Christmas Blessings

While I am waiting for things to come - good or bad - I had to do something to keep me from going crazy. So, I decided that even if I cannot have my own child and spoil it this Christmas, I should at least spoil someone else's child, preferably one that does not often get spoiled.

I learned about Operation Christmas Child a few years ago and sent out a package back then. I'm not sure if I really believe in missionary work and it seems quite sneaky to try to missionize little kids by bribing them with gifts, but on the other hand, I really believe that every child deserves to be loved and spoiled once in a while. So, this year, I decided to pack a shoebox again.

Some people try to pack as many shoeboxes as possible, because they want to bless as many kids as possible. But for me, it was not about that. I wanted to bless one child, and I wanted to bless that child good. Not with cheap happy meal toys and dollar store gifts, but with real gifts that I would carefully choose and put together.

Operation Christmas Child let's you select the gender and age range of the child you pack a shoebox for. I decided that I would start out with going to the local toy store and looking for a toy that speaks to me and then build the rest of the box around that. I spent a lot of time in the Lego section of the store but I could not really find the right gift. Did you know that most Lego sets and figures have some sort of weapons in them? When I found a teddy bear in a pink tutu, I knew this shoe box was going to be for a little girl...

Besides the bear, I bought a lot of other girly stuff which is kinda strange, because I myself have never been a girly girl. Besides my baby doll, I never played with typical girl toys as a child. Nevertheless, I filled the box with all kinds of girly stuff: princess stickers, a princess note pad and a coloring book, colored pencils, a little beading set, a princess toothbrush and soap (they ask for personal hygiene products), cute pink socks, a pink jumping rope, glow in the dark stars, balloons, and some candy. In the end, the box was so full that the teddy bear had to get into some serious yoga pose so that I would be able to close the lid. You are not supposed to tape the box, because they still inspect the boxes before they send them out. Oh dear, I really hope they get it all back in if they decide to take it apart. Haha.

Even if I won`t be blessed with a child growing in my belly this Christmas, I at least tried to bless a child that is somewhere out there.