12 Days of Christmas Carepackage(s)

Okay I put a lot of thought into this one.  I had already sent a Christmas-esque carepackage, but then I had the brilliant idea of sending a package that kept on giving. (And by "I" had a brilliant idea, I mean I was inspired after reading another blog and loving her idea:  passionatehomemaking.com.) I was nearing the cutoff date to sending him something in time for Christmas, but also at home I was thinking of family traditions I wanted to start.  Growing up we left the Christmas tree up until Ephinany, so while we didn't do an extravagant 12 days of Christmas it was present, and I thought it might be a fun little tradition for my fam.

So I decided to send the Hubby something for each day, giving him nearly two weeks of looking forward to having something to open.  Hopefully making his holidays a little more cheerful. I was proud of myself. Overly proud over something silly? That's a big fat yes!

I pestered co-workers, friends, and even a few online forums I used when I was expecting my kiddos for ideas.  Those What to Expect When you are Expecting and Baby Center Mommas have some great ideas!  Of course I also perused pinterest, and kept in mind the Hubby's wishes. Nothing that just takes up space, nothing he has to worry about getting back home, and easy on the sweets he is working on keeping his manly figure.  This idea was actually a lot harder than I anticipated.  I am a sentimental, keep sake, cute decoration loving gal...and most ideas I came across were snack orientated.  The Hubby is a low maintenance do without fellow.  As far as keepsake-y reminder of home stuff, he wanted letters and a family picture.  That's it.

Then I heard from my Hubby and was giving him the instructions to not suck the fun out of this and trying to make him promise to only open one gift a day in proper order....and he informed me no go.  Apparently he had open them all as soon as they arrived and report the contents.  I didn't think of the inspections.  So my fun idea lost some of the magic.  Think I could talk him into re-wrapping his presents and opening them up again one at a time?  Yea, he didn't think so either.

Anyway, as he has already opened his gifts I can share the goods.

Day 1: one irish spring shower gel and back scrubbie
Day 2: two work gloves
Day 3: three summer sausages
Day 4: four packs of prilosec
Day 5: five $5 scratch tickets (he won about $30)
Day 6: six air freshners (there are 6 guys in the room)
Day 7: $70 i-tunes gift cards
Day 8: eight hot hands warmers
Day 9: nine ferrero rocher truffles
Day 10: ten pairs of socks
Day 11: eleven bags of microwave popcorn
Day 12: twelve packets of hot chocolate and a bag of mini marshmallows

Care Package...I Lost Count

I have been slacking on the Care Packages...on sending actual packages, but more so not doing any posts on the ones I have sent.  I don't know what number I am actually on anymore.

The idea of at least one a week went away because the Hubby didn't want anything.  He also doesn't want something sent just for the sake a sending anything.  His general requests he still had a good stockpile going, so I'm assuming the FOB he is on has a pretty well stocked PX. Either that or I went overboard on the quantity on the supplies I did send.

On the agenda for the Holidays though I am going to go ahead and let Pinterest inspire me for some projects.  Some art from the boys and lots of handwritten letters to fill his You are loved binder.

Last week I sent out two packages.

Halloween Care Package: 

• Goodies Bags with Candy that shouldn't melt for all of the Hubby's roommates
• A Trick or Treat Basket filled with Candy for the Hubby
• (The Toddler wanted to send pumpkins...but I vetoed that addition)
• Dice and a Halloween Strobe light

General Hygiene Care Package

• Shaving Cream (Hubby's fav brand)
• Baby wipes
• Cu-tips
• Whitening Floss Picks
• Magazines that came in the mail.

Care Package #10

As you may have noticed the care package a week plan hasn't been panning out.  Turns out my soldier really doesn't want that much...but boy when he does. Ha. Thankfully the upside of him being active duty is he is making better wages than he did as farm help...so far the bump in pay has been spent on $300 boots and $900 in electronics and accessories.

