Outgoing Mail: Gifts of the Magi

I've been sending a lot of letter replies recently, still catching up from letters received a few weeks ago. One "new" letter I've sent this month is about Christmas!

A few weeks ago, maybe during Thanksgiving week, my pastor was talking about gifts and the things for which we are thankful. He told a cute story about his grandson that I immediately knew I wanted to share with our kids! The short version is that they were playing a "treasure hunt" game, and the treasure that the grandson chose to hide was very unexpected- but it was still precious to him. Our pastor then asked the parents of the church to talk to their kids about what kind of gift they would give Jesus if they could. They are then supposed to bring those to our Christmas Day service, and they'll be placed at the altar. I know he's asked the parents to include a note explaining why the kids chose that gift, and he'll use that in a later message. So I, in turn, asked *my* kids what kind of gift they would give baby Jesus! I also told them about a treasure that is important to me. I really hope that I hear back from several of the kids on this. I tried numbering the questions so the translators or tutors will know to pay special attention to them, as has been recommended on Compassion's website before. We'll see if it works!

I'm sharing the text of the letter here, so you can tweak it if you like. It might be fun to talk to your own sponsor kids about the gifts of the wisemen, and ask them what they would give! I also sent a nativity coloring page (which I found using Google) which you can download and send. And Compassion has two different nativity-themed pieces of stationery on their website!

Hello! Greetings from my family to yours. I can't believe that Christmas is just two weeks away. My pastor shared an interesting story in church last week, and I wanted to pass it along to you. It really had me thinking! Many of his sermons have been about Christmas recently, since the holiday is almost here. He was speaking about gifts. I think we all have gifts on our mind during Christmas, because of the gifts we give each other, and the gifts we receive. We even read about gifts in the Bible, when we read about the wise men who traveled to see baby Jesus and present him with gifts of gold and precious perfumes. My pastor (his name is Bill) had a question for us that had me thinking quite a bit- if we could give a gift to God, what would it be? We usually think about the gifts God gives us, but what would we give him if we had the chance? Bill then told us about an afternoon he spent with his grandson (I think he is 6 years old.) Bill and his wife were visiting their daughter and her family for Thanksgiving. The grandson likes to play a game called "treasure hunt," where he hides a treasure in a box and then they make a map to go find it. And he said "it has to be a treasure!" A treasure is something very special and valuable- even if it is not worth a lot of money, it may have a special emotional value. So the grandson hid the treasure, and Bill followed the map to find it. When he opened the box, he was surprised to see that the treasure was a bread roll from Thanksgiving dinner the day before! At first, it didn't seem like a treasure- but then Bill remembered that his grandson had eaten four or five of those rolls during dinner! He loved them so much and they were his favorite part of the meal- and he would have eaten more if he could! So this was a treasure to him. Something very special that he wanted to share with his grandfather. Bill asked us what gift we could give to Jesus if we had the chance, and asked the parents in our church to ask their children the same question. On Christmas, the children can bring their gifts and leave them at the altar as a symbol of their gift to God. I can't wait to see what they bring. I wanted to ask you two questions. 1. What is something that you treasure? 2. What would you give to baby Jesus if you had been there when he was born? For me, something I treasure is the Bible that belonged to my friend and mentor Betty, who passed away a few years ago. And I think I would make a soft blanket of the finest yarn for baby Jesus, so he wouldn't have to sleep wrapped in rags and dirty cloths in the manger. 
I hope to hear from you soon! I love you so much and I am praying for you every day. I can't wait to learn about your replies to my questions! 
Love, Jessi

Outgoing Mail: October

Hey folks! It's been a while since I've done a post like this- things have been bananas lately, even with sending out mail to our Far Away Family, but I thought I'd check in and share about what I'm sending out this month!

I think this is the latest that I've ever sent out Christmas stuff!! I actually was ahead of the game for a while, since I bought so many things on clearance last year, but then we ended up losing most of the correspondents I had stuff ready for, and I was left with the kiddos I still needed to shop for! :) This year I am sending out the most I've ever sent for Christmas for our kids. As of this writing, we have 67 kiddos, plus "half" a kid that I sponsor with my friend Steph! I've filled up two flat rate boxes full of goodies for the kids!!

For each child, I wanted to send three basic things- a Christmas card, a Christmas themed letter, and a gift. I made myself a chart so I could check off what I'd already prepared for each kiddo! Shopping the clearance sales after the last holiday season really helped me out by saving both time and money! I was able to purchase a few dozen little Christmas activity books on clearance from Lifeway. They are geared toward younger kids, but they were super cute. And the original price on them was $0.49, so when they went on clearance, I got them for pennies!! Some other items that we sent our kids for Christmas gifts included the following:

• Mini wall calendars (Michael's and the Dollar Tree)
• Student planners (Dollar Tree) 
• Pocket calendars (Michael's) 
• Sticker books (Michael's and Dollar Tree) 
• Notepads and diaries (Target) 
• Christmas-themed licensed character coloring books (Walgreen's) 
• Dover activity books (Amazon) 
• Christmas-themed advent devotionals (Lifeway) 
• Mini "sampler" books from Priscilla Shirer (these are also at Lifeway, and are super cool! They're like little condensed versions of popular books and Bible studies!) 

I got this year's Christmas cards two places- I had a few boxes I purchased from Half Price books, and they were super cute! But then I started running low on funds, so I got the rest from Lifeway's selection of boxed Christmas cards (16 for $3.99.) They were also very cute, and I just put them in bigger envelopes so some extra stuff would fit in there! 

One new thing I sent out this year were personalized ornaments for the kids! My mom found these super cute angel ornaments at Hobby Lobby. They're blank, to be colored in, and each angel (boys and girls) is holding a little banner. So we colored them all and wrote the kids' names on there. I had my friends and family color some at my Compassion Christmas party back in August, and we've been working on the others ever since! After each angel was colored, I'd label the back with the child's number and include a message like "my mom colored this angel for you!" Then I had them laminated and punched a hole in the top. The string that came with the ornaments was really flimsy and not pre-tied, so I didn't include it, but a small of thread at the top should go through mail processing just fine- especially if the ornaments are tucked in an envelope, which mine were! Honestly, I think the ornaments are what kept us tied up so long- there were a lot of them to color, and then after I got them laminated I still had to cut them out and match them up with each child's card! It's worth it, though. I think they'll like them. :)

Sorry the pic is so blurry, but here's Patricia's card, gift, and angel (colored by Steph!) 

