Million Miles Gift Bags That Goes the Mileage for Kids

Here's a money saver idea that ensures all kids in your kid's class gets a xmas gift, despite a tight budget:

It is really simple, and the results are big!

Instead of having all the parents buy a big gift for one child or none at all, make it affordable, and make it bigger by having participating parents bring each child a $1 or very inexpensive trinket (flashcards, stickers, play doh, toy, crayons, coloring books, bubbles, books, candies, school supplies, etc.) You can be really creative, too, parents, with each gift - fuzzy pencils, little binoculars, little magnifying glasses, glow-in-the-dark rings, etc.

You don't need to have a list of what to buy, but you should at least let each other know what you got to add to the list.

Have 1 parent organize the gifts into a gift bag with tissue. Place each trinket into the gift bag for each child, with a from label listing each child who participated. (I brought my daughter shopping for her classmates' gifts, which she chose, and for the gift bag when I organized this for her class, and she LOVED it.)

BIG MILEAGE POINTS HERE: Letting your child choose the gifts for her classmates gives her a sense of accomplishment and pride. It also helps her learn to stay within budget, while helping you know what her classmates would like. If she likes it, then most likely the other kids will, too.

In the end, the gift bag was full of LOTS of gifts that could last throughout the year - Gifts that can be taken on the road for when you take that road trip, gifts that are easy to pack, gifts that are delightful to open, and gifts that help your child stay busy during the day, at restaurants, etc.

I organized this for my daughter's class this year, and it worked out really well :) And I announced when this would be delivered to her teacher so the kids were anticipating it. I got big smiles and excitement the day the bags were delivered in each cubby for pick up.

So...if it's too late to do something like this this year, maybe next year.


Happy Holidays!

Kailin
Million Miles Mama

You Had Me at WAHHHH!

You know you're in love with your baby when:

1) You heard the first cry and didn't head for the hills, trying to find the baby's parent (oh yeah, it's you)

2) You can stand watching back to back episodes all day long of Oobi or Barney or something that if you weren't a parent, you'd take a brick to the telly.

3) You can barely keep your eyes open and you hear, "another story?" but you smile and take out the 10th storybook of the night, even if it is repetitive and about talking animals who you care a naught about.

4) You had to sit through traffic then fight for parking just to arrive at the amusement park just to stand in a long line so that you get a chance to ride a ride that spins you around like a salad spinner. AND Then do it all over again...

5) You find yogurt or baby food all over your baby's face and tray and floor and hands and refrigerator and clothes...and you can only smile because your baby has a look of pure joy and discovery on her face.

6) No matter how much your back hurts or how tired you are, you don’t mind holding your baby for long hours at a time, even if your baby weighs over 30 pounds…

7) You've become an expert at diaper-changing, even on the worst days.

8) Your idea of dining out is at child-friendly food establishments serving crayons with macaroni rather than a hip new to-be-seen restaurant serving artsy food on breakable china.

9) You’d rather spend a day playing doctor/patient with your baby than spend the day shopping or at the spa or hanging out with grown-ups.

10) You wear that funky hat or shirt your baby made in school so proudly…

11) Your house looks more like a preschool after playtime than the chic designer home you once had or envisioned…but you don’t care.

12) You don’t immediately rush to wash your shirt or hands after your baby barf on you, but you hold your baby close and comfort her trying to make sure she’s feeling better and that all is well.