I try to give back to those around me, whether it’s by giving of my time, talents and treasures or by just giving a smile to someone who needs it.
Last week, as I’m sitting in my yard, I hear some yelling. I think it’s coming from a car but I’m not sure. Soon a girl is walking down the sidewalk wiping her eyes. I make eye contact and she says “Excuse me, but my boyfriend and I just had a fight and I had to mace him. I got some in my eye. Do you have something I can flush it out with?” I get her a cup of water and a washcloth and she takes care of her eye. I say “Do you need a ride? Do...
The 25th anniversary of the Challenger explosion had me thinking how it is my first memory of being aware of the news or things going on in the world. Other than “Sesame Street” or “3-2-1 Contact,” it’s also my first memory of watching TV. It got me wondering when other people began to be aware of current events. So I asked about it on Twitter and Facebook. Some others within two years of my age also first remember the Challenger: Amanda was in first grade. Everyone was crying and her teacher was so upset. Val was in second grade...
Molly asked today if the ubiquity of social media has made us less social. Has putting everything out there for everyone lessened the connections with those who were once among the privileged few to know everything about us? I could tell you all about the friends I’ve made through social media but she was referring more-so to people we already knew and whether we’ve lost touch because we are to immersed in social media to make one-on-one connections. I can’t decide but three examples came to mind right away, falling across the whole spectrum of possible answers. It has...
*** Today, I have my first guest writer: My husband! Please make him welcome. *** Maybe it’s because I think of myself as a big ole’ teddy bear. I’m hairy; I like to cuddle; and like my favorite teddy bear, Frank, I have a bald spot. OK, Frank has more that just ONE bald spot. Maybe it’s because Frank was always there for me when I was a child, especially when I was sick or sleepy. Whatever the reason, I like stuffed animals, and I know how much they can help children. Five years ago, when Jen and I...
We had the kids sort through the stuffed animals in their rooms (but not the bags full currently in the garage) to pick out some that they could “send to a little boy or girl who doesn’t have any.” We’ve been talking to them a little bit about the Haiti earthquake since I went to Feed My Starving Children. At first, Grace was a bit reluctant but she picked several animals to give away. Once we were done, she got teary and looked at the pile and decided to retrieve a Pound Puppy and a big My Little Pony....
But if you have infants to buy for, either for their birth or Christmas, here are some things that have caught my eye lately.
So after spending hours on Friday writing and reading about stocking stuffers, did I make sure we had enough stocking stuffers for St. Nick’s day, which was yesterday? Nope, never even crossed my mind. We didn’t celebrate this holiday growing up so I rely on Mark to remind me about it. Which usually happens about 10 p.m. Dec. 5. I thought I had some small items in the box of gifts for the kids but neither of us wanted to go to the garage to get them. After church and a lunch at Baja Sol yesterday, I pulled out...
I was going to wait till next week for the next installment of my gift guide, but this Frugal Friday post about stocking stuffers dovetails nicely with my ideas for a post about kid consumables, because most of them fit in a stocking and aren’t expensive. Though they are certainly gifts that would be good for any young kids, not just for your own and not just for stockings. By consumable gifts, I don’t mean just food; I mean anything that gets used up instead of sitting around taking up space forever. These are things we go through often...
