The Holiday Spirit

I'm really getting into the holiday spirit now.  That means I'm listening to Christmas music, enjoying the lights and decor, and starting to get a lot of my shopping done, which means looking for good bargains.  Of course, if you think about bargains this time of year, everyone thinks about Black Friday.  Now, I love finding a bargain.  I mean, I really love finding a bargain.  But I do not love going shopping when the stores are crowded, let alone when they are jam packed with crazy people fighting over the last "Tickle Me Elmo" or whatever the latest must-have item is for Christmas.  Yes, I know "Tickle Me Elmo" was the big thing in about 1996.  No, I do not have the slightest idea what hot toys are selling out in stores this year.  I don't watch much TV and I don't shop on Black Friday, so I'm clueless about this stuff.  And you did read that right.  As much as I love a good deal, I do not go shopping on Black Friday.  Ever.  I especially don't go shopping at midnight on Thanksgiving.   What?! The idea of the crowds and insanity makes me feel a little ill.  I don't even like going grocery shopping on a weekend or after 4 pm.  Grocery shopping at 9 am on a Tuesday when the stores are nearly deserted is one of the secret perks of being a stay-at-home mom.  But I digress.  Back to the bargain shopping...

I am happy to report that I managed to get three fabulous deals in the past week in spite of my Black Friday boycott.  Deal #1 was before Thanksgiving at Kohl's.  You may remember that I wrote about my distress over being unable to find a decent maternity blazer to wear to testify in court (you can read about it here if you're so inclined).  I essentially was not able to find one and settled for a black cardigan.  I have worn that cardigan to court twice, and felt like a frump both times.  Then I got subpoenaed again.  I finally decided that I need to just buy a non-maternity black blazer in my regular size that I can wear unbuttoned for now and then continue to wear when I'm not pregnant anymore.  That way I don't feel bad about spending money on a maternity item I'll rarely wear, and I'll add a staple to my wardrobe that I should really already have.  I mean, how can I not have a black blazer?  I checked Kohl's last week when Lass and I were running errands after dropping Miss off at school.  I found a blazer there.  And even though it was before Thanksgiving, it was on sale.  I got a great blazer for about $35!!  Okay, so this wasn't a holiday gift find, but saving money still gets me in the spirit.

Deal #2 was for this beautiful necklace.  This was a Black Friday online sale in this awesome Etsy shop.  I am kind of addicted to these necklaces, and I got a super deal on this one.  Plus, I don't have to pay shipping because the mama who makes them lives nearby and her son goes to preschool with Miss.  Score!  Oh yeah, I guess this wasn't a holiday gift find either, but really the sale was too good to pass up.

Deal #3 and the best one yet was a find for Miss.  I got her a pair of Land's End snow boots that were regularly priced at about $50.  They are on sale for $25 right now. Plus I got a special "Cyber Monday" additional discount code and free shipping.  I paid about $18 for them!!  Woohoo!

Another thing that has really gotten me into the spirit of the season is buying gifts for some local children for Christmas.  Last year we packed shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child through Samaritan's Purse.  That is a great cause, but this year I wanted to give to a more local cause.  I looked online for some local charities and found out our police station has a program where they match you up with a child, give you the age, gender, sizes, needs, and wishes of him or her.  I requested two children and we got a three-year-old and a seven-year-old, both girls.  It was so fun to shop for them with my girls!  I think Miss is starting to understand the concept of giving to someone less fortunate than us, and she had fun picking out the toys, books, clothes, and other miscellaneous items for these little girls.  She kept asking what the little girls' names were that we were shopping for (which of course I didn't know).  We got school outfits, jammies, underwear, snow pants and boots, books, a baby doll and stroller, a shopping cart and toy food, and a case of art supplies, along with a few other things. Today we packed them up and took them to the police station to drop them off.  Miss even carried one of the big bags full of gifts all by herself.  She was so proud and kept declining my offers to help her.  She even got a "Junior Officer" badge sticker from the officer at the station.  It was such a fun experience.

And finally, to wrap up this post, here are a few photos of my girls getting into the spirit watching football with their Daddy.  This photo was taken on Saturday at the beginning of the Michigan vs. Ohio State game.  And yes, my hubby was rooting for Michigan on that day. 

I love this time of year!

A Baby Named Cliff

Oh boy. I read about a baby boy named Cliff today. He's an orphan. He has Downs Syndrome. He lives in a crummy orphanage in Eastern Europe. You can read more about him HERE. His story breaks my heart. Jeannett, the momma who writes the blog Life. Rearranged has taken on the task of raising money for little Cliff to help with the costs of his adoption so that, hopefully, it will be easier for a family to adopt him. This is a cause I felt compelled to give to, and to share with others. So, there it is. The button for the blog post about him is on my side bar to the right, so you can see a little photo of him too. Again, a glaring example that I have so, so much to be thankful for. I'm hugging my girls extra tightly today.

Operation Christmas Child

'Tis the season for giving thanks and sharing with those less fortunate. Typically I donate money to causes I like to support. But this year I'm thinking about how to start bringing the spirit of giving home to my girls. I think writing a check or entering a credit card number online, while important in some cases, is meaningless to a child.

So I've decided to pack some shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child, a program of Samaritan's Purse to give shoeboxes full of gifts to children in impoverished countries. I have been talking with Miss about giving things to little boys and girls who don't have many toys. We are sending two boxes for kids between 2 and 4 years old, one boy and one girl. We went on a shopping spree at Target, and as she "oohed" and "aahed" over the toys and other items I put in the cart, I repeatedly told her that they were not for her to keep but were to send to a child who didn't have nice things to play with. I don't think she really understood, but at least she heard the message.

Today we wrapped and packed our boxes. Well, I did. Miss was interested in other things like walking her baby dolls in her toy stroller.

She did get very interested once I got the toys out and the brightly colored paper to wrap the shoe boxes. Unfortunately, she was so interested I couldn't actually get the boxes put together. The paper was ripping, the tape was pulled all over, and of course she wanted to play with all of the toys. I have to admit, as much as I wanted to let her help, I picked it all up off the floor and put it together myself on the kitchen table.
I wasn't really sure how much the boxes would hold, and there's still a bit of room left in the boxes, so we'll be making another Target trip tomorrow to get some more items to get them completely full. We will also write a note to put in each of the boxes. Then we'll take them to our local drop of point so they can get sent to some children in need. And even though I didn't let Miss participate much in the actual packing of the boxes, I will continue to tell her what we're doing with them and where they're going as we finish the process of getting them sent. We will track the boxes to find out which country they are being sent to.

This week is the National Collection Week for Operation Christmas Child, so if you want to pack a shoebox or two, this is the week to do it. It's so easy and fun! Here is some info on how to pack a shoebox.

We will also be participating in a local charity like an Angel Tree or something similar, to give to others closer to home. I am excited to make these types of projects a yearly tradition for my girls, so they get a good example of the importance of giving to those less fortunate.