Something To Put A Smile On Their Face | Operation Christmas Child 2015

Halloween is out of the way, Bonfire Night will be done and dusted by the end of next week so why not get a little Christmassy here on my blog today. Today i'm going to be sharing with you an initiative called Operation Christmas Child by the charity Samaritan's Purse. I'm going to put it straight out there, this is not sponsored. Blogging allows me to connect with people all over the world, therefore I feel it is my duty to share good things and thoughts in order to have a positive influence on those reading. Anyway, let's get on with this and allow me to explain a little more about it.

What is Operation Christmas Child?

Samaritan's Purse is the charity that runs Operation Christmas Child. Operation Christmas Child allows anybody in most countries around the world to send a shoe box full of gifts including hygiene items, school supplies and toys to a child somewhere in a less developed country to enable them to have a happier Christmas. If you'd like to find out more, just search Operation Christmas Child followed by where you live as each country has a different website with specific details on how to pack a box. For example, Operation Christmas Child UK. Or you can click here, if you're from the UK.

How to pack a shoe box?

First of all you should wrap your shoe box ensuring the lid and box are wrapped separately. You should then pop a label on top stating whether your box is for a boy or girl and which age range. I did a box for a boy and a girl, both aged 5 to 9.

Next you should fill your box with gifts, including hygiene items, school supplies and toys. However, I must make you aware there are some restrictions on what you can put in as these are going to be flown across the world, therefore you should avoid food, liquids and sharp objects. There are also some restrictions on toys such as war-related toys(soldiers, guns, knives), hand-made stuffed toys and playing cards. If you're unsure, click here to find a more in-depth list of what you can and can't include. 

Here I've included pictures and a list of what I've packed in each box, i'm sure you'll be able to tell but the first is for a boy(aged 5-9) and the second is for a girl(aged 5-9).

HYGIENE ITEMS

-Toothbrushes

 -Toothpaste

-Bar of soap and a flannel

-Comb/hair brush

SCHOOL SUPPLIES

-Notebook

-Ballpoint pens
-Pencils

-Colouring pencils
-Ruler

-Eraser and sharpener 

TOYS

-Train set
-Truck

-Animal figures

-Doll

-Jewellery making set

OTHER
-Hat/Scarf/Gloves
-Hair accessories

-Colouring/Activity book

-Sweets(best before date must be at least March of the following year) 

MAKE SURE THE LID CAN SHUT!

The only items missing are a colouring/activity book for both and hair accessories for the girl as I feel the box is a little emptier compared to the boys. You should also make sure that the lid of your box can close properly, you don't want to loose anything!

How much will this cost?

I know you're probably thinking this, how much is this going to set me back? 

Not a huge amount in my case, though it does depend where you shop.

I cannot recommend Wilko enough for hygiene and stationary items. For example for a two pack of toothbrushes it cost just 18p! I went for the bigger pack of pencils which cost 50p each, however they do have smaller packets for 18p so it depends on your budget.

For the toys, i'd shop around the pound shops. I have a few in my town so I went into each looking for appropriate toys, a hat and glove set and sweets. 

So far in total i've spent £16.09. You must also donate £3 for you box to be shipped, you can either include this within the box or you can pay online. I am going to do this online as they give you a barcode which you can stick in your boxes to track them. You will then recieve an email in the new year to find out where your box has gone!

Grand Total(2 boxes) = Under £25

Of course, I understand that not everybody has that much to give. You could just do one box, which would come in under £15 with the £3 donation included in that price. However, you could do a box with the basic necessities including hygiene items, some stationary with one or two toys, which would be even cheaper! I'm sure whatever you can give will put a huge smile on a child's face. You and your friends could also gather any small change/pocket money you have to create a box between you. There's no better feeling than doing a good deed! 

How do I send it off?

Once everything is in your box, including the £3 donation to ship it- i'd recommend putting an elastic band around it to keep the lid on and to prevent loosing anything from your box. You should then take it to your local drop off point. This can be done from today up until 18th November, so you've got just over 2 weeks to do so! You'll be able to find your local drop off point, here.