For my Christmas letters this year (which I am still finishing and will send a little later) I had what I think is a pretty cool idea. Sometimes I like to imagine how I would spend time with my sponsor kids if they came to visit me, instead of the other way around! So for my Christmas letters, I am going to write out what it would be like if they came to visit my family for the holidays! I'm telling them about the weather, my family's traditions, and all the places we would visit. I think it will be fun. Hopefully I will get some response letters telling me about holiday celebrations with my kids! :) 

Also in this package, I am sending out Thanksgiving cards, which I got for a good price at Lifeway (they have some bargain cards from Dayspring that are super cute!) In each card I just wrote a quick message like "Happy Thanksgiving, I am so thankful for you!" Thanksgiving letters will be sent out separately. I am also sending out some random gifts to some of the kids, because I need to downsize my stash a little bit. I've been thinking about literacy a lot lately, since we have so many programs at the library where kids can win free books- we have stacks of them sitting around, and millions more available for checkout. I think it's really important to send books to our kids, because low reading levels hold them back at school, it opens up new worlds for them, and they may not have many books accessible to them! So I am always shopping clearance sections and yard sales for paperbacks to send out to my kids (mostly the English speakers, but occasionally I'll find some in another language!) So I am also sending out books to almost all my Kenyans in this mailing. Some examples of the books I'm sending out are: an easy reader book about elephants; a counting picture book; a book about the human heart and how it functions; a book about space; an atlas; a book about service dogs; a book about plants of the rain forest. I hope that they're well received. Now I need to go stock up on some more! 

What sorts of Christmas goodies are you sending out to your sponsor kids? I'd love to hear about them! 

Compassion Christmas Party!

We had a really fun weekend here at the Jones house- we had a Christmas party!!

Compassion collects Christmas cards for unsponsored kids each year, and I already have about 300 ready to mail (I spent a lot of my Christmas money on clearance cards after the holidays, and my mom found a bunch of steeply discounted cards at her store, too.) I have been asking friends, family, and coworkers for their leftover Christmas cards, and then I planned a party to work on signing them!

Ten people signed 330 cards last night! 

Christmas has always been my family's favorite holiday, and my family used to have holiday open houses every year. I planned out a menu with some of our favorite party foods, and made a facebook event to invite a few family members and Bible study friends. Almost everyone there has sponsor kids of their own, and I really miss seeing my Bible study friends since we stopped meeting last year. Not everyone I invited was able to make it, but it was still fun. My mom and dad came over a little early (I had asked my dad to make a cheeseball and chocolate chip cookies, two of my favorite Christmas party foods that I've never really been able to replicate as good as he makes them!) I set up our card table in the kitchen and made it a real card table- I added a plastic table cloth that matched the pretty fabric one I found on clearance at Target and put out all the blank cards I had, plus my gel pens and markers for signing them. My mom also brought some little paper angel ornaments that she found at Hobby Lobby. There's a place on each ornament for a name, so she said that we could color them and send them to my kids! We only got a few of those finished, but I think it will be neat to include them in the Christmas cards and tell the kids who decorated them for them!

I had such a fun time! I admit I was pretty worried about the evening, because I stress about these things and a few people I really wanted to be there didn't end up coming, but it was so much fun. My friend Steph came and stayed the whole time, even though she didn't know anybody but me, and I am so thankful for her and her friendship! She even stayed late and we watched an episode of the Golden Girls together. :) My aunt and cousin came, and I know my aunt signed at least 50 cards on her own (and a lot of them came from her house, because she gets lots of free cards in the mail every year, and she bought some a few weeks ago to contribute, too!) We were also joined by Helen and my dear friend Amanda for a little while- I only get to see Amanda once a year because she is a missionary to Japan! And after they got off work, Pat and Mary Jane came over, too (they are part of my Lifeway family.)

Me and Amanda! 

If you are interested in sending Christmas cards for the unsponsored kids, it's really easy! Just sign some cards (keep your message short and simple, as the cards won't go through the regular translation process), place them in unsealed envelopes (optional) and mail them to the following address by November 2:

Compassion International 

Attn: Christmas Cards for Unsponsored Children

Colorado Springs, CO

80997-0004

This is such a fun opportunity for fellowship, a great chance to share Compassion with your friends and family, and an excuse to celebrate the best holiday a little early! The yummy food is just a bonus. :) 

Some of our snacks!

No Gift Receipt Required

I can't believe Christmas is only 10 days away! My tree is up (finally) and all the presents are wrapped underneath it. Last night my friends and I had our annual tradition- a "party" with food, movies, and an ornament exchange. This year, since I learned how to crochet, I decided to make party favors for my friends- I made them each a scarf in their favorite colors! Crocheting gives me another way to do something I love- giving people presents. Giving is definitely my favorite part of the holiday season. I really try to find gifts for family and friends that they will love, because I love making people happy in that way!

I think most sponsors would agree that we would love to be able to give gifts to our sponsor kid- not just for Christmas, but all throughout the year. Compassion gives us the opportunity to send a financial gift for birthdays and other occasions, and staff members at the projects will help the kids get what they want and need. But it's also so much fun to pick out my own tangible gifts for my kids on those occasions that I am able to send some- like when I traveled to Tanzania and took backpacks  full of stuff to the boys, or when other sponsors have offered to bring baggies of presents when visiting Compassion countries, or when I was able to mail a doll and a Bible to my friend who was doing language immersion in Mexico, so she could mail them to the Compassion office in-country! Picking out gifts for my kids is such a special occasion, and it is lots of fun. Sometimes an idea for a gift will pop into my head even when I'm not planning on sending anything to a child any time soon, and I like to daydream about what I would send if I had the opportunity! Here are some examples:

Sandier would get an orange plush cat, because in his last letter he told me his cat Picho was black, but he'd like it better if he was orange!

Mary would get a CD player with lots of worship CDs, because she likes to sing!

Mishel would get lots of hairstyling supplies and accessories, because she wants to be a stylist when she grows up, and she likes to practice hairstyles with her cousins.

Kevenel would get a pile of books to share with his library- most of my kids don't have a library anywhere near them, and have never seen one. I was so happy to read that Kevenel has a library nearby!

