Project Smile: Day 2

#1: Who wouldn't smile waking up to this adorable little face?? I have 2 of the best dogs ever, they might not always be the best behaved but I love them so much. This picture is of my pitbull Karma (aka Karmie, Charmie, Karmalaid, or Mammas). My family rescued her a few years ago & she has been living with us ever since. She is by far the sweetest, most loving dog in the world. Not violent at all, for all of those who think ALL pitbulls are terrible dogs. She had a lot of energy though and she will lick your face off. I also have a siberian husky named Diesel that my hubby bought me 6 years ago. He's the love of my life and absolutely gorgeous. If you couldn't tell I am a HUGE dog lover. One of my favorite things ever is waking up in the morning when Karma is sleeping with me, I love that she has to be cuddled up right next to me and usually she has her head lying on my pillow as well. So today when I was lying in my bed and I looked over and saw this little face sticking out of the blanket, it definitely made me smile :)

#2: I LOVE putting together care packages. Something about knowing I am helping bring a little color into such a dark place makes me feel really good. I love going to the grocery store and picking out goodies and toys that I think Alex will like, it is a very rewarding feeling. He loves getting boxes and although I really wouldn't want to be in Afghanistan, part of me would love to be there just to see the smile on his face when we gets a package. Today I am putting together a box that I will be sending off tomorrow. Here are a few of things I am going to include in the box: the CD of pictures I just had taken for him for Valentine's Day, a copy of our marriage certificate, brownies, dip, cigarettes, candy, and a set of earphones he asked me to send. I am sure I will add more stuff but for now that is it. I can't wait for him to get the pictures :) I KNOW he is going to love them!! Part of my favorite thing about putting together packages is baking goodies and hand making some of the items out in it. I also love the look on the cashiers face when I go into a liquor store and ask for a log of dip and a carton of cigarettes. They look at me like I am crazy. So bottom line, doing something that I know makes my man happy, ultimately makes me happy also.

#3: ZUMBA!! I can not even begin to explain to you how happy Zumba makes me. I do not like going to the gym and lifting weights or running on the treadmill, it bores me. But Zumba is amazing and so much fun. It's a mixture between salsa, belly dancing, and hip hop. I feel better about myself after class and I am actually sleeping better at night. Not to mention I sweat my butt off at every class so I know for sure I am losing weight. I highly suggest everyone looks for a local Zumba class in your area. I promise that you will enjoy it.

Looks like I am 2 for 2 :) Today has been pretty good. I took the day off of life and did nothing all day. I stayed home, in my pajamas, and just did stuff around the house. It felt amazing. I got stuff put together for Alex's care package, played with my dogs, and got some important stuff mailed out. I don't work so it's not like my life is stressful by any means, but sometimes I feel like I am running errands everyday and there is always something I have to get done. So today it was nice to just do nothing. Everyone deserves a day like that. I am happy to say that Project Smile: Day 2 was also a success :) Wooohooo....that just made me smile!!

Care Packages

Sorry it has been a few days since I have written anything, this last week has been hectic. I had a request to write about care packages (what to send and what not to send) so here ya go.

First off, when he first leaves it will take at least a week if not more for him to settle in and find out his exact address. Yea I know, it’s annoying and I am sure you are ready right now to start sending things off to your love. Be patient and in the meantime you can always start putting your boxes together and filling out the awesome custom forms (insert sarcastic voice here).

Here is a list of stuff you can send that he will ALWAYS need:

Baby wipes: You can never go wrong with those. Depending on where they are, they won’t get to shower very often. So in the meantime, baby wipes are the next best thing.

Powder Drink Mixes: These are awesome!! All they have to do is add these to water and they’ll have a yummy drink. Since the packages are so small, you’re able to send a bunch of different flavors from lemonade to fruit punch.

Candy: I don’t even need to elaborate on this one. Who doesn’t love candy?

Yummy Goodies: You can send brownies, cookies, rice krispies treats, and so on. BUT don’t forget that mail takes anywhere from 3-6 weeks to get to there…and sometimes longer. So make sure that the snacks you make won’t go bad in that amount of time. One thing that helps is to vacuum seal the container you send it in.

Socks/Boxers: Always a necessity.

Beef Jerky/Crackers/Chips: Any kind of snack food they will love. Even if he doesn’t like what you send, someone there will appreciate it.

Now here are some things that he might not necessarily need but he’ll appreciate:

DVD’s: It’s always nice to have something to pass the time. If he doesn’t have a computer or portable DVD player to watch it on, most likely someone else there will.

Tobacco: The ban on sending tobacco to troops overseas was lifted in August of 2010, so it is ok now to send chew and cigarettes to your men.

Phone Cards: This one all depends on where they are. Some bases have a px where they can buy a phone card but some do not. I would recommend sending a rechargeable phone card so they, or you, can just go online and buy more minutes whenever needed.

Pictures: I HIGHLY recommend sending pictures for your man to put up around his sleeping area. The more pictures he has the closer he will feel to home. If you want to send “racy” pictures, I would suggest sending a CD with them on there. Sometimes the packages are opened before getting to your guy so unless you want your pictures seen by other people, I would be careful how you send them. But I do suggest sending that kind of picture also. He’s lonely over there, help a guy out J

5-Hour Energy Shots: The name explains it all. They work crazy hours and sometimes are up for a couple days at a time. They need all the energy they can get.

Lotion/Chapstick: The weather conditions out there suck so their poor skin is going to be battling a lot or sand, rain, snow, and crazy temperatures. Good lotion and chapstick are a must.

Electric Blanket: Not all bases are heated so this definitely will come in handy, especially during the winter. I know that is breaks my heart to think of my husband going to bed cold at night.

What NOT To Send:

Alcohol: OBVIOUSLY. To be completely blunt, if you are thinking about sending him alcohol or he is asking for it, shame on both of you.

Drinks: You can send cans of soda or energy drinks IF you want but I wouldn’t suggest it for the obvious reasons of it exploding in the box. If you do decide you want to send them make sure to wrap them in individual baggies in case they do explode they wont ruin anything else you are sending.

Right now this is everything I can think of off the top of my head, if you have anything else you can think of please feel free to add it in a comment. This website will help you a lot: http://www.usps.com/supportingourtroops/welcome.htm