Christmas Gifts

Ok, Christmas is just around the corner. I can admit that, but PEOPLE, doesn't anyone follow the "wait until the day after Thanksgiving to listen to Christmas music and refrain from decorating everything absurdly soon after Halloween" rule anymore?

I, for one, hope to strictly adhere to that rule for the rest of my life. I do not like Thanksgiving to get overlooked. I is the day we are to be thankful for crying out loud, not the day to already obsess over what "stuff" we should give and get over the next month.

Enough about that. I do want to share a few favorite things that I think you should buy for Christmas that will help others at the same time. Sounds like a win-win situation to me!

First of all, please consider supporting our friends Shane and Kristin in their ministry to kids in East St. Louis.  In fact, if you plan on giving us a gift, just tell us that you gave money to Shane and Kristin and we will be tickled pink! You can give them the following amounts of money that go towards really cool gifts for the kids:

-$5: Buys one book for a child 
-$25: Pays for a meal hosted at the Fast's house for local kids
-$35: Buys a coat for one child
-$50: Covers the cost of food for one of their bible studies. {I especially appreciate this one because they feed guys physically first, then feed them spiritually}


You can find out how to give on their website. 

Another cool gift {for the ladies} are these amazing cosmetic bags made by my sweet friend over at We Three Pilgrims.  I have this one and absolutely love it. It holds all of my make up, plus travel shampoo, conditioner, face wash etc.

We also must admit that we like Toms shoes. I cannot believe that I am actually typing that. And by "we" I mean Thomas talked me into liking them. Can you believe that? I used to give my friend Katie quite a hard time for wearing them. I called them all sorts of ugly names. Alas, I was young and ignorant, and have now seen the light. For every pair of shoes you buy, they give a pair to a shoe-less child in another country. You can watch the video here.  I especially like the boots, but haven't bought them yet, so I can't tell you how they fit:

 I also must admit that Tiger Plums Etsy shop makes me want to buy a million things and give them to all of my nieces and nephews! Alas, I would be in debit if I bought all 10 of them something cute from this site. One of the player's wives here introduced me to this site and her baby was wearing the Gobble Gobble Turkey Day is Here onesie. And it was one of the cutest things I've ever seen! I know it may be a little late to buy Thanksgiving Themed onesies, but I am obsessed with this one:



If you liked the book stamp that had Thomas' name on it in my previous post, you can browse them here. They are kinda pricey but you'd think Thomas got a million dollars when my sister gave him his stamp. He even stamped his legs one time in a fit of sheer boredom. He forgot that he'd stamped himself and guys in the locker room were making fun of him later. So don't stamp your leg.

 You can also get one with your address on it! I am wanting one really badly but getting anything printed with my address on it would be foolish. And basically like throwing $45 in the trash. And I don't wanna do that.

In light of these suggestions, please enjoy Thanksgiving FIRST, then crank up the Christmas tunes and tree lights.