operation christmas child

I put together Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes when I was little, but I hadn't done them with Ryder yet.  He helped my mom put hers together last year, but this year I wanted him to be apart of the process from beginning to end.

We grabbed two boxes from our local Chick-Fil-A one night, and that got the ball rolling!

Off to Dollar Tree to try and get as much stuff as we thought we could fit in to the boxes!  

We divided it all up and took the packaging off of it all so that we could fit it all in the box!

I loaded one up and he loaded one up!  I was happy they offer you the "pay online" option this year, so that is what we did.  Also, if you pay online you can print off a barcode and then they will e mail you and tell you where your box(es) end up going!

I got an e mail the week before Christmas that ours had made their way to Mexico!  I pray that the sweet boys who received our boxes may be truly blessed not only by these things, but by coming to have a personal relationship with The Lord one day.  

I hope this is something that Ryder looks forward to doing together each year! 

gifts that give back.

I love giving, and buying things that I know the people I love, will love.  We are blessed to live in a world where most of us truly don't "need" anything...but again, it is just so fun to GIVE to be the people we care so much about.  So why not gift them with something that also gives back to people who truly are in need.

Noonday Collection has been all the talk the last few months.  I know a few girls from college that sell it and I admire them for sharing this wonderful pieces of jewelry with us, that we will not only love and have fun wearing, but also help woman in foreign countries earn money to live, and feed their children.  Providing them with sustainable jobs and a livelihood.  Something we all take for granted every day.  

[$58.00]

These are my two favorite necklaces...I could seriously see myself wanting to wear the second one EVERY day!  I just love those colors, and especially them together!  I love how it is styled below.  It brings the whole outfit together!  [$84.00]

I wear gold earrings almost every days...but these little dudes caught my eye because they could go with any outfit and they are about the size I like to wear!  They are actually made from cow horn!  How beautiful!  [$28.00] 

My gold obsession also lead me to these.  I'm usually not a studs girl, but I like that these are square!  Perfect when a hoop is just a bit too much...would look great paired with a flash necklace from above.   [$42.00]

I hope you will visit NoonDay Collection's site and see what you can find for the people on your gift lists this year...and maybe a little something for yourself!  ;)

Other gifts that including giving back:

A donation to Heifer International.  Last year Ryder and I were gifted with a donation by someone.  The donation bought a certain number of chickens for a family in a foreign country.  They were able to hatch some of the eggs to give chickens to other neighboring families, as well as have eggs every day to eat and gain proper nutrition.  

TOMS is always a good way to give back.  I'm not a fan of their flat shoes, but I do have a few pairs of their wedges.  And yesterday...Target came out with TOMS for Target which includes everything from clothes, to candles and journals!  That's what I'm talking about!  =)

Happy Shopping Friends!