Oh the weather outside is frightful....

Age:  over 2

Type:  donation

For Christmas my four year old got a pretend mailbox and several sets of blank envelopes.  She is constantly putting little scraps of paper inside, her 'letters', and leaving them all over the house for us.  Once she found out how to use the little flag on her mailbox indicating there was mail to be picked up, she started insisting we all leave letters for her as well.  The point of this being she has a minor mail obsession! 

So how to turn her love of mail into a act of kindness for someone else - why not a letter for our mail carrier!  Despite the calendar reading January, the temps here in Michigan feel more like spring, but on the next biter cold winter day we are prepared with some instant hand warmer packets in a letter for our mail carrier.  I have one little
mail girl eager to make a delivery!

No Tricks Just Treats

Age:  Over 2
Type:  Baking/Donation

As part of our new holiday giving plan, a Halloween inspired service project was first on our list.  We decided to support the local Ronald McDonald house with a basket of goodies.  Our local Ronald McDonald house hosts 29 families at a time, most of whom have well children in addition to their hospitalized child.  For these siblings, Halloween this year will be very different, so we hoped to spread a little spooky fun with our trick or treat inspired gift basket.  Filled with pumpkin bread, suckers, craft supplies and coloring books, we had a blast assembling it and delivering it to some very appreciative families!

teddy bears and tornadoes - an unlikely pair

Age:  over 2
Type:  donation

Several weeks ago a local community near mine was hit by unexpected tornadoes.  Many homes and businesses were destroyed in an area unaccustomed to this type of devastation.  This story is not unlike many across the country, so I wanted to share an email that I received from another mother about what she and her little one did to help ease the pain for those involved in this tornado.  The author of the email, Maria, is a mother to two little girls and author of several books.

After the tornado devastated so many homes in Dexter, I was motivated to do something to help the families who were involved.  I got an email from a principal at one of the Elementary schools. She was collecting teddy bears to give to the children who lost their homes. I thought this was a great idea and was happy to help. I could even involve my 3 year old, Ruby, in this act of kindness. My daughter helped me pick out the teddy bears. When she asked me what they were for, I was afraid to tell her the real reason for fear that she would have a hard time with future thunderstorms. So, I simply said "They are for poor kids". Looking back, I am disappointed in myself for not taking the time to A. explain the REAL reason we were buying the bears or B. Tell her what it meant to be "poor". I made the assumption that she knew what it meant to be poor.

About five hours after dropping the toys off at the Principal's house, we were driving driving home from the zoo when Ruby asked me what "poor" meant. At first I had no clue what she was talking about! I told her that when a child was poor, this meant their family didn't have a lot of money. That maybe their parents didn't have jobs. They didn't have enough money to do fun things like go to the zoo. Oh boy, did this set off tears! Ruby was crying saying " My mama doesn't work! We are poor! We won't ever go to the zoo again!" We talked the entire way home about all of this. It's tough to really remember how young Ruby is when I am trying to explain grown up things to her. She's correct, I don't have a full time job right now. But she doesn't understand the nature of my work and that it brings in income.

Overall, I am happy to have included her in the experience of giving to others. I look forward to doing something like this again. We love to conduct random acts of kindness for our neighbors, UPS man and mail carrier! We are always baking something and giving it away. We also love making projects and sending them to family members. But we haven't stepped out of our comfort zone to help people out of our network and I want to commit to doing this more often.  I believe in the power of Paying It Forward. I believe in living as a kind and generous individual.

As Maria said, it is often easy to do nice things for people 'in our network', but considerably more difficult to help those whom we have never met.  As this project idea indicates however, it need not be!  The simple gift of a teddy bear from a stranger could have more of an impact on a child in a difficult situation than you will ever know.  Thanks for sharing Maria!

Serving those who serve us



Age:  Over 2
Type:  Baking

I have to admit I am kind of a baking junky.  To make matters worse, my middle daughter shares my affliction, so who am I to deny her darling pleas to 'make something with me momma'!  Luckily they also enjoy giving our baked creations away, because I never met a cookie I didn't like :)

Last week on the eve of St. Patrick's Day, the girls and I decided to whip up some awesome green mint cookies complete with Andie's mints on top.  For the kids St. Patrick's day is an excuse to wear green and go on leprechaun hunts, but for our local policeforce it is a very busy day I am sure as they try to keep us all safe.  So we decided to package up our green confections and deliver them to the local police station, complete with thank you cards.  It made the girl's day when the woman we delivered them to took the time to read each note they had worked so hard on! 