The Internet isn't that great where he is stationed, so communication can be limited.  The USO does provide on free 20 minute phone call a day, but he doesn't always have time to make it to the USO.  In fact so far I have only received 2 phone calls (well all together 3, but one was using a calling card).  For Pre-mobilization when he was down in Texas we had the benefit of Skype generally a few times a week, it wasn't always the greatest, but seeing him and hearing his voice kept the boys and I on cloud 9.  In country Skype hasn't been good enough to support video or voice, so when we do get a chance to talk it is like messenger...and he still loses connection multiple times.  However, other couples are having luck using Facetime on Apple products.

Which leads us to this request/mutual decision.  We decided I should order two Ipads.  Little known to me though, the USPS has a ban on sending batteries including lithium batteries, so many electronics can no longer be shipped overseas as of May 2012. (The ban is expected to be lifted in January 2013). In the meantime the only way to get them sent is by a private carrier  (at a higher cost) such as UPS, FedEx, or DHL.  We don't have DHL where I live,  and I discovered UPS does not deliver to APOs, so that left FedEx. For what it is worth the FedEx driver was very helpful and it wasn't too painful of a process to send.

I ordered one of each in black and white...no mix ups later on!

Anyone who knows me, knows I am not the most techie person out there, in fact those kind of purchases I prefer to leave to the Hubby.  He does a lot of research, sets a budget, and goes for it.  Now it was all on me.  Embarrassing confession: I really had no idea what the heck on Ipad was or even did!  So I don't know if I made the best decision, but knowing our budget and doing some research I think I did alright.  PS- I'm still not exactly sure what all it can do, but it seems to be pretty much a little computer.

I went with the Ipad2 instead of the Ipad3/new Ipad.  Price had a big part of that decision, but also that the older model has great reviews and when it comes down to it Facetime is what we wanted to use (at this point I was still unclear what else one could do with an Ipad, besides download e-books; plus I have a smart phone so I wasn't sure what the tablet offered that I didn't already have access to).  When it came down to memory I asked around and memory doesn't affect Facetime operation, speed, etc. Again not having any other use in mind I went with the 16GB, the Hubby thought we should maybe go at least 32GB but the extra cost didn't make it seem worthwhile...plus the possibility of it not even getting to my Hubby made me really not want to splurge.  I have a feeling I may regret this decision down the road.  The other choice I made was to get the Wi-Fi only instead of the option of 3G.  I figured it will mainly be used at the home anyway.

For accessories:

• 2 x Zagg screen protectors, I wasn't handy putting it on, and ended up throwing it away.  I do have another one I may take in and have someone else install it on mine.
• 1 x Otterbox the Defender series: it had good reviews, was heavy duty, and we have had good luck with the brand in the past. Another bonus, it has a screen proctor sheet built in, so I'm no longer feeling guilty about not getting the Zagg installed on the Hubby's.
• I have not bought a case for mine yet, looking for something a little cuter, or maybe more of a carrier or multi purpose holder.

Making it special

• I pre-registered everything on the Ipad so it is set up and ready to go as soon as my soldier opens the box.
• I setup the contacts and tested out Facetime between the Ipads.  Hopefully it works across the world as well as it did from across the couch.

I also added little surprises for him to discover:

• I played around with the camera and took pictures so he would have something from home pre-loaded.
• I also recorded a little 'I Love You' video message...mainly me rambling about how proud I am of him.  In retrospect I should have cooled my jets and did the video message with the boys in the morning.  Have I mentioned before I have no patience?
• I wrote out a list of reasons I love him on the notepad.
• Had I been thinking more patient, I also would have waited for the list of apps he would like and had them downloaded before sending it off.  (Because the internet isn't that great setting up the account and downloading apps is difficult)

Care Package #9

The Hubby is such a low maintenance guy, with a dash or maybe more of a sprinkle of picky thrown in.  This combo means care packages will largely be request only.  For the Red, White, and Blue care package I sent out, in hopes of it reaching him around the 4th of July, I looked for favorite snacks and food or packaging that tied in with the theme.  Unfortunately it wasn't a huge hit.  Both of us are working on getting in better shape (him buffer, me dropping poundage), so the oreos with blue colored filling and red licorice weren't the kind of snacks he had in mind.  He also isn't a granola bar fan...even the trail mix kind.  He is more interested in protein rich stuff in case a mission or training means he misses the chow hall. I still totally think that granola bars fit the bill...we agreed to disagree.