And that's it, you've done your good deed for the day and i'm sure you'll make a child very happy on Christmas morning! There's no better feeling!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This post was a little different to what you'd usually see on my blog, but I hope you enjoyed finding out about an amazing initiative and I really hope some of you will go and look more into this. Of course, if it's not practical for you this year due to lack of funds or time then you can keep it in mind for next year!

I hope you've had a lovely week. Let me know what you think of this idea in the comments below!

♥   ♥   ♥

July Goals Update | Life

Seeing as there are only two days left of July, I thought i'd update you on my July Goals(here) as promised. I'm also planning on doing a favourites this month so keep your eyes peeled for that on Sunday. Lets see what I've managed to complete this July then...

1. Finish college and my work placement. 

Check! College and placement done and dusted, I completed my diploma in Childcare and Education and came out with an A which i'm super pleased about! I also finished my last days experience in a local primary school and although I was sad to be leaving. I was so excited to start my summer holidays. I also received some lovely gifts from the children and staff, including a gorgeous personalised photo box and beautiful flowers-  which may I add are surprisingly still alive, 2 weeks later! You can see these on my Instagram (@xtracesofmythoughts)

2. Get a job interview. 

I finally got a job interview after handing in many applications to fill the role as a Teaching Assistant in a primary school. The interview didn't go too bad, besides not getting it- I received some good feedback! I am also in the process of enrolling with teaching agencies so hopefully I can get on doing supply work in September!

3. Complete a Paediatric First Aid Course. 

I am now qualified in Paediatric First Aid, woo! Not only will this help me in search for a job but this is also a skill I think everyone should have some knowledge of. I was surprised how little I knew but now I know what to do if someone started choking or was unconscious and not breathing- hopefully those situations never arise though!

4. Spend more time outside.

The weather hasn't been too amazing the past couple of weeks but at the beginning of July we were experiencing a mini heatwave. When the weathers been ok I've tried to sit in the garden and get some much needed vitamin D but I've also tried walking places more to save money and keep fit.

5. Spend more time with family.

I've been to a couple more family gatherings, it's been so nice to catch up with family I haven't spoken/seen properly in years and I hope to visit more often throughout the month of August.

6. Exercise more.

I was going to half cross this out but I thought i'd better not cheat. I was planning on going running a couple of times or more a week, that hasn't happened as my friends been busy and has been fitting her fitness in before/after work at the gym. I however, well I've been walking a lot more so that sort of counts right?

7. Choose healthier options.

For the majority of the month I've been trying to prepare healthier meals, sweet potatoes have become my best friend as I cannot stay away from carbs and they're a little healthier than your regular white potato. I've also been trying to encouragement salad/veg to every meal(except breakfast) and I've been making smoothies/juices with our new blender. I'm also trying to cut out the snacks after 8pm, which i'm doing quite well at!

8. Give my room a little makeover.

I've not had chance to do this unfortunately. I did however pull everything out, hoover, polish and basically spring clean my room. I have a net above my bed which i'd like to take down but i'm stuck on what to put there instead as i'll just have plain white walls which will look a little odd.

9. Give myself a little makeover.

Another, I've unfortunately not been able to achieve. I wanted to do something with my hair like dye it or get a new style but i'm too scared to dye my hair again as it takes for ages to grow out and I really don't know what to do with my hair. 

10. Blog more.

My blogging schedule before July was posting once a week on Sundays. However, I wanted to up my game and blog more often as I enjoy it so I've been posting on Wednesdays and Sundays. As I've been getting more ideas recently, I may post once or twice more throughout the week in August. Very exciting!

Overall, July hasn't been that bad. I do not have to wake up before 7:30 for the time being and I've been a lot happier! I'm very much looking forward to August as i'm hoping to see more of my family, there are a couple of birthdays and I may be going away for a few days to South Devon so watch this space as i'm sure there will be travel related posts to come if I decide to go.

What are your plans/goals for August?

Let me know!

♥   ♥   ♥

July Goals | Life

Today's post will be short and snappy. I'm going to share with you a few of my goals for the month of July.

1. Finish college and my work placement. 

I believe I've mentioned this before but I have to complete a work placement along side my college course to gain experience working with children. My last day is on the 10th of July and although i'm a little gutted to be leaving as I love it so much, I am very excited to start my summer properly.

2. Get a job interview. 

Recently I've been applying for jobs to start in September, working full-time. However, I've not been very successful in my search but i'm hoping something will crop up that I can attend an interview for or even secure a job. Fingers crossed!