Here is where I would normally insert all the cute pictures of them baking and delivering cookies (complete with some funny poses outside the station).  Unfortunately some little hands got a hold of my camera and somehow deleted the pictures.  So you only get the little cartoon policeman - take my word for it, the other pics were darling!

So next time the urge to bake results in way more than you would ever want to eat, consider delivering some to your town's finest!

Drop In & Decorate

Age:  2 and up
Type:  Baking

As I read magazines I constantly find myself tearing out pages and filing them away as future projects for my little ones.  Recently I broke out the archives and stumbled upon this website, Drop in & Decorate.  The site is basically a one stop shop for setting up a cookie party where kids decorate and the finish projects are delivered to those who could use a little thank you or pick me up.  Baking is a perennial fav with my girls, but I love this site because it leaves nothing to the imagination and gives you great instructions on setting up a party and what type of organization to deliver the cookies to. 

I am thinking perfect for my next playgroup :)  What about you?  If you and your little hearts decide to drop in and decorate, send pics and I will happily post!

25DG&G: Day 3

Taking kids to the grocery store is not a favorite activity of mine.  Now that I have three girls however, any errand can be turned into an excuse for some alone time with one of my girls.  Today was no exception, and after an hour and half of shopping and my girl helping the whole time, she was treated to a ride on Sandy (for those of you not familiar with the penny pony at Meijer you are missing out!!).  Possibly one of the greatest cheapest treats of all time.  After her ride into the sunset we decided to pay it forward and left several pennies for the next child to ride on the house.  Cost... minimal.  But a nice surprise for the next guest nonetheless.

25DG&G: Day 2

Since I am new to parenting a school age child, I often revert back to my own elementary school day memories when thinking about how things operate.  My how times have changed.  Gone it seems are the days when you only saw parents in the classroom during a party (maybe) and ushered in are the days of a parent parade in the classroom.  So today my sweet husband was all set to head into school when we decided volunteering in the classroom was  an excellent opportunity for our 2 year old to help out as well.  I wasn't there so my account is second hand, and while I certainly she did more playing than helping, I am sure both she and her sister noticed that Daddy took time out of his afternoon to count stickers and hand out prizes in a room full of 5 year olds.

25DG&G: Day 1

Everytime we go to the gym my almost 3 year old insists on holding the doors.  As I am schlepping gym bags, babies and assorted other items, having the patience for this is not always something I possess.  Add to that the fact that most adults using the doors want to hold the door for her, since she is so small and the doors so big, and more often than not I end up standing outside trying to get in.  That and the fact that there are 3 sets of doors to navigate, you see where I am going.

Today however in the spirit of 25DG&G I encouraged the door holding.  Waited patiently as smiling gym goers filed in and my daughter happily told everyone "you're welcome".  Afterward I made a point to say how nice it was of her to be so helpful to so many people hurrying in and out of the gym.  Small act, but lesson learned.  Day 1 complete.

Halloween's Over....Now What!

Age: 2 and up
Type: Donation

This year trick or treating took on a whole new meaning in our house with a 5.5 and almost 3 year old.  They happily ran (literally) up and down the streets of our neighborhood for HOURS!  To say it was fun was an understatement.  My husband and I chatted with friends and neighbors we ran into as we tried to keep up with our girls.  At the end of the night they both spread out all their candy and we took stock for a moment of an absolute pile of candy.  A huge, chocolaty, delicious pile of more candy then we would ever let them eat.  So now what to do?  Thankfully I found a great website which can be found here. 

Halloween Candy Buy Back has a super easy search which allows users to type in their zip code and find a participating dentist closest to you that will be collecting candy.  What do they do with all this loot you are probably wondering?  The candy will be used to fill care packages sent to the troops in the month of December through Operation Gratitude.  This year Operation Gratitude will be sending 60,000 care packages!  I called the office closest to us and they are collecting candy all week up to 10 pounds.  Haven't weighed ours yet, but I bet we are close to that!

So have your little hearts set aside a few favorite pieces and help you pack up the rest of those goodies.  Some amazing men and women far from home are sure to appreciate your sweet treat!

Back to School Cool

type: donation

age: over 2

Whew, I don't want to say I am a little behind in posting about this, but goodness! As I play catch up with the projects that have been going on in our household over the summer, I hope that you are inspired to get involved with your little hearts!