From here on out I will stick to Jerky, Trail Mix and Dill Pickle flavored sunflower seeds.  I asked about drink mixes to flavor all the water he drinks, but he said so much of that is floating around it isn't worth paying the shipping on it.  I had also wanted to find a way to send his alltime favorite snack of chips and salsa, but he said not to worry about that, because he can buy it there. Thoughtful inspiration taking a hard hit.

Buying the bigger bags of snacks you get more for your money, but travel size are better for the soldier.  I compromised, bought in bulk and included sandwich sized Ziploc bags.  He can make his own serving sized snack packs that shouldn't take up as much room in his ruck.  Thus having the benefit of serving size packaging with the cost savings of buying in bulk!  An added benefit to Ziploc bags is that they can be decorated easily with colored sharpies to make the packaging  more fun. The possibilities are endless! Hello thoughtful inspiration, we meet again!

I also threw in letters and pictures from our niece and nephew, and finger painted pictures from the Toddler. I put the letters and pictures in clear sheet protectors into a 3 ring binder.  That way, as more are sent they can be: protected , kept together for easy viewing, and compact storage that won't take up much space. I can't wait to help the boys make themed art to include in the future packages!  I Made a cover sheet for the binder using Microsoft Publisher. 

Care Package #9 Contents

• Teriyaki jerkey
• Spitz Dill Pickle flavored sunflower seeds
• Trailmix
• Ziplock sandwich bags (Sharpie Marker 'Snacks on the Road' Design)
• 3 ring binder w/letter and pictures in sheet protectors

Care Package #8

This one was another request.  Apparently the army issued boots were not all that fab, and after a couple months and multiple inserts, even getting them broken-in wasn't helping.

I had told him to go ahead and order a different pair while he was still stateside, but he was going try to make the best of it.  Once overseas it became more apparent he needed something more comfortable that wasn't tearing up his feet (he wasn't alone, boots were one of the most requested items mentioned by other wives in the FRG group).  The Hubby wasn't sure about ordering without being able to try them on, I suggested he trace his foot on a piece of paper to get some accurate measurements...not sure if he took that advice but I got an email the next day that a new pair of boots were ordered and on their way to our house.  Today they finally arrived, and as they are pretty well packaged I am just going to fill out the custom form, add a little more tape and drop them off to be mailed overseas.

I am currently working on a handwritten love letter to slip into the package as well.  I don't know if the Hubby likes having something to hold and reread as much as I do, but there sure isn't any harm in it.  Lets see if I can think of anything to write that hasn't been included in the near daily emails (daily emails from me that is...ha, I'm not able to hear back from him all that often).  One of the things I miss most is talking about how our days went together before going to bed for the night.  I am going try out the old standby of squirting a little bit of perfume on the letter, and then sealing it in a zip-lock bag. (Hey you gotta do what you can to keep the romance alive from thousands of miles apart)

Care Packages 5, 6 & 7

I am horrible at actually taking pictures of the care packages...I remember that step after I have already taped the boxes up.  My Hubby asked me to hold off on care packages for awhile because of concern over space restraints and the availability of many supplies. So I tried to hold out as long as I could...at least while he was stateside.

If I am sending him something, I feel like I am supporting him, taking care of him, and comforting him.  I know it is supposed to be about him not me, but I feel helpless when a long time passes and I don't hear from him and writing emails and letters don't seem to cut it for me.  So there you have the truth, sending him packages is as much for me as it is for him.

Anywho...I noticed a lot of the other wives posting about sending packages, what they were sending, and a few even shared what their soldier was requesting.  After pestering inquiring the Hubby about what his needs might be, I ended up with one request...which somehow equates to 3 packages from me.  I'm gonna say something gets lost in the translation or the Walls of Restraint Broke. He would say I tend to overdo things.