Amisha would get a pretty, dark-haired doll, because I think she looks like a doll herself, and from her letters, I think that she might need a little more fun and childhood in her life.

Kajal would get a princess crown and dress, because in all my letters I always call her Princess Kajal!


I may not be able to send gifts directly to my sponsor kids this year, but I can send gifts to kids and families in Compassion's program! Compassion has a really amazing gift catalog- you "shop" for things that benefit Compassion families or the child development centers. Making a purchase from the gift catalog is a great way to shop for Christmas gifts. You don't have to deal with crowds and lines at the stores. You don't have to bother with gift wrap. You can always find something for that person in your life who's impossible to shop for (we all have at least one.) There are also great choices for teachers and coworkers- those you may feel obligated to give to, but have no idea what to get! And there are gifts for all budgets, too! Below are some of my favorite choices.

Parasite protection. Bugs are gross to think about, but parasites are a real threat for many children around the world. Unsafe drinking water in particular can pose a great risk to the health of kids in countries where Compassion works. The embarrassing thing is that this common health problem is pretty much preventable- and very inexpensive. For just $4, you can provide medication to protect one child from these invisible creepy crawlers.

Mosquito nets. In Tanzania, we were fortunate to sleep under mosquito nets every single night. Even with the nets, we still got bitten sometimes- but not nearly as much as we would have without them. We were all also on antimalarial medication. Those pills are a luxury not available to many families with kids in Compassion's program. A gift of $18 provides a family with a mosquito net (they're really, really big) treated with insecticide.

Bathrooms. Indoor plumbing is a luxury we definitely take for granted. While our hotels in Tanzania had "sit down" toilets, none of the child development centers did. All but one of the centers told us they had grant applications outstanding for improved bathroom facilities. The two bathrooms I actually went in were outdoor stalls with wooden doors, cement floors and ceramic-coated holes in the ground. One had toilet paper. Good bathrooms are essential for good hygiene, and good hygiene means fewer health problems. A $25 gift to Compassion's "toilet fund" (my name, not theirs) can help these centers achieve their goals!

Medical care. When my Said broke his leg falling off a bus last year, he had to go to the hospital. Then he had to have surgery, placing pins and metal plates in his leg to help it heal properly. This year, he had surgery to take the pins out again. Said's momma could not afford this medical care on her own. I don't even know that they would have had access to a hospital. Said would have been in pain, and he probably would have ended up disabled because of the severe break- and then he couldn't work to take care of his mom or sister, and he wouldn't have been able to grow up healthy and strong to take care of his own family someday. Said got the care he needed because of Compassion. They made sure he saw the right doctors, got the right treatment, paid for his surgery, and helped him get better. He showed me the scar and said to me, "because of you, I was able to be healed." A gift of $40 to Compassion's medical fund can help all the future Saids see doctors and get the medicine and surgeries that they need to thrive.

My boy. 

Baby care. I don't know why people make a big deal about the cost of adoption ("how much did she cost?") No matter how a child comes into your family, they're expensive. From sonograms, bloodwork, ultrasounds and birthing classes to all the checkups and vaccinations babies need, from the start, having a kid costs money. This probably contributes to the fact that in developing nations, some children have a 1 in 5 chance of making it to age 5. With Compassion's help, families involved in the child survival program can get assistance with the medical care that little babies need. A gift of $55 provides medical care for one child for an entire year.

Safe Water. I can't even begin to describe to you how important this is. When I was in Tanzania, we spent our last day visiting the field office in Arusha. Staff members gave presentations on the various aspects of their jobs, and what they were doing in the country. My friend Pando is a researcher for Compassion, and he told us about a study he was working on regarding Compassion's clean water systems. They studied about a thousand families throughout the country who received water filtration systems through the program, and tracked them for a year. Water borne illnesses in adults dropped to less than 5%. Families' overall health improved dramatically in that time. The kids were healthier, too, but they still got sick sometimes because they still had to go to school, where there may not have been a water filtration system. And the great thing about these filters is they last a long time. We were told they produce over a million gallons of clean water- more than the families who received them can use. So they share water with their neighbors and extended family. And more people learn about where the water filter came from. More people have the opportunity to learn about Compassion and their church partners. More people can learn about Jesus. And they can stay healthy and live longer to tell everyone else about the clean water, and where it came from. There's a reason Compassion calls this program Water of Life!

If you'd like to take a look at Compassion's gift catalog for yourself, click here. There are many, many opportunities for giving in there! And you can give throughout the year! If you'd rather take a look at a printed catalog, something you can hold in your hands and share with friends and family, let me know- I have several copies to share!

Holly Jolly

I was looking for a photo on my old blog and ran across these questions on a Christmas post. What better way to kick off a new month than with a fun little survey? Blogging friends, feel free to borrow these questions as a writing prompt- I'd love to hear about your holiday traditions, too! : )

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? I use both. Bags are usually cuter, and easier to deal with, but they're not quite as fun as wrapping paper!


2. Real tree or Artificial? My tree is definitely fake. My aunt and my grandparents always have real trees, but for 99% of my life, we've done fake. And now that I have my own home, I will always do fake because of all the scary stories of real ones catching on fire!


3. When do you put up the tree? My family used to put it up early. Brandon doesn't really care. He is not as into Christmas as I am. I would be happy putting it up the day after Thanksgiving, but I try to aim for December 1. And I have my dad come over and help me do it, because he is good at Christmas and, as I said, Brandon really doesn't care one way or the other!


4. Favorite gift received as a child? I can't choose just one! Though some of my favorites that I can remember were probably dolls- I know I got an American Girl Bitty Baby doll for Christmas one year, and I also had the Kirsten doll from AG as well (but I can't recall if that was Christmas or a birthday gift.) My family as a whole tries really hard to get gifts that the recipient will really care about, so every year actually IS special.


5. Hardest person to buy for? Grandparents, definitely. I do have a hard time shopping for people sometimes because I love giving gifts and I always find lots of things I want to give people, and my budget is embarrassingly tight when it comes to the holidays. So in a way, you could say everyone is the hardest to shop for because I have a hard time finding stuff that I'm happy with that fits in my budget!


6. Easiest person to buy for? Brandon. His Christmas list is just birthday list leftovers. And his birthday list is Christmas leftovers. Usually he just tells  me to order whatever Star Wars books have come out over the past six months, and I add a few surprises.


7. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes, just one. My mom has a bunch, though- she collects them and keeps some out all year round!


8. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? Anything that I ever got at a church youth group function, as no one in there liked me and I always got the crappy presents. We would have a gag gift game and someone would always bring just garbage, I think for the sole purpose of making sure I got it. Like burned out lightbulbs. Just trash. It hurt my feelings, actually.


9. Favorite Christmas Movie? I have several! For laughs, I like National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. Elf is pretty good, too. For warm fuzzy nostalgia, I like the Muppet Christmas Carol, a Muppet Family Christmas, and the John Denver Muppet Christmas special (which I do not own on DVD because it's out of print and EXPENSIVE.)

10. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Fried oysters and cream puffs. My grandmother only makes fried oysters for Christmas. They're soooooo good. And she makes cream puffs- homemade pastry filled with vanilla custard and drizzled with chocolate sauce. But these aren't the little profiteroles you might see some places. These suckers are as big as your hand. Sometimes bigger.


11. Lights on the tree? I like the fat, colorful bulbs my grandparents use. My tree is pre-lit. I can't imagine a tree without lights.


12. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? Yes. I think most people that celebrate Christmas and have been exposed to Christmas songs can.


13. Favorite ornament theme or color? We don't do themes. All of our ornaments are random, mostly from pop culture (Star Wars, super heroes, Hello Kitty.) And then we have some that belonged to my family when I was a kid, one from the year we got married, one from the year we bought a house, and a few others. Oh, and my friends and I do an ornament exchange every year, so I have those.


14. Favorite Christmas song? I can't pick just one. I have maybe four hundred Christmas songs on my computer! If I could pick an entire album, it would be "A Christmas Together" from John Denver and the Muppets.


15. Travel at Christmas or stay home? I have never been away from my family (and my hometown) at Christmas. Just about all of my family lives in Louisville, so we just travel around to everyone's houses. This has gotten exponentially more complicated since I got married. When I was a kid, we spent Christmas Eve with my great grandmother and my pappaw's family. Then Christmas morning at my house with my parents and maternal grandparents, lunch with my dad's family, and dinner at my aunt's. In between those last two, the family would come to our house to see our presents- and then we saw my cousin's presents when we went to my aunt's. Now we go to Brandon's maternal grandparents' on Christmas Eve. The last few years my parents have come over for breakfast (since we bought the house) and my grandparents come over when they can. Lunch is still at mammaw and pappaw's house, and directly after that we head over to see the extended Jones family. Then we go over to my aunt's, at least for a little while, because I like tradition (and the food we have at her house!) and finally, at the end of the day, Brandon's parents and brothers come over and we exchange gifts. It's exhausting!


16. What do you want for Christmas this year? This year, like every year, I ask for a few DVDs and books, and gift cards so Brandon and I can go out for our anniversary (or at least get carry-out.) I also try to ask for a few things that we need for the house that don't really fit into our budget, like a gift card for Lowe's, or something like that. We got a weed-eater last year or maybe the year before that. :)


17. Most memorable magical Christmas memory from adulthood? I wouldn't call it magical. I don't think our Christmases are magical, but they are warm and family filled and generally happy. But my most memorable Christmas memory from adulthood is definitely Christmas 2011. We were buying a house- we hadn't extended the rental agreement on our apartment because we were waiting to close, and at the last minute it turned out that there were some paperwork problems from the owner's before the people we were buying it from. Just some filing mistakes. But we were freaking out, and our realtor stepped in and saved the day and demanded that they got everything cleared up. So on December 23, we closed on our house, and we spent all of Christmas Eve moving in! We woke up early and my in-laws and my grandparents and uncle came over and helped us move everything. I stayed at the house with my mother in law and my youngest brother in law, taking care of the boxes, putting things away and stuff, while everyone else made three trips to move all the furniture and boxes over. My in-laws stayed until the afternoon to try to help put things away after everything was relocated, and then they left at about 3. My dad came by to help me set up the tree, so it would actually feel a bit like Christmas (we didn't put any decorations out at the apartment because we'd just have to pack them up again!) Two hours later, I dragged my sore and exhausted self out of the house with Brandon and we headed out to his grandparents' for Christmas Eve dinner. I could barely sit at the kitchen table, I was so sore! But I slept well that night, and the next morning my family brought over donuts and we had breakfast together and they got to see the house (my mom and my brother hadn't been able to come see it when we were looking at buying it!) So that crazy Christmas is definitely my most memorable one. It's hard to believe that we've been here for three years now!

Outgoing Mail: Christmas

Well, poo. I was hoping to take some notes and some pictures to share- especially since I am sending so much stuff- and then remembered to do those things after I taped up the box! So I offer my apologies for a disjointed post of hazy recollections (and no pictures), but since I put my Christmas stuff out in the mail for the kiddos this week, I thought it would be a good time for an Outgoing Mail post!

Before I get into the Christmas details, let me tell you what else is on its way! 

We have lot of upcoming birthdays in October and November. Brenda, Prayer, Said, Carlos, and Mary will all be having birthdays soon. I put together a folder for each of them: Said got one with elephants; Mary got one covered in glitter (I hope she likes it as much as I do- I will admit to patting my hair with it in the hopes of some slight sparkle transference), Carlos got a manly blue folder which I decorated with giant soccer ball stickers, Prayer got a cool holofoil tie dye folder, and Brenda's was scratch-and-sniff with pictures of candy, because she has talked about candy several times in her letters (including telling me her best friend is her best friend because he shares is candy with her!) Inside each letter I included a birthday card, some activity sheets (United States seek-and-finds, among others), some sticker sheets, and a drawing done by yours truly. I'm always telling my kids I like to draw, and I like their pictures, so I hope they like the ones I sent them, too! I also sent a small gift for each of the kids. Carlos got a Spanish world atlas, Mary got a pretty journal, Said got a small coloring book for older kids, Prayer got a connect the dots book, and Brenda got a princess coloring book. As an added bonus, I included a fun Mickey Mouse workbook for Jayid, because he said in his last letter that he is working on English lessons. The book had a page for each letter of the alphabet, along with practice sentences and fun activities. It was basically a phonics book for younger children, but he's not that old and English would be his second language. I hope he likes it! 