This year marked a large milestone in our family, as our oldest started kindergarten. Needless to say, back to school shopping took on a whole new meaning! Rather than just fulfill the list for her class though, we decide that this would be a perfect time to give back to others who might not be able to fill their backpacks with new supplies this school year. It turned out our church was collecting school supplies, so we donated there, but I saw many other opportunities through the community to donate. The above picture shows my girls scouring the shelves for 'sale' tags and picking out stuff for the kids. I must admit, these girls are shoppers, so they had a great time!

So when fall rolls around, consider stocking up on school supplies for not just your own little hearts, but those of others as well!

Spring Cleanup

Age: over 2

Type: activity

As I sit here on the eve of April, I am 100% ready for spring. Unfortunately, being a Michigander means that we still might see another random flurry or two of snow! For the most part though, the snow has melted and we can finally see the grass after all these months. The melting snow also means that all kinds of litter and garbage that accumulated and were hidden all winter are now visible.

As my daughters and I braved the cold for a brisk walk yesterday, we saw lots of litter all over one of our favorite parks. Next time you go for a walk with your little hearts, why not bring along a couple of grocery bags and have the kids pick up any debris they see? Your neighbors are sure to appreciate the results!

Pushing Pencils

Age: Over 2

Type: Collection/Donation

This Valentine's Day my girls were lucky enough to receive several small gifts from grandparents and family members. Included amongst the little trinkets were several glittery, shiny, hearty, pinky (you get the girly idea) pencils. While they did have instant appeal, I mean who doesn't love pretty little things, they were soon relegated to a box in our playroom of other unsharpened pencils.

When I sat down at my computer this morning I remembered an article that I had read awhile ago about donating pencils - so I thought I would look into it for our little hearts. Turns out the The Pencil Project was just what I was looking for! A small grass roots effort which matches up students in need of pencils with kids looking to donate. By contacting Maria the founder, you can get the information required to make any size donation. Sound good to you? I think it would make the perfect project for a preschool class, Daisy troop or Sunday school class. As always, would love to hear if you decide to try out this idea and I will feature your success story here! Thanks for reading!

Armed Forces Day Ideas - The Power of Prayer

Type: prayer
Age: over 2

Recently I was visiting another church in town when a colorful display in the parlor caught my eye. It was a simple table draped in American flags and it contained information about members of the congregation serving in the armed forces. In addition to a display board listing all these heroes, there were similar prayer lists with the names you could take home as well as information about individual soldiers. Listed on a half sheet of paper was the basic information: name, location, rank and then a specific prayer request. Often loved ones had attached emails received from the solider or other updates. I could hardly tear myself away! It was so interesting to read their stories and to know that I could take this piece of paper home and offer a very specific request for him or her through prayer. I have blogged previously about prayer here, but it is certainly worth talking about again, as its impact is so powerful.

I'm sure most of you reading this know someone who is currently serving in our armed forces, so I encourage you and your little heart to begin to pray for that person. Reading the updates from the soldiers, it was apparent how much it meant to them to know that people back home were thinking of them and praying for them daily. Give it a try!

From Pictures to Pennies

Type: art, fundraising
Age: over 2



This adorable idea comes from a reader named Sarah with the cutest blog, Sprout Reviews, which can be found here. Sarah and her daughter recently participated in a school fundraiser which turns your children's beautiful creations into magnets, mugs, note cards and other practical and sentimental items.


How often is your little one coming home from preschool carrying the most precious drawing you would love to keep forever - now is your chance, and an opportunity to help others! Check out the Art to Remember website for details on how to sign up your child's class for this wonderful fundraising opportunity.


If you take advantage of this fun project, or already have, I'd love to see your masterpieces and hear your stories. So please pass along!

Earth Day Ideas - Reduce, Reuse, Recyle

Type: activity, advocacy
Age: over 2

Earth day is right around the corner, so I wanted to sneak in one more posting on ways that you and your little heart can serve our Earth. Recycling is a concept that I am sure is second nature to most of us, but I must admit, though we put things in our bin everyday, I haven't ever really had a conversation with my girls about why. Now is the perfect chance! Check out this link for great kids friendly explanations about reducing, reusing and recycling.

Once our kids understand how and why we help our Earth, they are sure to be ready to put the ideas in action. After explaining to my four year old about reusing, she promptly told me that maybe it was better to take one of her water bottles of juice to the park rather than a juice box so we wouldn't have to throw the box away! It is never too early to start fostering little green advocates and to serve our Mother Earth.


