Letters to soldiers

March's random act of kindness is writing letters to soldiers. Today we sat in the new blanket fort and wrote. How do you explain to your child that being stuck in your home is kind of boring at times, but being a soldier stuck overseas is much worse? I told her they might like a hello note or a reminder that we support our troops or a funny joke or a story.

She decided to use big, fancy words for some letters and regular words for others. One letter included the story of how we got our dog. One letter was all about how she feels about coronavirus. One letter was a list of her favorite things. I laughed through the whole process. And right now we could all use a little laughter. 

I think the lesson that we are all in this together and remember those who are ALWAYS away from their family and friends is a good lesson to send. We discussed vocabulary. We talked about word choice. We picked appropriate headings and closings for letters to strangers. Yes, I turned this into a mini-English lesson and I am okay with that!

I sat for an entire hour in a blanket fort and wrote letters. I watched the birds eat from the newly filled feeders. I had nowhere to be and nothing to do. How often does that happen? I embraced the quality time and I loved it. If this is how my glass gets half full, then so be it.

On a side note, April's random act is cleaning up the parks. We had to have a chat about how that may get put on hold for awhile. I agree with the quarantine. I agree with kindness. HOWEVER, now may not be the best time to be picking up garbage. Am I right??? 

a resolution we can actually DO

I don't do resolutions. I should ALWAYS work out, eat right, sleep well, drink less, be kind, etc. However, that sounds pretty dull! I do, however, try to challenge myself to do something for the better good of mankind, the earth, or others. One year we vowed to recycle more. One year we wrote 1 happy thought a week and read 52 happy memories on New Years Eve. One year we did the coin challenge and saved almost $700 by adding a penny for whatever day of the year it was (1 cent on January 1st through 3.65$ on December 31st). 

This year I actually asked for my daughter's input and she shocked me by saying Random Acts of Kindness. So we sat down and wrote 12 things we can do safely, feasibly, and that won't make me broke. Then we categorized them by month, since some are time sensitive. The following is our list of do-good activities that will encourage us to stay clean, safe, healthy, and give back. We have all month to accomplish each, which will give me time to prepare or delay if needed :)

January: clean out all the closets and donate what we don't keep

February: give hot chocolate and cookies to the police and fire dept

March: write letters to soldiers

April: clean up the local parks (there are only 2, so this isn't huge)

May: pay off someone else's library fines

June: leave kind notes for people around town (we haven't establish rules for this yet...)

July: pack 20 lunches for Miss Carly's 

August: help fill the bus and donate school supplies

September: do something nice for the bus driver

October: send coloring books to kids in hospitals

November: bake for the nursing home and decorate place mats

December: donate toys, time, money to the Wimpy Kids fund

I am pleased to announce that only 3 or 4 of these were my ideas. I am pleased to do stuff with my kid that includes fun and quality. If you are unfamiliar with any of these charities/business,  I challenge YOU to look into it! There are so many great ways to give back in the Rockford area!