And now onto Christmas! This was quite an undertaking- lately I have just been sending a few gifts at a time, for birthdays and special occasions. I actually made a chart/checklist for my kiddos to make sure that all 26 of them got everything I intended to send. I wrote out each of their names and numbers, along with a place for me to put a check mark for a card, a letter, and a gift. Then I marked each of the kids who spoke English, because I did have a few possible gifts to send that would work best for English speakers. Then I got to work! I wrote out a Christmas card for each child, and included the following inscription: "I hope you and your family have a happy Christmas and a blessed New Year! Lots of love, 

Jessi." Simple and easy to translate. All year long (well, since last Christmas) I have been setting aside Christmas cards that would be appropriate for sponsor kids- no mention of piles of presents or other stuff that wouldn't apply to them, no focus on snow, etc. I have leftover cards from years past, cards from the dollar store, cards that my aunt received as  thank you gifts from various charities, and cards that my mom got on clearance last year from her store. All in all I have enough cards for my own kiddos, plus about 150 left over to send to unsponsored kids! 

For my Christmas letter, I basically write out what my holiday routine is. I don't really talk about presents other than to say that my family members exchange gifts on Christmas Day- it would be inappropriate to talk about quantities or say something like "each person gives everyone presents," because even that sounds like a lot. By just saying "exchanging gifts", I leave it open to interpretation. And our kids want to know, too. In some countries, kids don't receive Christmas gifts until AFTER Christmas, because of cultural traditions. Or sometimes people just do gifts on Christmas Eve. By keeping it vague yet informational, I'm satisfying my kids' curiosity about my culture and my traditions while still staying sensitive to their own situations. A lot of my kids also like to talk about food in their culture, so I usually throw in a mention of my family sharing a meal together, and may add something like "one traditional food to have for Christmas in my country is turkey. Do you have turkeys where you live?" Again, I'm providing some vague information without going into great detail about the sheer volume of food (most of it incredibly unhealthy) we consume over the holidays. I also like to share a bit about snow in my Christmas letters, and tell my kids that where I live, snow is unpredictable- but it is lots of fun when it happens on Christmas. I ask them what the weather is like in their countries during Christmas, too. 

Finally, we get to the gifts! I know a lot of sponsors are always looking for fun ideas for stuff to send to their kids. I can't remember exactly what I sent to each child this year, but I can try to write down what I do recall. Hopefully my list will help if you are looking for ideas for gifts- and I'd love to hear about what other people are sending their kids, too!

• The 12 youngest kids are getting small, super-skinny Christmas activity books I found at Hobby Lobby (pack of 12 for 4.99, continuously 40% off.) Even if they can't read the instructions on the activity pages, they can still color the pictures and share them with their friends! 
• Two kids are getting student planners- probably Mary and Victor because they are the oldest English speakers. They are weekly planners with helpful tips like measurement charts, grammatical advice, and other nifty things. One had a car on it and the other had a butterfly. 
• Some of the kids are getting mini wall calendars. Michaels has tons of designs for $1 each. Some of them are pretty yet gender-neutral, such as the calendar with colorful pictures (a rainbow lollipop for this month, a close-up of a pack of crayons the next.) There were also hot air balloons, lighthouses, kittens, puppies....and my favorite, dogs dressed in fancy costumes. Like, tiaras and feather boas. I know I sent that one to Patricia because for some reason I had the feeling she would get a kick out of it. 
• Two of the kids got skinny drawing pads from Target's dollar spot. And one kid got a writing pad from the same place (it had Sesame Street characters so it wasn't as boring as it sounds!) 
• One child got a pack of origami papers with instructions- it might have been Barry because I saw that the instructions came in English and French, and being from Burkina Faso, he speaks French. 
• One child got a "sticker by number" kit from the Dollar Tree, which is exactly like paint by number, except with stickers
• A few of the kids got coloring books, including Sofia the First, Sesame Street, and Bible stories
• One or two of the girls got journals I found in the clearance bin at Michaels (regularly a dollar, they were 50% off!) 
• Carlos got a mini Max Lucado book in Spanish
• I found a Spanish word book thing at the used bookstore for one of the younger girls. I couldn't understand what it said, but I gathered that it was like a seek and find- "in this picture find one gorilla, two giraffes, three ostriches, etc.) It was skinny and paperback and I was happy because it was Spanish! 
• Caleb got an atlas
• Jayid got a Batman activity book, because Batman is semi-universal and he would have English help if he needed it. 
• The littlest kids got super cute nativity coloring books my mom pulled from last year's Chrismas clearance. I've been hanging onto them all year!
• The neatest new find: bookmark calendars. It's a stack of bookmarks bound together like a little flip book. When a new month starts, you can tear off the next bookmark- it has the calendar for the month on there along with a little picture (butterflies, lighthouses, Psalms, kittens, whatever.) The bookmarks, bound together, come in at just under a quarter of an inch, and because they are flexible and meet the requirements for Compassion and customs, they can be sent as-is. They're really neat- they can be found at Michaels in the dollar bins. Each bookmark calendar comes with three magnetic bookmark clips, which of course can't be sent to the kids, but you can just take everything out of the package, pop a label on the calendar, and voila. You have new magnetic bookmarks (I have a ton of them now!) 

All in all, between my stuff and the birthday folders my mom sent in the same box, we filled a large priority mail box to the brim! I hope all the kids like what I'm sending- now I need to work on restocking my box of paper gifts! I pretty well cleaned it out!

What are you sending your sponsor kids for Christmas? Have you found anything cool to send recently that you haven't seen or thought of before? 

How to Pack a Shoebox

Recently I've found that several of my friends are preparing Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes for the first time. My former church has also decided to pack shoeboxes for their Christmas giving project rather than participating in an Angel Tree-type program. I really love working on my shoeboxes throughout the year, and am excited to see others joining in the fun!

I have a lot of experience packing shoeboxes, in addition to shopping for my kids, and I think I have a pretty good handle on what could go in shoeboxes and what kids living in poverty around the world would find helpful. So I decided to do a post about ideas for what to pack!