I hope you enjoyed the Earth Day ideas! Would love to hear how you and your little one celebrated, so please email or comment with your successes!

Earth Day Ideas - Recycling Garden Pots

Type: recycling

Age: over 2

Admit it, with a couple of nice days days here and there and the sunshine teasing us into thinking it is warmer than it really is, we are all ready for full fledged SPRINGTIME! For most people that means getting out the patio furniture, dusting off the lawn mower, and of course, beginning some spring planting. Gardening is a great kids activity (one that I blogged about before here) - I mean dirt - love it! But did you know that after you get all those flowers in the ground the pots and containers they come in can do little more than be thrown away? That's where your little heart and you come in!

Thanks to an organization Peace, Love and Planet, you are able to recycle all these containers that may not otherwise be reused. Check out their website for lots of interesting information on our earth, recycling and other lessons for your kids. Peace, Love and Planet is a local operation, meaning all their recycling drop off locations are in Michigan, but if you check out this page they suggest that farmers markets, plant centers or nurseries are often happy to help.

So gather your little ones, maybe a wagon and some of that spring sunshine and collect all those extra potting containers. You'll be doing yourself, your little heart and Mother Earth a HUGE service!

Earth Day Ideas - Light Patrol

Type: Activity

Age: Over 2

Today marks the first installment of ideas to celebrate Earth Day with your little hearts. This project came from one of our readers, Cara, and her blog which can be found here.

I can totally remember when my oldest, Schuler, was able to turn on and off lights herself. No room could be entered or exited without lifting her up to hit the lights. Now that she is older the novelty has worn off, but the idea of turning switching off lights into a game - now that would be right up her alley. Give a kid a mission and they are usually all for it!

Try assigning one of your little ones as the "Light Patrol" for the day and make it a contest to see who can find and turn off the most lights left on in the house during the day. A prize could be involved for the winner, or just the prize of knowing all the good you are doing for our Earth.

More Earth Day ideas - share them with us!

Pink it Up

Type: Craft, Advocacy

Age: Over 2

I can't tell you how happy I was to open my email and find the following article sent to me by a reader. Thanks to Jeanine for sharing this inspirational story about some school-age children getting involved with breast cancer awareness. While the kids featured are a bit older, the idea of supporting Race for a Cure is certainly one that can be done with our little hearts. Universally recognizable, by decorating pink ribbons with markers, stickers, glitters or any other bits, you and your child can do your part to raise awareness for this most important cause.

So get crafting - and send pics! We'd love to see your creations :)

Soups On

Type: craft

Age: over 2

Last night I had the opportunity to serve dinner at a local soup kitchen. It was amazing - we were able to serve 178 hot meals in an hour!! Truly a testament to the organization of the place we were serving. Unfortunately, soup kitchens and food banks in general are not able to accommodate small children due to safety issues and the like. However, that doesn't mean there isn't anything your little heart can do to get involved!

The organization we were working with last night near our home was one called Food Gatherers. They were started by a local restaurant and are supported by donations from local restaurants, food retailers and food distributors. With over 300 donation sources, there are a lot of people to thank for all the support. That is where our little ones can make an impact. One of the Food Gatherers volunteer opportunities is for families to make thank you cards to give a personal message to all their supporters. I can picture a collage project now full of magazine pictures of food pasted to a colorful card! So contact your local food bank or soup kitchen and find out if making special thank yous could be an opportunity for you!

Spring Cards for Seniors

Type: craft, senior

Age: over 2

I recently heard about this service project from fellow mom Katey who decided to enlisted her playgroup friends to join in the fun. Before I go any farther, let me say that I LOVE this! What a wonderful way for playgroups to mix up the 'playdate' routine a little bit by taking on a service project. Inspired to do something nice for an elderly woman in her church, Katey and the playgroup created personalized cards to be delivered to the nursing home where the woman resided.

The finished product can be seen here:

These cute cards were created by photographing each child hugging a teddy pair. Pictures were glued into muffin liners and then stems and other embellishments were added. Depending on your child's skill level, the sky is the limit on the decorations. The cards and bear were then delivered to the nursing home with the message that the teddy bear was "bearing" hugs from all the kids. How cute is that! For complete instructions, you can visit Katey's blog at

http://havingfunathomeblog.blogspot.com/search/label/service%20projects

A little crafting can certainly go a long way in making someone else's day 'beary' special :)