I am the toothbrush lady!
Each month, Avery comes home with all sorts of new crap in the party favor bag for that month's birthdays at school. Most of it she forgets about immediately, then I recycle or chuck or store away it to be re-purposed somehow. I didn't want to contribute to the crap collecting of others, so I informed the (somewhat perplexed) teacher that we'd be doing something different instead of a party favor. We donated/loaned $50 to two families via Kiva. I then assembled these cards, with information on front and back, to distribute with the crap/fun stuff in the bags. D said this is the equivalent of handing out a toothbrush on Halloween. He's right, but I don't care. I am the toothbrush lady of party favors!
This little project did convince me that I need a paper cutter. I cannot explain how bothered I was that I couldn't cut the lines perfectly straight, except to say I'm seriously considering buying myself a paper cutter for the next time I need to cut a straight line.
Congo family
I dropped the presents off for the refugee family we sponsored for the holidays. I meant to take a picture of all the presents so I could post it, but I forgot. Envision the back of my sweet ride full of gifts and that's about right. When I told D that I'd signed us up to do this, his immediate instructions were, "Make sure you get the kids fun things in addition to the functional items requested." And this is one of the many reasons I love D: his desire to give the children something fun, despite the increased cost. I spent $100 more than I intended, but it was so.much.fun to shop for a family in need that I couldn't help it. I fully intend to do this every year.
When I dropped the presents off I didn't get to meet the volunteer coordinator, so I emailed her to ask more details about the family. She forwarded my email to their caseworker who gave me some basics. Then she said they could really use an American friend to help them learn English and adapt to the culture. I emailed back immediately and said I'd love to help. I'm so very excited. I'm not quite sure how one goes about helping non-English speakers become English speakers, but I'll figure it out somehow. Right now my plan is just to talk really, really loud and see if that helps.
Nutcracker
When I saw the deal on Groupon for 2 tickets to the Nutcracker for $22, I felt it must be fate. So I bought a total of 4 tickets so we can all go to the ballet on Monday night. I feel all fancy saying we're going to the ballet - a bit like discussing the symphony or the opera. The fourth in our usual trio is my mom! She arrives in just a few hours. I wanted to have the house perfectly clean for her arrival. It's not going to be because I'm blogging. Fortunately, I have a rocking mom who never criticizes my housekeeping skills or the state of the house upon her arrival. She rocks!
Jam packed
We've got a jam packed schedule this week: a holiday party via our adoption agency; a visit to Zoolights with Aunt Aly, her bf, and Garrett; a visit with Nikki & Mike and others; a cookie exchange; a messy art class, followed by lunch and gift exchange; babysitting the G kids on Friday; a date night with my mom on Saturday night (D will be at the Blazer's game for both the Gs date night and my date night); the aforementioned Nutcracker; and, of course, Avery's BD! Then Vic and Mike arrive and (prescheduled) things slow down. Sweet!
Honestly, I really have no idea what I would think, if I got that card in my kid's party favor bag. None of the daycares/schools that I have been at do any of this type of party favor bag thing, but I would definitely find the party favor bag to be obnoxious.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you mean you don't know what you'd think? Like, you don't know if you would approve of a deviation for the norm? Or you would be offended (I can't see how this is possible, but we're all different)? Oddly enough, I didn't think twice about what other parents would think, but since the teacher cocked her head sideways when I said that's what I'd be doing, I was a bit worried about what she thought. Looking back on that conversation, I think it was more that she hadn't heard of Kiva than that she disapproved of a deviation from the standard party favors.
ReplyDeleteI have been mulling this off and on ever since my comment. I think if I had been one of the parents who given the gratuitous party favor, especially if it was in the past month or so, I would subsequently feel judged for my conventional consumerism when receiving the Kiva card in my kids' bag.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure everyone who reads this blog will *rightfully* champion on your deviation from the norm. And I fully agree, because I know you and I know your passion about these things and I also know your balance in parenting. But I do realize that if I *didn't* know you, and with this card as my only impression, I would feel... conventional and inadequate, I guess?
Sorry. You probably weren't looking for this feedback when you blogged it. I'm sure someone will chime in to disagree with me to make both of us feel better. :)
No, it's fine, I'm not at all/bothered or offended that you'd feel/think this way. It's logical.
ReplyDeleteFor whatever reason, it doesn't bother me what other parents think of my decision. I definitely would not have done it if there wasn't the expectation that a party favor be provided. I look it like this: I admire the parents who work very hard to ensure that their kids eat only organic foods or who don't let their kids eat any/much sugar or whatever. I found, after being a parent for a while, that this isn't me. I'm more lax about eating than I thought I would be. I don't feel inferior to the parents that put a higher priority on nutrition. Likewise, I don't look at parents who let their kids drink juice and chocolate milk all the time (something I do not let Avery do) as being less than me. We all have our things that we feel passionately about. Few of us have the energy to do things we're NOT passionate about. Shrug.
agreed
ReplyDelete