentine’s Day.
- Jumbo Coloring Posters (#3): I had the hardest time deciding between the Rainbow Bath Bombs and the coloring posters for my third favorite gift. I ultimately chose the coloring posters because while the rainbow bombs are sooooooo cool, the posters have kept both kids entertained for long periods of time on several occasions.
- Glow In The Dark Stars: These stars are all over the kids ceiling and walls.
- *Dinosaur Taco Holder: We use these weekly for Taco Tuesday and they are so fun!
- *Jumbo Coloring Posters: These were a Christmas gift for the kids that have majorly come in handy for snow days and teacher work days! These have entertained the kids for hours. Thomas has the dinosaur theme and Caroline has the unicorn & fairy theme.
- *Water Rocket Kit: Thomas received a Rocket Kit from one of his friends for his birthday last month and it has provided endless hours of entertainment for our kids…and all the neighbor kids too. This stem toy is seriously impressive (and slightly terrifying – ha) and blasts insanely high (90 feet!!!!) into the air. I cannot recommend this rocket high enough. It is so fun, the kids were able to put it together on their own and it’s really durable (I expected it to break after hitting the ground a million times but hasn’t)!
- Kinetic Sand: Always a fave.
- Pop It Fidget Toys: These are all over my house, in my car, in my purse, in both kids backpacks…they LOVE these things.
- Pokemon Gold Plated Collector Cards: Let’s talk pokemon for a second…all of the kids at school (including mine) are currently obsessed with these cards. They spend every morning and afternoon bus ride trading cards with friends and discussing what card does what. For Christmas, Santa grabbed a pack of the “super rare” gold collector cards and their minds were blown when they found them at the bottom of their stockings. Their pokemon collections are their most coveted possession right now. We got them both these trading card binders for them to keep their cards safe and organized.
- *Rainbow Bath Bombs: For girls AND boys. We put these in the kids Easter baskets and they were a huge hit. So, these bath bombs shoot out a RAINBOW OF COLORS to create a magical effect in the bath tub. You can purchase them as a single, 2 pack or 4 pack!
- Harry Potter Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans: The kids got these jelly beans for Christmas and thought they were absolutely hilarious. If you have a Harry Potter fan, I highly recommend these!
- *Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone: The Illustrated Edition: The Easter Bunny brought our first Harry Potter book to Caroline and it has been such a fun family experience (we just finished book 4)! The illustrated version is definitely worth the splurge and is especially perfect for introducing this magical world to younger kids!
- Card Game Holder: Perfect for little hands to keep playing cards organized.
- LCD Doodle Writing Tablet: We take these to restaurants a lot for the kids to play with while we wait on our food.
- Liquid Motion Bubbler Fidget Sensory Toy
- Scratch Art Mini Notes
- Stainless Steel Insulated Water Bottle
- Battleship Game: If it’s Thomas’s turn to pick the game for family game night, this is ALWAYS it.
- Monopoly Junior: If it’s Caroline’s turn to pick the game for family game night, this is ALWAYS it.
- Sorry Board Game – Giant Edition: The giant version of a classic game.
- The Floor is Lava: Because what kid doesn’t love pretending the floor is hot lava?!
- UNO Flip: This version features a twist on the game with a two-sided deck of cards and some new action cards too (skip ALL and back to you!). At any point in the game, you may encounter a “flip” card which requires all players to flip their cards and play from the other side.
- Race Track Tape
- Bicycle (Motorcycle) Noise Maker: For the kid who loves motorcycles.
- Personalized Apron & Mitt Set: There are so many cute patterns to pick from and each apron includes a gorgeous custom leather tag and free personalization!
- *The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs: I recently posted this to IG after a reader shared it with me and received a LOT of messages from mom’s who own and can attest to how awesome this cookbook is. I grabbed a copy for Thomas for Valentine’s Day!
- Disney Princess Cookbook: This simple cookbook includes 50 beginner-friendly recipes, including dishes like Rapunzel-inspired Frying Pan Eggs, Tiana-inspired Bayou Meatloaf, Moana-inspired Te Fiti Tropical Punch, and many more. Caroline has had SO much fun making recipes from this cookbook and we’ve purchased several copies to gift at birthday parties.
Gifts For Him
Every Valentine’s Day, Matt and I usually restock each other on our favorite underwear — super exciting, I know. But Matt’s favorite boxers aren’t inexpensive so V-day is the perfect holiday to grab him a few new pairs. I usually throw in something small too — this year I’ve grabbed his favorite lip balm.