The way I see it, shoeboxes exist for two reasons: as a gift, and as a way to help others. I think it's a good goal to have a balance between those two things. When I visited my boys in Tanzania, I brought them each a bag of gifts, and I tried to include many things that were both fun and practical. Balance! And I think that's good for shoeboxes, too. That's why I try to include items that are going to be helpful and fun. That being said, I know people who lean more heavily toward the "practical" packing, and some who just pack fun stuff. Samaritan's Purse and OCC don't have rules as to whether a box should lean heavily to one side of that spectrum, because after all, this is your gift to a child. But I try to keep in mind the children who are going to be receiving the shoeboxes: children in poverty lead hard lives, and they often have to grow up too quickly. Many of them may not have any toys- they use trash for soccer balls and play tea party with old cans and boxes. They deserve to have fun. They also need help. The children receiving shoeboxes may not be enrolled in a program that ensures they have essentials like toothbrushes and toothpaste. Some of these kids only have castoffs to wear, or don't have any shoes. And a lot of schools don't provide school supplies- so if a child manages to get a (required) uniform and make it to school, they may not be able to learn very much if they don't have something as simple as pencils. To a family living in poverty, including things like personal hygiene items or school supplies can be a huge blessing.

Below I've listed out everything I can think of to go in a shoebox, both practical and fun. If you don't know where to start with your shoebox, try to pick a few things from both, and see how much room you have left. If you have any ideas to add, leave them in the comments!


Practical

• Washcloth (regular or those fun "magic" ones!)
• Bar soap (floating bars like Ivory work well for kids who bathe in rivers and lakes)
• Soap container
• Toothbrush
• Toothpaste
• Floss
• Combs and hairbrushes
• Hair ties
• Hats
• T-shirts
• Gloves and scarves
• Shoes (flip flops work well because they're flat)
• Socks (I like to find bright, colorful ones!)
• Pencils and pencil sharpener
• Flashlight with batteries
• Glue sticks
• Manicure kits or nail files
• Chapstick
• Bandages or travel first-aid kits
• Sewing kit
• Sunglasses
• Small flannel throw blanket (they fit pretty well if you roll them up tight!)
• Drawstring bag
• Plastic poncho (the little packet kind)
• Kleenex (or fun, printed tissues!)
• Tape measure
• Fishing line and lures
• Nails, screws, hammer, screwdriver (for older boys, in original packaging)
• Plastic dishes (cups, collapsible cups, cutlery)
• "Pillowcase" dresses
• Bandanas
• Mini wall calendars and pocket planners

Fun

• Soccer ball with pump
• Baseball or softball
• Bouncy balls
• Beach ball
• Jacks
• Playing cards
• Travel games ("go fish", checkers and chess)
• Card games ("Old Maid," etc)
• Baby dolls
• "Fashion" dolls (like Barbie)
• Small Lego kits
• Small stuffed animals
• Toy cars and trucks
• Kazoos 
• Harmonicas
• Tambourines
• Recorders
• Yo-yos
• "Ball in a cup" and other simple handheld games
• Tiny etch-a-sketch
• Small purse
• Plastic jewelry
• Headbands
• Barrettes
• Hair clips
• Bobby pins
• Crayons
• Colored pencils
• Markers
• Coloring books
• Drawing pads
• Construction paper pads
• Stickers
• Journals and diaries
• Note pads
• Balloons
• Glitter and sequins
• Pipe cleaners
• Small craft kit (example: beading kit or friendship bracelet kit)
• Slinky
• Board books
• Toy binoculars
• Hacky sack ball
• Jigsaw puzzle
• Finger puppets
• Action figures
• Matching game
• Pinwheels
• Kites
• Play doh
• Silly Putty
• Glow sticks
• Sidewalk chalk
• Stamps and stamp pads
• Watercolors and paintbrushes
• Foam or balsa wood gliders (airplanes)
• Marbles
• Mini connect four
• Rubik's cube
• Spinning top
• Plastic peg game 
• Tote bags and fabric markers
• Small purses
• Watches (plastic, not glass face)
• Fabric quarters (older girls)
• Nail stickers
• Jump ropes
• Kaleidoscope
• Folding fans
• Candy*

*If you're going to pack candy, follow these guidelines. Wrap everything in plastic bags to keep out vermin and bugs. Don't get anything that melts, like chocolate. Don't get candy that's confused with food, like "fruit snacks", as those are categorized separately by customs and can't go in shoeboxes. Hard candies are good (mints, Werthers, those strawberry things everyone's grandma has, Lifesavers, Jolly Ranchers) as well as things like lollipops and gum. 

And here are some guidelines as to what cannot be packed in shoeboxes: 

• Glass. Mirrors, glass watch faces, etc. It can break, and it's dangerous. 
• Knives. Even pocket  knives or multitools with knives. These are gifts going to children, after all. Plus customs might frown on them. Knives are not allowed. 
• Violent toys. Don't get an attitude because it's "not PC" or whatever. A lot of these kids come from countries that are currently or have been recently involved in war. The goal is not to remind them of that. Don't pack things like toy soldiers or water guns. 
• Liquids. Including but not limited to: shampoo, conditioner, nail polish, lotion, sunscreen, body spray, bubbles, lip gloss, hand sanitizer, glue, roll-on items like deoderant (still full of liquid!) etc. Toothpaste may count as a liquid when you're traveling by airplane, but it's fine for shoeboxes. 
• Food. Candy is not food. What is food? Koolaid packets. Gummies. Vitamins- chewables count as food as far as customs is concerned! Basically, if it's edible and isn't hard candy or gum, don't send it. 
• Medicine. While things like tylenol, tums and vitamins would be beneficial to these families, they can't go through customs. And it's probably not safe to send them to kids, anyway. Don't send medicine. 
• Money. This should be obvious, since most countries have different currency, but people still try to do it to be helpful. Pay your $7 shipping donation, but don't put any money in the shoeboxes. 

A Compassion Christmas: Burkina Faso

Here's part two in an open-ended series I'm doing on Christmas in countries where Compassion works. I say open-ended because I was hoping to have a post a day read to go for the month of December, but that didn't quite work out! If you liked this, check out my previous post on the Philippines (and keep your fingers crossed I can get a few more posts finished up!)

Burkina Faso, in West Africa, has a population that is very religious. The country is divided almost evenly into Christians and Muslims- about half the country practices one of these faiths. There are some people who still practice traditional, animist belief systems. Atheism is virtually nonexistent in the country, which I thought was an interesting little factoid.

