Outgoing Mail

Last week was payday, so it's time (according to my own personal schedule) to send out letters to my kiddos once again! : )

This time around, the letters I'm sending are written on this really pretty printer paper I found at Hobby Lobby. It's regularly priced at $2.49, but was half off since it's "autumn." I really recommend their stationery department and holiday sections for pretty paper! I picked up some Christmas paper while I was there, too.

I'm sending out Thanksgiving letters this week, since it's almost Thanksgiving and I have the paper to match! All the kids are getting the same letter, because it's age-appropriate for all of them. Here's what I wrote, using Victor's letter as an example: 

Hello Victor!

I hope you and your family are doing well. How is your schooling? I am praying for your studies! My family and I are good. I was sick with a cough last week, but I went to the doctor and he was able to help me. Now I am doing better!
We are getting ready for a fun holiday here in the United State. On November 28, we will celebrate Thanksgiving. This is a day for families to get together and remember we have a lot to be thankful for. Many families celebrate this holiday while sharing a meal together. Often, this meal includes eating turkey! Do you have turkeys where you live? This year, my church has made a goal to bring Thanksgiving dinner to 300 families in our community. I am glad that we are able to help in this way. Brandon and I will be having Thanksgiving celebrations with my family, and then with his family! I'm looking forward to seeing everyone. 

I think it's good to try to find something to be thankful for every day. This is a good time to practice doing that. I want to tell you some things I'm thankful for. I am thankful for Jesus, that I can have a relationship with Him and be with Him in heaven one day. I'm thankful for my church. I'm thankful for my family, and for Brandon's family. And I'm thankful for Brandon, too! I'm also thankful for you, Victor. I love you so much. You are a very big blessing to me, and I thank God every day for bringing you into my life. What are some things you're thankful for?

I hope to get another letter from you soon! Your letters are precious to me- I save all of them! I love hearing from you and learning about your life. I am praying for you every day!
Lots of love, 

Jessi

I think that it's important to be sensitive about certain issues while talking about celebrations (and meals) with our kids, but that doesn't mean we have to avoid the subjects altogether. I was able to write to my kids about how this holiday is traditionally celebrated without saying "I will have such a big lunch that Brandon's grandparents will be disappointed when I don't eat any dinner when we go to their house." And I didn't even say what we'll be eating- just that many families traditionally eat a turkey. Hopefully I will hear back from some of the kids on this turkey issue- I really am curious as to how many of them have turkeys in their countries. : )

Along with the letters, I am sending a Thanksgiving poem on some cute little cards I found at the Dollar Tree. They had them in the teaching supply section- a packet of 10 cardstock cards on autumn-themed paper (I got a pack of each design), and they also came with envelopes. I printed out a Thanksgiving poem and glued it to the cardstock, then laminated it at work. 

The envelope also provides a handy delivery method for some other extras I'm sending to the kids this month. Here's a list of what everyone's getting:

• Mary and Victor are getting little Christmas devotional books that Billy Graham wrote. They were just published this fall. Having English-speaking older kids means I can send them cool stuff like this! : )
• Mishel is getting a pink notepad with a picture of a puppy and a Bible verse on it, which I found at Lifeway for an amazing price. The verse is in Spanish. I don't know what it says, but the puppy is cute!
• Carlos is getting some Kentucky postcards and a cross-shaped bookmark. 
• Said is getting a pocket-sized Bible-themed word search book (again, Lifeway!) Though he doesn't speak English, he can still search for the words. Each page has a theme (such as a chapter in Acts) and then the words are based on objects, places, and characters in that passage. It's fun and it encourages him to read his Bible!
• Tasya, Prayer, Bonifas, and Jayid are all getting fall-themed sticker books
• Elisha and Brenda, who are 7 and 6 years old, are also getting sticker books that are geared toward younger kids. All the sticker books came from Michael's and cost $1 each. They have great sticker books for all the holidays!