OCC

*This post was originally written on 11/5/2017. I just found it in my drafts and am publishing it today.* 

What does a person who has been lousy at tithing do with all the money that should have been tithed? 

Spend it all on shoeboxes, of course. 

This year, I packed 6 Operation Christmas Child boxes, one for each category, as well as stocked up on some extra supplies that our school will use at our packing party. I had never done a toddler box OR  a guy box before, so this was a new experience for me. 

WHAT I INCLUDED IN EVERY BOX

• Washcloths
• Soap and soap box
• Toothbrush

GIRL 10-14.

This was the first box that I packed, and it was also the easiest box for me to pack. 

Contents:

• The basics: soap, toothbrush, washcloths
• Pencil pouch with 3 compartments.
• pencils, pens, pencil sharpener, markers, erasers.
• nail clippers, emory board, band-aids.
• compact mirror and blush
• Stuffed animal dog 
• Hairbrush
• Notebook

BOY 10-14.

Danny helped me with this box. I was surprised at how much he cared about what went into it. It turns out he has expensive taste and would veto almost everything I suggested. Regular notebook? No way. The $8 sketchbook must go in! LEGOs? Nope! How about Magrific Tiles! Unfortunately, we didn't end up buying the Magrific Tiles because they were ridiculously expensive and in a fairly large box. We did however pack a soccer ball and pump (he spent a LOT of time picking out the right soccer ball), sunglasses, harmonica (not up to his standards), and a baseball cap. 

The contents:

• The basics
• Soccer ball and pump
• Pencil pouch with pencils and sharpener
• Harmonica
• Dice
• Sunglasses
• Baseball cap
• Sketchpad
  

GIRL 5-9

This was Betsy's box. She packed it at the same time that I was packing the 10-14 box. I had gone to Walmart and bought the supplies for both. As I went through what I bought we separated them into 2 piles (hers, and mine). She took such great care packing this box. 💗💗💗

Contents: 

• The basic toiletries
• Stuffed animal dog (with zipper! She put the washcloths, toothbrush, floss, and kleenex inside).
• Twisty Crayons
• Kleenex
• Pencil pouch with markers, pencils, erasers, and pencil grippies.
• Notebook

BOY 5-9

• The basics
• Pencil pouch with markers, pencils, erasers, and pencil grippies
• Notebook
• PAW Patrol Playing Cards
• Squishy baseball
• Recorder
• Bird stuffed animal
• Cars tote bag

GIRL 2-4

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Ahhh, the toddler boxes turned out super cute. I loved buying stuff for them. The adorable thumper leggings are from Lularoe Emily Jang. She's such an awesome consultant, and when she heard they were for a shoebox, she shipped them to me for free and gave me an awesome deal on them! She is super sweet. 

I also stuck in some hair bows, a stuffed animal, 32 ct. crayons, a coloring book, a waterbottle, plastic utensils, soap, washcloth, and a comb. 

BOY 2-4

• The basics
• Coloring book
• 32 ct. crayons
• Long sleeved athletic shirt
• Bouncy ball
• Squirrel stuffed animal
• Waterbottle and plastic utensils
• 2 large Ticonderoga pencils

Last but not least the boy 2-4 box (feat: horrible wrapping job). 

I would highly recommend doing this project. It is a great way to put others before yourself. I am usually a very frugal person, but I found that while shopping for these boxes I was not as concerned about costs as I was about the quality of items. (I do NOT recommend dollar store toys.) If you have kids, make sure to include them on this! We did these boxes when I was a kid and I have very fond memories of packing them and even going to the volunteer location in Minneapolis to help sort and ship the boxes. 

For more information you can go to:  https://www.samaritanspurse.org/what-we-do/operation-christmas-child/

You Can't Get Normal Sick Anymore

It all started Saturday night.

 I was curled up on the couch watching Psych with Danny when I felt this lump in the back of my throat. I tried coughing it out, clearing my throat, and making some sort of weird gagging noise.

Nothing worked. 

The next morning I woke up with a sore throat.

I HAVE THE 'RONA. (Symptom count: 1)

Frantically, I gargled salt water, brewed some tea, took a shower and hey-the sore throat went away. 

Only to be replaced with nasal congestion.

IT'S THE RONA. (Symptom count: 2)

At this point I began freaking out and thinking about how now I have to do virtual school, I've probably already infected some of my kids, parents could sue me, parents will be mad we have to go digital and could switch schools...

And then I remembered- this happens to me every. year. 

Every fall I get sick with a head cold at the beginning of the year. The weather is changing, I'm around a bunch of new germs, I'm busier than usual. Any other year I would think nothing of it. I'd power through and go to work. 

But this year? Well, you can't get normal sick anymore. 

According to the MDH, if you have: 

1 more common symptom= you and everyone else in your family needs to quarantine for 10 days unless provided an alternate diagnosis by a medical doctor.
*More common: fever, cough, shortness of breath, loss of taste/smell.

2 less common symptoms= you and everyone else in your family needs to quarantine for 10 days unless provided an alternate diagnosis by a medical doctor.
*Less common: nasal congestion, sore throat, nausea, diarrhea, chills, headache, fatigue

1 less common symptom= evaluate whether or not you are well enough to go to school.

After talking with my principal, since I figured the sore throat was mild and just right away in the morning, we decided that I was really only presenting ONE symptom and I was free to teach. 

I totally get these guidelines. We are trying to keep everyone safe and healthy. But if I- the teacher- don't want to follow them, you can FOR SURE guarantee that parents will not be keeping their kids home for two weeks just because they have a cough or are stuffed up and tired. 

Covid is very real. All four of my uncles and aunts on my mom's side have had it. 2 with mild symptoms, 1 with none, and one was even hospitalized. However, I think some of us have lost sight of the fact that-

It's not the only disease on the planet. 

You can still get a cold. You can still get the flu. You can still have allergies, strep throat, and pneumonia. 

Not everything is Covid. 

It is GREAT to be cautious, keep sick kids home from school, stay socially distanced, and wear masks. But for the love of all that is good--if someone COUGHS that's normal. If someone sneezes, that's NORMAL. 

PEOPLE CAN COUGH AND SNEEZE WITHOUT HAVING THE CORONA VIRUS. 
(side note: actually they probably do have a corona virus since the common cold is a type of corona virus). 

All I ask is if someone coughs can we not look at them like they are a leper? That would be great. 

Thank you for coming to my TED talk.