Last night, the Beehives were in charge of the activity – a gift exchange & making cards for a local pediatric unit. During the planning session in September, I think the girls were feeling a bit adventurous when we planned two activities in one night, but who was I to argue?
As I lugged my load of supplies into the building, I noticed the heating vents were in high gear. While I rolled up my sleeves to get things situated (& cool down), I asked one of the Beehive counselors to get things started. Though she’s a little shy, she conducted and much to my delight, she did a great job! I love our young women. When you challenge them, they always rise to the occasion and exceed my expectations. They never cease to amaze me.
White Elephant gift exchange games are funny and random. As we looked at the long table of festively-wrapped gifts, none of us could imagine all of the wonderful gems they held. One of the girls opened a box and we burst into raucous laughter; she began to pull out an old stocking… but, it did not stop there! The sock continued to come out similar to a magician pulling multiple scarves out of a hat. The stockings, which were sewn together in a long, rope-like manner, held $5 in change – which was the limit of our gift exchange. Besides the stocking, there was a little plush puppy in a purple, plush purse (similar to Paris Hilton’s Chihuahua), a Christmas ribbon that shook & played music, old jewelry, used candles, and some lovely, bright pink toe socks.
As people were finishing the sly swapping of gifts, I set up the “card-making bonanza table”, complete with cardstock, punches, adhesives, ribbons, rotary cutters and loads of scrap paper. The girls, who took to the service project like a fish to water, were a flurry of activity for the next hour. In the end, we had 24 handmade cards – each of which had heartfelt notes of holiday greetings & well-wishes for the patients at Children’s Hospital. Again, the girls did a great job and it was fun to see their personalities reflected in the way they created their cards.
Despite the fact that I felt I was rushing people through each minute of the night, everyone seemed to have a nice, enjoyable evening. As we were cleaning up and putting the supplies back in the bins, I picked up the red envelope brimming with the girls’ cards and started to smile: the Christmas spirit is finally here!
2 comments:
I must admit it was one of the best activities we have had. I loved seeing the cards each girl made and how different they were. We really have a very talented group of girls. By the way, the socks were the left overs from the dryer who must have eaten the mates. You know how you hang on to them hoping the dryer will cough it up one day,,,alas the lonely socks seem to multiply. What better way than to share with someone who might have a mate at their house...hmm just a thought.
I've enjoyed each of your latest posts, but this one is my favorite. Thanks for sharing how the Christmas spirit got started for you this year. ....Tell Dave the story about his lovely dinner was my second favorite. It makes my heart smile that he's being so good to you!
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