Care Package 5: Home Away From Home
My original plan for this one was to send a spray bottle of Febreeze, updated picture of the boys and me, a journal, and mattress pad, and an extra sheet set (with the pillow case in a ziplock bag with a squirt of my perfume).  The idea behind the Home Away From Home Package was to give him some comforts of home and in my mind, make home feel a little closer for him.  Then when he said a mattress pad wouldn't be a bad idea because the mattresses were pretty thin and uncomfy,  it meant to me that it was completely necessary for me to do a comfort bed makeover. So I decided the cheap orginal mattress pad would need returned and upgraded. He also said do not send the extra sheet set, he didn't need it. (Totally keeping the pillowcase idea for down the road though...either that or the old trick of spritzing the handwritten letters)

What ended up in the Package: 4" Memory Foam Mattress topper(here is where the Hubby would accuse me of overdoing things again, but I think he will appreciate it...he usually does). It came in a large box and I decided to tape the heck out of it and send it as is...so I didn't have room for the other non-requested items.

Care Package 6: Red, White & Blue...sort of 
With the 4th of July coming up I wanted to give a themed package another shot.  He hadn't requested anything, he is a very low-maintence-make-due-with-what-you-have guy...with a weird combination of picky thrown in.  So he is a hard person to "wing it" with.  I picked out some snack food that I knew he liked and would be a good source of protein/energy if any missions meant messing the chow hall and some stuff to satisfy his sweet tooth. Where I could I looked for red, white, or blue food and/or packaging.

What ended up in the package: Red licorice, Trail mix granola bars, Ritz cracker stacks with EZCheese (in a Ziplock bag), jerkey, and oreos stuffed with blue frosting.  I also threw in a filled out address book and envelopes, in case he may want to write letters (also for a future Care Package Plan - more on that later), a written letter from me with the Toddler's drawings on back...and front...he got a bit carried away with the pen.

Care Package 7: For Your Family
The recordable Hallmark books have been great for us.  The boys love hearing Daddy's voice and hearing him read to them...and I actually appreciate being able to hear his voice as well.  Phone calls are a such luxury. With the time difference, the internet being great or reliable his voice is something that is treasured in our household.  The last time I was at WalMart I noticed they had four books that we didn't already have, so I picked them up. I think the boys will love getting something in the mail from Dad. I also threw in a Mattress pad thing to go under the flat sheet that is water proof...I don't know how hot the living quarters are, or how good the a/c is...but if he sweats a ton I thought it would serve as some protection for the spendy Memory Foam Mattress Topper I sent, and add a little bit more cushion.

What ended up in the package: The recordable books that he can send back home to the boys whenever he gets a chance and the mattress pad...which also worked well as package cushioning to protect the books.

Care Package #4

Rainbow Swirl Angel Food Cake

I tried it!  I baked a cake in a mason jar!

I had stumbled across www.fiftytwocakes.com. A woman and military spouse who challenged herself to make 52 cakes in a year.  She didn't want her deployed hubby to miss out so every week she sent her husband a cake in a mason jar!  Brilliant!  I am no grand baker, nor am I pushing myself to learn...but I did think that sending cakes in jars to my Hubby would be fun.

I didn't take pictures of the process, but DO follow the tip of not filling the jar over 1/2 full....cake rises *forehead smack*

My husband's favorite cake is angel food, and I failed at the idea of making a matching cake for the Big D and daddy.  The Birthday in a Box carepackage didn't happen.  Which as it turns out is okay.  Hubby informed me N-O knickknacks, nothing that takes up space, there just isn't room....but go ahead and send the cake...lol.

As I learned my lesson that hubby isn't into decorated packages, I kept it plain jane. He prefers that I stick to requests or something disposable as they are just flat limited on space. Apparently the appreciation of pizzaz is just a me thing. He just throws it all away and could care less.  Sentiment is nice, but share it in an email. Gotcha, over and out!

***For significant others who DO appreciate decor and presentation - I think it would be fun to include party favors, a mini pennant banner maybe out of felt and bakers twine, confetti, or print off pictures from the party on regular paper to line the box. ***


This week's request - beef jerky and trail mix, and of course the cake with a plastic fork!

I used a Betty Crocker Angel Food box mix...well because it was late, the kids were crabby, I finally had them in bed, I wanted to go to bed, plus I was tired and lazy.  Box mix it is.  I put a few drops of food coloring in, hoping to get a swirly rainbow-esque batter to hint at the Birthday boys layered rainbow cake.  Uhmm...it was okay, but not really what I was going for.  I couldn't help myself but at least dress up the jar with some ribbon before wrapping it up tight in grocery bags (next shopping trip I am stocking up on bubble wrap).

