Operation Christmas Child 2012

This year we had Operation Christmas Child on our minds all year long. We did the same thing that we did last year, saving up a few items here and there. It helps to really connect these items that we send to the child who will be receiving it.

Our MOPS group collected 85 shoeboxes this year!! And we added the boxes that were collected to those collected by Redwood Christian for over 200 shoeboxes. 🙂 Can’t you just imagine the smiles on the faces of the 200 children who will be receiving these boxes? It might be the only gift that some of these little ones will receive all year. National Collection Week has come and gone, but if you weren’t able to pack a shoebox, it’s NOT TOO LATE!! Click on over to Samaritan Purse’s website to BUILD-A-BOX!

Some more exciting stuff about Operation Christmas Child…..
OCC was started in 1990, and this Christmas, the 100 MILLIONTH shoebox will be delivered! Not only that, but it will be delivered by one of my blogging friends who I serve with on the Inspired to Action team, Amanda! And….not only that, but the 100 millionth shoebox will be delivered in the Dominican Republic where our Compassion child Solissa lives!!

Wrapping paper, collected items, and shoeboxes, oh my!

Choosing their shoebox wrapping paper

Bracelets – we’ve got lots to share!

We divided the items into the 2 shoeboxes.

Emily’s Box

Melody’s Box

Choosing which toothbrushes to put in

Squish – our method to put as much as possible into the boxes is to put smaller items into the bigger items

It fits!

Squish some more

And all the stuff fit into Melody’s shoebox as well. 🙂

There were actually a few more items not pictured that we put in there as well. I wonder how they go through all those shoeboxes to check on items before sending them off. I’m hoping that one day we will be able to go to a collection center to volunteer. How fun would that be!?

We totally did ours early this year (at the beginning of October I think…??) and then I completely forgot to take a picture of the girls holding their boxes. 😦 But here they are filling in their letters:

Did you pack a shoebox this year? What did you put in there?

Operation Christmas Child 2010 Shoebox Packing | Update | 2011