For the guys, my top 3 favorite items would be #5 — Tommy John Second Skin Boxers, #9 — the Game Day Pullover and if you’re looking for a nicer gift I will always love and recommend #17 —Creed Aventus Cologne.
- Jack Black Set: Matt’s favorite products are their face wash, lip balm and face moisturizer.
- goodr Sunglasses: Matt lost his favorite pair of these last summer and had a hard time finding a replacement in stock, so he tried the Knockaround brand and really likes them too!
- Outdoor Fellow Candle
- *HMBL Home Pillows: We have gone through one million pillows over the years. Matt is super picky about his pillows and complains about his pillow constantly…until two years ago when HMBL Home, a local company, sent us their adjustable pillow to try. Matt stole it before I ever had a chance to use it and became so obsessed with this pillow that I had to get one for myself to experience the hype. Well folks, this is the last pillow you’ll ever buy. For weeks I laughed watching Matt excitedly adjust his pillow with the magic filling (which is comprised of shredded memory foam) before bed each night by taking out a few handfuls of filling or adding a little back in until he finally perfected his pillow. After featuring his pillow on Instagram I had so many questions about it that I reached back out to the company and asked if I could share a promo code with my readers and they said yes! Use code NCCHARM15 for 15% off your purchase!
- Tommy John Boxers: These second skin boxers tie with the lululemon Always In Motion Boxers as Matt’s favorite.
- Cold Brew Coffee Maker: My mom got this for Matt two Christmases ago and he LOVES making his cold brew coffee in it during the summer months.
- Butcher Box: From game day spreads to wild-caught seafood, there are so many delicious gift box options available to pick from. We subscribed to Butcher Box for 2 years and loved it. I love the idea of purchasing steaks to make together for Valentine’s Day!
- Robe: This soft, cord-textured cotton terry robe comes in 4 colors!
- *Game Day Pullover: With tons of collegiate and MLB teams to pick from, this best-selling quarter-zip pullover is the ideal mid-weight layer for game day in the fall. It is designed with an innovative stretch French terry fabric that is moisture-wicking, quick-dry, UPF 50+ sun protection and easy-care. I surprised Matt with the Ohio State pullover for his birthday this year and he absolutely loves it!
- Monopoly Deal
- Woven Lightning Charger Phone Cord w/ Weighted Knot: I got this as a stocking stuffer for Matt and he absolutely loves not having to crawl under the bed to find the end of his phone charger cord.
- Sporty Stripe Golf Driver Club Cover: Another gift I purchased for Matt this past Christmas that was a huge hit! Made from wipeable faux leather with a preppy stripe design, this expandable cover is designed to fit up to a 460cc driver and features a Velcro closure that makes removing and replacing clubs quick and easy. Add a custom embroidered monogram for a thoughtful gift for your favorite golfers.
- Smart Jump Rope: An adjustable jump rope that keeps track of workout data including jump count, calories burned, and time spent jumping.
- ESPN Trivia Night: This ultimate sports trivia game includes 1,000 sports questions to challenge your friends and family.
- Beard King Bib: So I don’t have to yell at him anymore for leaving beard shavings all over the sink.
- Gin Making Kit: Make your own high-quality small-batch gin at home. This kit contains everything you need to transform a bottle of vodka into a unique, delicious home blend of gin in just 36 hours. Brimming with bright notes of citrus, herbs and spices, the finished product rivals the flavor, aroma and complexity of craft distillery gin.
- *Creed Aventus Cologne: A reader favorite, this cologne is worth every penny. It is absolutely incredible and smells insanely good.
- *Cole Haan Sneakers: Matt has these in the marine/gray/ivory color and wears them all the time. They are comfortable and look super sharp!
- Cozy Earth Ultra-Soft Bamboo Joggers + Sweatshirt: Matt was so jealous of my loungewear set that I purchased one for him (the joggers & pullover crew) and he lives in it when he’s home…and now we both have matching loungewear with Oprah (listed as one of her favorite things)! Anyway, Cozy Earth offered me a promo code for 40% off for y’all — Use CAROLINACHARM40 at checkout!
- *Floafers: I got these for Matt two summers ago and I swear he would sleep in them if I let him. These waterproof driver shoes are SO comfortable, come in several colors and look super sharp. Matt got SO, SO, SO many compliments on these shoes all summer long. He’s obsessed with them.
*reader favorite item