Done and Done!

Care Package #1

This one is purely requests. No theme.  The Hubby asked me to send his poncho liner, seat-belt cutter, and extra set of dog tags he forgot to pack.  So this one will be fairly simple.

...but, because I am me and want to try to make everything special.  I  used scrapbook paper  to wrap the inside of the box with a few extras: a handwritten note, lemon drops and licorice (Hubby's favs...I think). I also put an embossed 'Live, Laugh, Love' reminder at the bottom)  I going to try and include/hide a postive message or quote in every care package.

I didn't take a picture because I was running late dropping the kiddos off to daycare and ended up assembling at work.  I used a medium flat rate box, future care packages I will use the large flat rate, to fit more goodies. Next time I think I will use rubber cement to stick the paper to the inside of the box instead of photo mount spray adhesive (I stank horribly in the office, seriously had to crack a window and pray no one passed out)

I did request the Hubby to snap and picture and text it to me though.  So there may be a picture possibility in the future.



**Care Package Posts are two-fold.  1) The Hubby can see if he is getting his packages. I have heard the  packages are checked before being delivered to the soldier and not everything you send may get to the intended recipient. 2) Might help in the future for someone else needing care package ideas**

Time to Panic?

The hubby's deployment is set for this Spring, and well with the 70+ degree weather outside its sinking in that Spring is coming. Well technically as of this week its here. WOW! the time is creeping up on us faster than I would like.  He keeps telling me, the faster it gets here the faster its over.  With the training he has left, I have realized time at home with my whole family is getting limited.

Next moment of panic, I started remembering all kinds of projects we need to get done around the house. But mostly I am in planning mode! Hubby agreed to let me throw him a pre-deployment party.
 
Send-Off Party (what I have planned so far):

• I would like to get a bunch of his friends and family together a before he goes to they can tell him how proud they are of him and give him the support he deserves.  Problem, I only know his more immediate family and don't know who else to invite because we live in the small town he grew up in...he knows everybody...and I don't.  Word of mouth, open invite in the paper? Tacky, yes or no?
• I ordered invites from Mixbook.com to send out also.  Love them!
• I'm thinking a patriotic theme.  Orientaltrading.com has some americana bunting ($6 each); bundle of american flags ($4.25 for 144); support out troops flags ($5.99 for 72) ;Tin centerpieces ($13/dozen).  I think the prices are pretty good. I already have garland, my MIL has 4th of July plates and napkins.  I also ordered some Americana table runners ($4.99 each, but I had coupons) from Hobby Lobby. So for decorations I will spend under $70.00. (Bonus: down the road the extras can be used for 4th of July decorations...and of course the Welcome Home Party!!)
• Red, White, and Blue Balloons.. I'll probably tie them to the tin centerpieces. Easy decoration and kid entertainment.
• Apothecary jars filled with red, white, & blue candy...or sand?
• I have most everything on hand for the food. I'm thinking simple, just sloppy joes w/salads. 
• My awesome and talented cake making Aunt is making the cake.  I am super excited to see what she comes up with.  I will definitely post pictures (with her approval of course).
• My boss said I could use the safety room at work (very large room already set up with table and chairs, also setup for a buffet with outlets accessible)
• I want to get letters and notes from all the people in his life to incorporate into care packages.  So he can have words of encouragement that will keep on coming throughout his deployment. 
• On the invites I asked guests to come prepared to share their favorite memories of/with the Hubby.  I will have them write those memories down, or possibly record them, and will be putting together a special little scrapbook to send to him.  Whenever he feels homesick, he can see that we are missing him too!
• I am also planning on having an address book/notebook for people to write down their name and email addresses if they would like me to share updates.

***I deal with stress by getting wrapped up in something and planning.  I am aware the little details don't ultimately matter, but it's one of my ways of showing I care. With so much out of my control, I like planning for what I can.***

Anyone have any ideas or tips they would be willing to share?

I will be using the blog with my ideas for weekly care packages.  I am actually going to start putting some together before he leaves, and once he is over there and has requests I will add in the necessary items to the sentimental/novelty ones.