Random Acts Of Christmas Kindness

A quick update on what we have been doing the last week or so for our random acts of Christmas kindness.  There have been a couple days (due to one or both of the kids not feeling well) where we have not been able to do our good deed on the designated day, so then we end up doing two good deeds the next day.  It has managed to work out nicely.  Again, I'm trying to get pictures of as much as possible, but it isn't always possible.  Most times I am too busy helping Savannah interact with someone to complete her deed.

Last Saturday, day 8, we took baked goods and thank you notes to our local fire station.  Savannah was a huge hit.  They loved her drawings and invited her in to hang out for a bit.  Now every time we drive by the station she begs me to stop and drop her off for a play date at the firehouse.  Cracks me up.

Sunday, day 9, Savannah cooked (with my assistance) breakfast for the family.  Usually Eric cooks us a huge Sunday morning breakfast, so I thought it would be a nice change of pace for us to whip something up instead.

Monday, day 10, Savannah sent postcards to children who are very ill.  I found this organization called Send Kids The World.  The site asks that you send postcards with a sweet note or drawing on the back to one or several of the children they feature on their site.  The goal, of course, being that these kids receive postcards of hope from all over the world.  A pretty cool way to send some love.

Tuesday, day 11, we drove to a few different grocery stores and taped quarters to the candy and toy machines.  As a parent I know that it can get annoying and quickly very old to hear Savannah beg me for "just one quarter, mommy.... please!!!"... how nice for the parent and exciting for the child to see a quarter there for the taking.  We also attached a little note explaining that the quarters were there to be used and wishing a them a merry Christmas.

Wednesday, day 12, we went and bought two toys, one for a boy and one for a girl, to donate to Toys For Tots.

Thursday, day 13, we took baked goods and thanks you drawings to the police station.  Yummy treats have proven to be a huge hit everywhere we go.  They were very nice and thankful for the gesture.

Friday, day 14, we waited until night time when it was nice and cold and then went to Starbucks, bought a hot chocolate, and then found a Salvation Army bell ringer to give it to.  The gentleman we ended up giving it to almost cried.  Seriously, over hot chocolate.  He gave Savannah and me a huge hug.  I'm telling you, the littlest things really might mean a whole lot.

Saturday, day 15, we had our second bell ringing shift for the Salvation Army.  This time we got smart and brought along 100 candy canes to pass out to kids that were there to grocery shop with there parents.  Whether they donated or not, we gave them a candy cane and wished them a very Merry Christmas.  This often caused them to stop and take a second to chit chat with us, which then typically ended in a donation.  Candy canes and a huge smile can do wonders.

Random Acts Of Christmas Kindness

So we have one full week of our Advent Christmas countdown complete.  Total success so far.  She wakes up every morning totally excited for what we are going to do that day.  The Christmas spirit is alive and thriving inside of her.  I have tried to take pictures of the things we have done... but I have also been trying to be there in the moment with her and not just focused on capturing the moment.  So some of our deeds do not have picture documentation.  Sorry, you'll just have to use your imagination and picture us doing those without a photo.

On Monday, day three, we took Christmas cookies with a note of appreciation to the librarians at our local library branch that we go to all the time.  It is one of Savannah's most favorite places to go... so I thought that thanking the people that keep her library running smoothly would be a nice gesture.  I love that the note she wrote says "thank you for the books".  So innocent, sweet, and to the point.

Tuesday, day four, we drew and wrote thank you letters to the troops.  This one was fun because it game me a chance to talk to her about the troops, what they do, and why they are so important.  Her drawings and notes will go to the Thanks A Million campaign and then they will mail them overseas to the troops.

Wednesday, day five, we headed to our local Dollar Tree with cash in hand to buy toys to donate into their collection box.  These toys are going to be given to families of service members who are struggling this holiday season.  Savannah had $5.00 of her own money to spend, plus I told her that I would match her money and we could spend and additional $5.00.  Then as we were checking out the lady behind us saw that our cart was full of toys and watched Savannah pay and then place all the toys in the collection box... she called Savannah over and handed her $10.00 and told her to go pick out ten more toys to donate.  Awesome!  I am so happy that Savannah is getting to see the power of good deeds.

Thursday, day six (not pictured, sorry), we picked up recycling bins for our neighbors as we walked home from school that day.  On recycling day, the bins tend to end up all over the road and yards... it's so annoying.  So we picked them up and carried them to our neighbors garage doors so they wouldn't have to.  Simple and thoughtful.

Friday, day seven, we headed up to the movie theatre and waited around for a family to give movie passes to.  My grandma gives these to us all the time, and I love that it saves us money (movies are expensive)... so I figured we should pay it forward a little.  

Random Acts Of Christmas Kindness

This year we decided to change up our advent calendar a little bit.  I love the excitement of counting down to Christmas.  I was just not a fan of the daily gifts/treats that came with each day... you know what I'm talking about... the kids asking "what do I get today?", "what will I get tomorrow?".  That is just not where I want our family's focus to be.  I want our kids to have their Christmas spirit and love focused on others rather than on daily trinkets and gifts.  So, I decided that with each day of our advent calendar Savannah would get a new "Random Act Of Christmas Kindness" to perform.  It took a bit of preparation on my part... it took some creativity, but I have a fun kid friendly act of love and gratitude for Savannah to take part in each and every day until Christmas.  I'm excited to see how this goes... Savannah is already on board and loving it.  We are only two days in, but so far it has been awesome!  Let the Christmas countdown begin!

On day one we rang the Salvation Army bell outside of our local grocery store.  Seriously a fun fun time.  Super kid friendly... not too long (we only did it for four hours)... and the weather was wonderful for this.  Savannah was a huge hit.  Nothing is better than a cute little kid ringing a bell and wishing you a Merry Christmas.  She brought in some serious money for the Salvation Army.  I was so proud of her.  Watching her come out of her shell and talk to people as they came in and out of the store was pretty cool.  She was cheerful and friendly... this was the perfect first advent activity for us.

We even had visitors while we were out there.  Some of our soccer buddies stopped by to say "hi" and donate some money.  We also saw Santa!  Savannah saw this guy walking in the parking lot and yelled "SANTA!!!".  I had to ask him if he would come take a picture with the kids.  

I don't have any pictures from day two of our Christmas countdown.  Our Advent activity that day was to go through our toys and clothes and pick out things to donate to those in our community who are in need.  Savannah, as always, was very generous and willing to donate.  We dropped our trash bags full of goodies off at our local goodwill and called it a day.  When she woke up this morning she was so eager and excited to see what she was going to get to do for day three.  That's what I'm talking about!