Those who practice Christianity celebrate Christmas. Some Muslim families may also participate in the festivities. Pere Noel, or Father Christmas, visits on December 23 in Burkina Faso- Father Christmas delivers gifts a few days early in this country! Christmas dolls are widely available in the cities. Catholics also prominently display Mary, Jesus' mother, in their holiday celebrations. Artificial trees, complete with decorations, are sold on street corners for about $50 American.

Families in Burkina Faso may celebrate the holiday with a special meal of chicken or mutton. According to one mother who was interviewed by the BBC about how her family celebrates Christmas, families in Burkina Faso often skip having rice with their meals, as they have rice every day. For the holidays, they will have macaroni instead!

After church on Christmas, many people in Burkina Faso stay up late dancing and partying for the holidays! Sometimes these festivities also include fireworks.

If you'd like to try some food from Burkina Faso, here is a recipe for bean cakes (made with rice- sorry, no macaroni here!)

1 can black-eyed peas, drained
1 small onion, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 egg, whisked
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 cup flour
1/4 cup oil
2 cups cooked rice

Combine the black-eyed peas, onion, carrot, and egg in a blender, and blend until they form a smooth paste-like mixture. Add the salt and pepper. The bean mixture needs to be thick enough so you can form it into little bean balls. If it has too much liquid, add 1/4 cup flour. Shape into 2-inch little meatballs (sans meat) and flatten into patties. Fry each patty in the oil until browned, about 5-7 minutes. Serve the cakes with rice.

A Compassion Christmas: Philippines

I had this wild idea back in late October to try to do a blog post every day in December, describing Christmas traditions in the countries where Compassion works. I got a ton of books from the library and printed several articles, and started several draft posts. However, as you will notice, today is the third day of December, and this is the only post I got around to finishing. Hopefully there will be at least a few more (I have most of a Burkina Faso post finished), but we'll just have to wait and see!


The majority of the people in the Philippines are Christians, specifically Roman Catholic. They're the only Asian country where most of the population considers itself Christian. And, as Christmas is a very important holiday for Christians, Christmas is a big deal in the Philippines. The Christmas celebration in the Philippines is big, like, possibly the biggest Christmas celebration in the world. The national party actually starts on December 16. There are nine pre-dawn masses celebrated in the country, every day leading up to Christmas. The holiday celebration continues past Christmas day and ends after January 6, which is Three Kings Day.

Since the Philippines is made up of thousands of islands, some areas have certain familiar aspects of Christmas culture, while others may not. For example, some areas may have a Christmas pageant, but others may not. Many Western Christmas celebrations have thrived here, though, such as Santa Claus, Christmas trees, sending Christmas cards, and singing Christmas songs.

A Filipino church decorated for Christmas

Much like in the United States, Christmas starts popping up in the Philippines before November is even over- stores start decorating for the holidays and you can hear Christmas songs on the radio. But the official holiday season starts December 16. Starting on this day, families will attend Mass while it's still dark outside. These Masses are known as "Simbang Gabi", or "Night Mass." After church, there's a fun time of socialization. Food stalls and carts show up around the churchyards and surrounding streets, so people can eat after church and spend time with each other. It must be fun to eat breakfast with your friends and family every day leading up to Christmas! Some of the foods sold are puto bumbong, a purple-ish rice cake steamed in a bamboo mold. The cake is tapped out of the mold and sprinkled with brown sugar and coconut. To drink, you could have salabat, which is like a gingery tea. There's also thick hot chocolate called tsokolate! Some families might take their breakfast home, but many take their time walking home, eating and chatting with friends.

Puto Bumbong

Filipinos also love decorating their homes for Christmas. Star lanterns are hung in homes, representing the Star of Bethlehem. These lanterns are called parols. Streamers and lights may also be hung on the homes, and wreaths and candles appear often, too. Sometimes these decorations look like the kinds we have in the United States (such as a pine wreath), but other families choose to decorate their homes with Christmas decorations that are patterned after traditional designs. I think that's awesome. An artificial Christmas tree might be used, but sometimes you might see a palm branch placed in a stand and decorated. Trees can have a variety of decorations, such as candies and fruits tied with ribbon; small wood carvings; tiny star lanterns; painted shells; rice paper ornament; and empty matchboxes wrapped as tiny presents.

Christmas Eve is the culmination of all the waiting and early morning Masses in the Philippines. Some families might not even get any sleep because they're up all night partying! Houses are cleaned and sometimes new household items might be bought to replace worn out things. The families are not only getting the homes ready for friends and family visiting, but they're also preparing for the arrival of Jesus!

On Christmas day, gifts are exchanged among family members. Filipino children also traditionally visit their godparents on Christmas Day. When the children are visiting the homes of their family, they're given a small gift at every house- usually something small like candy, a little toy, or some money. Christmas festivities continue through the end of the holiday season on January 6. Between Christmas and Three Kings Day, Filipinos try to visit all their family members they haven't yet been able to see during the holidays!

Here's a recipe for salabat, or Filipino ginger tea:

1/2 lb fresh, sliced ginger
5 cups water
1 cup brown sugar

Boil all ingredients together in a saucepan for 30 minutes or longer, depending on the strength of the tea desired. Add more water if the tea is too strong. Strain and serve hot.

Haiti Ornaments!

The ornaments have arrived! In case you missed my previous post about these awesome ornaments, I am partnering with an amazing organization called the Apparent Project to raise money for my Tanzania trip. These ornaments are handmade in Haiti, and they're made from recycled materials. Each one is hand-crafted by a mom or a dad who is earning money to do things like raise their kids or move out of the tent city, thanks to the Apparent Project!

Each ornament comes with ribbon and two paper beads, plus a tag telling you about the artisan who made it. They make excellent gifts!

If you'd like to buy an ornament, you can do so by clicking the Paypal button at the bottom of this post, or up in the right hand corner of the screen. If you're paying with PayPal, each ornament is $10. This covers the fees associated with PayPal, plus shipping is included! If you're interested in paying with a check or cash, let me know and we can get in touch (ornaments will be $8 if you're paying by check or cash.) Out of this money, $5 goes back to the moms and dads who made the ornaments!

I have 150 of these super cute ornaments to sell in the next six weeks. They're the perfect Christmas present! You're helping lots of people, you're buying "green", and as a plus, they're pretty! : )

Here are the designs to choose from. Please let me know which one you want when you pay! Otherwise I'll just pick one for you!

 "Peace" star ornament

"Love" heart ornament

"Joy" tree ornament

">

Christmas Ornament fundraiser!!!