3. Complete a Paediatric First Aid Course. 

I found out that a centre near me will be running a First Aid Course this month and though i'm yet to book- I plan on doing it. Not only will this help me in my job search and when working with children, I also feel this is a very handy skill to have.

4. Spend more time outside.

It is well known that the sun can really help to solve skin problems such as spots or acne. I always try to get my daily dose of Vitamin D but i'll be trying extra hard to step outside and just enjoy being outdoors whether that be in my garden or out and about with friends.

5. Spend more time with family.

You may have seen my previous post: here, where I mentioned I met up with family that I haven't seen in years. I'd like to continue to do this so my plan for this summer, starting now is to visit family on a regular basis.

6. Exercise more.

I feel this occurs in a lot of peoples goals or resolutions but I really mean it. I'd like to loose weight but more importantly become healthier and fitter. Me and my friend have tried to go for a run at least once a week and we've decided to step it up a notch and go every other day or whenever possible.We'll see how that's gone at the end of the month.

7. Choose healthier options.

I'm constantly trying to eat healthier and shift a bit of weight but who can resit a couple of biscuits with their cup of tea!? Instead of just jumping to the junk food, i'm trying to consider and eat healthier options. Goodbye bread, hello crispbread and salad.

8. Give my room a little makeover.

I've never really been completely happy with the area at the end of my bed so I've decided to ditch the bed net, you know those mosquito nets that you see quite often on Tumblr and maybe add some clear fairy lights or just go completely simplistic and have a shelf with a few bits and bobs on.

9. Give myself a little makeover.

Nothing too drastic don't worry, I just mean sorting my hair out. I haven't dyed my hair in about 3/4 years but i'd like to change it up a little. I'm not entirely sure what colour i'd like but I shall have a think and get back to you on that one. If not I may just have a restyle!

10. Blog more.

Last but not least as I soon shall be off for summer, i'll have more time to blog so i'd like to get up at least two posts a week- if not more! I'd really appreciate if you could leave some post suggestions for the summer below in the comments!

WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS FOR THIS JULY?

♥   ♥   ♥

July Favourites

Hello!
I honestly cannot believe how fast July has gone by, I feel like I say this each month but July has come by and gone in a flash! I didn't even get around to doing my June monthly favourites, but here I am back with with things I've been loving this July, as the title states!

The Body Shop Vitamin E Cream Cleanser- £8.50 here.

First up is The Body Shop Vitamin E Cream Cleanser(hoping this hasn't been mentioned in a favourites before). I purchased the smaller sized bottle of this to try it out before I spent £8.50 on the larger bottle and then find out I don't actually like it. I'm glad I did although after a few uses I realised I loved it, it's so gentle and makes my skin feel so clean and soft! I've also experienced less breakouts as a result of using just 2 cleansers, one in the morning and this in the night after removing my makeup! I've also tried the moisturiser from the same range and really like that too, so I think i'm definitely going to try more!

L'Oreal True Match and Rimmel Lasting Finish- here and here.

I had a Rimmel foundation sitting in my makeup storage that I haven't used in a while as I'm not too keen on the foundation on it's own- it's the shade up from what i'd usually get too. I thought rather than not waste it i'd mix a little with my current L'Oreal True Match foundation for the summer, believe it or not I do get a little colour on my face rather than being the palest of pales. The L'Oreal True Match offers a satin to matte finish but mixed with the Rimmel 25 hour foundation offers a dewy finish which I love in the summer, without looking oily! I love the colour and finish it gives on my skin so will definitely continue to use this combination throughout the summer!

Tea Tree Water (Toner Water)- £3.95 for 100ml here.

Eu Natural!

The last beauty related item i've been loving this month is the Lush Tea Tree Toner Water, again I purchased this in the smaller bottle to see if I liked it, i'm so pleased as the bottle isn't even that small- I think it's the perfect size to use within the use-by-date. I bought this as my skin can be quite oily so I thought i'd give this ago to combat the oils and keep my skin clean throughout the day and after cleansing. Tea Tree has anti-bacterial properties so is perfect to keep your skin at it's cleanest and prevent spots, i'd definitely give this a go if you have oily skin- it's also super refreshing in the warmer months!

The sandals I've been wearing, they're well worn in from H&M about 2 years ago.

Mentioning the warmer months there, Wales is actually experiencing 'Summer'. This is rare as normally we get the odd few days then the weathers back to its usual self, grey and dreary! The weather has been so nice recently, it's actually warm enough to go without a jacket and wear sandals..although that's not a favourite of mine, people with their feet out- not the prettiest sight! I've loved being out in the garden in the Sun to get my daily dose of Vitamin D, like we all should be! I hope the weather sticks around especially when I'm off on my travels to the South of England.

You may of seen me mention a few times that my sisters moving out, and that she has now! Although that's not what I've been enjoying but I have been enjoying shopping with her. We've been quite often recently and although I do like shopping on my own, I don't mind accompanying her when she wants to do some shopping. After all, who would say no to shopping? Not me! Keep an eye out, you'll see a haul here very soon!

Lemon Ice Tea in the sun.

Last but not least, I've been loving drinking Lemon Ice Tea- so refreshing in the summer! I only actually tried it a month or 2 ago but I actually love it! I'm so glad I ventured out to try something new as I don't do that often. I do enjoy the Lipton Ice Tea(only the lemon flavour) when i'm out and about, but my Mum also buys a big bottle from I think it's Lidl as she spotted it in there when buying our fruit!

That's it for this months favourites, what have you been enjoying this month? Let me know!

Amy X

The Summer Wishlist 2014

Hello!
Today I thought i'd share with you what i'm hoping to get done and dusted this summer seeing as we've recently had quite a nice few days, the weather has put me in the mood! So that's what i'll be sharing with you today and I'll get straight into it!

1. To spend as much time outside and make the most of warmer weather and just being outdoors in general. 

2. Catch up with old school friends, of course! I really have not seen them enough through the academic year so I will definitely get my planning head on and get organising! Hopefully some day trips including London or Bristol-shopping, visiting the beach(I stress visiting, not actually going onto the beach as I hate sand!) and just spending more time together!

3. Continue working hard and stop procrastinating! I've heard that Pisces are hard workers but even harder procrastinators and I truly live up to that trait! I have work to do over the summer for the biggest assignment of my course, so I need to get that done and out of the way but I've kept putting it off!  I completed the work I had to do over summer. I also got my exam result back, I finished my first college year with an overall A, yay(squealing)!

Here.

4. To start Pen-palling! I've wanted to do this for a while now and bringing my parents around to the idea is proving harder than I expected!

Dawlish Warren- please note this is not my photo, you can find it here(credit to the photographer Gary Reggae)

5. Mentioning my parents there, I'd also like to spend more time with my family! Especially appreciating my sisters as the eldest is moving out this summer, and I don't see much of my other sister as she's either at her boyfriends house or will be working! I'm also warming to the idea of visiting England and Plymouth area in particular to spend a week or two away with family and in general investigate the area as this is somewhere I'd like to go to Uni!

6. Talking about Uni, aye smooth transitions! I'd like to attend at least 1 Uni open day, as other colleges seem to have done so much more to do with Uni and my college have done nothing! 

7. I'd like to do something to my hair, it's been the same boring growing out colour for about 2 years. It's also changed to a mix of light brown, coppers and blondes! I'm not enjoying it and would like to go a lighter ashy blonde colour!

Here.

8. To always consider healthier options. Now i'm not exactly over the moon with my weight, i'd like to loose a little and just get fitter and healthier in general. Summer is fab for that as I love salads in the warmer weather!

9. To change something in my life, whether this be just saying 'Yes' to more, getting a new job, or even changing my room around to start-a-fresh. 

10. Last but certainly not least, to re-vamp my blog! I've had a little play around to see how I can make my blog more appealing for the time being but i'd really like to change the layout and 'theme' of how it looks, considering the colours etc!

So there you have it, a run down of what i'd like to get done this summer! I may even come back to this post and cross off what I've achieved, or do a completely new blog post to tell you and reflect on the summer.
I hope you've enjoyed hearing what i'd like to get done this summer, i'd love to know what's on your Summer 2014 Wish List! Let me know in the comments below or link me to your blog if you've done it and i'll definitely check it out! 

Until next time, 

Amy X