Soon I will be starting a new and exciting fundraiser for my trip. I wanted to go ahead and tell you a little bit about it, as a preview! Just in time for the holidays, this fundraiser involves SHOPPING- and it's for an amazing, excellent cause!

Starting sometime in the next week or two, I will be selling handmade ornaments made by artisans who work for the ApParent Project. I have talked about this ministry a little bit before on my blog, but here's a refresher: ApParent project is a ministry that helps parents in Haiti. We all know that Haiti is a poor country- the poorest in our hemisphere, in fact. Sadly, because no one (almost) in Haiti has any money, parents there often give up their children because they can't afford to care for them. There are many ministries working in Haiti that try to reunite kids with their parents, rather than immediately shipping them off to North America (Children of the Promise, the excellent facility where my little buddy Anell used to live, is one of those good-guy ministries), and ApParent Project fits that description. Here's the gist: local parents in Haiti get jobs with ApParent Project and their suppliers, Market Haiti. They make crafts, and all the money from those crafts goes back to the artisans who made them. Because of that income, moms and dads are able to raise their kids instead of giving them up! It's pretty amazing! And each handmade piece comes with a little tag telling you about who made it. I have several bracelets from ApParent Project (which I bought from my friend Ashley when they were fundraising to bring Anell home), and I have saved all the tags. The most recent one showed a picture of a young man who is living in a tent, trying to raise his son. The tag tells you what they're working toward- whether it's a new home, an education, or whatever. It's just indescribably awesome.

So now on to the fundraiser part. I will soon be receiving a box of 150 handmade ornaments. A popular art medium in Haiti is metalwork from recycled materials such as oil drums. These ornaments are made from recycled metal. There's a loop of ribbon at the top, complete with some paper beads. And of course, there's the tag telling you about who made it! When the ornaments arrive, I'll be adding a PayPal "Buy Now" button to the top of my blog. If you'd like to purchase an ornament, you can do so that way, or get in touch with me directly. And now I will host a little question-and-answer session with myself, for details.

Q: How much will the ornaments cost?
A: If you buy an ornament (or more than one!) online, I am requesting $10 per ornament. This is what was recommended to me by ApParent Project staff. If you would like to mail a check, or live near me and would like to pay in person, just get in touch with me- there's a little discount. : ) The $10 per ornament cost DOES INCLUDE SHIPPING. Just FYI.

Q: Why would it be cheaper to buy the ornaments in person, rather through PayPal?
A: Because PayPal charges a fee. That's the easiest answer. So does WePay and GoFundMe, the other fundraising tools I'm using. For example, a $10 donation actually gets me $8.90. It makes things easier, but it does take a bite out of donations. Checks are totally fine, though, if you want to pay that way. And, like I said, the $10 covers shipping.

Q: How much money will go to the moms and dads in Haiti?
A: More than half. I will be sending back $5 for each ornament I sell- which is really awesome and it's a great way for all of us to help each other!

Q: What do the ornaments look like?
A: There will be 3 different designs- -50 ornaments of each. They say "peace", "love", and "joy", which are three of my favorite words! There's a sample picture at the bottom of this post.

Q: How long will this fundraiser go on? 
A: I will have the ornaments for 6 weeks once they arrive. After that time period is up, I send the money I've collected, along with my leftovers, back to ApParent Project.

Q: What would I do with an ornament, anyway?
A: I have compiled a list just for this occasion! Here are some people you could give an ornament to:

• Your boss
• Your coworkers
• Teachers
• Pastors
• Neighbors
• Your veterinarian
• Bible study group leaders and other church-y friends
• Your mechanic
• Use them as stocking stuffers
• Or Secret Santa gifts
• Give one to your kids' babysitters
• Hand them out to those hard-to-shop-for relatives
• Buy one for the mailman
• Or the garbage man
• Or any other person who helps you out day to day
• Keep some for yourself
• Buy them all and donate them to a children's hospital (just a thought!)

Q: When will the fundraiser start? 

A: As soon as I get the ornaments. There was a slight delay recently because of a customs strike in Haiti- nothing was coming out of that place. But the strike has ended and the folks at ApParent Project (who work out of Florida) have been working like craaaaazy to get boxes packed and out to folks who are doing fundraisers. I was originally supposed to expect mine by Halloween, but things have been delayed by a week or two. 

So that's the deal! I'm really excited about this fundraiser! I hope I will be able to help you out with at least some of your Christmas shopping this year! : )

Here are the ornaments! Aren't they cute??

Not a creature was stirring, except for the rats.

Belated Merry Christmas, everyone! Our holiday was extremely busy, as both Brandon and I have lots of family that lives in town. We had a good time, though, and were very happy to see everyone. It was nice to actually feel Christmas-y this year. Last year we didn't put our decorations out because we were preparing to close on our house, and we spent all day (until about 4 pm) on Christmas Eve moving in! The family festivities were kind of a blur because of everything that was going on at the time.

This year, though, I got to take time to enjoy everything. I hosted my group of friends' annual ornament exchange at my home, which was a nice evening. I also cooked Christmas breakfast for my family (my parents, my brother, and my grandparents)- and even wore heels and an apron. Picture of domesticity, right there. We had a good time visiting three sets of grandparents, attending an open house, and eating lots of yummy food.

I made stockings for our pets this year, and we tried to take pictures of them opening their little gifts (two dog cookies and a rawhide chewy each), but they were excited and fast, and having a photo session proved a bit difficult at times. Never the less, here are our fur-kids opening their Christmas presents!

Monster's stocking

Monster was more interested in her stocking than the contents. We had to empty it out for her. 

Monster grabbed a cookie and ran to her cage to eat it, but we had shut the door so the other little beeps wouldn't bother her!

Glitter's stocking

Glitter sniffed her stocking and ran away. She was afraid of it!

While Brandon chased Glitter down, I watched Monster try to eat the frosting off her cookie. We put her in a box so she couldn't hide her presents around the room. 

Brandon caught Glitter and tried to get her to chill out long enough to look at her stocking stuff. 

Cupcake's stocking. We gave up on Glitter. 

Cupcake immediately grabbed a cookie and ran, very fast. 

She ran into the cage, backed into her igloo and tried to take her cookie with her!

Cupcake checks out her rawhide candy cane. Merry Christmas!