Just about the only thing I like about having my children living away from home is the excuse I have to make up care packages for them. It is so much fun to get a package in the mail, and I love the idea of making them happy, surprising them, and cheering up their day with a little something unexpected from home. Plus, I always want them to know that wherever they may live, they are continually on my mind.
So, I wanted to send some sort of Halloween care package to both Lyndsay and Dylan. Of course, pumpkins come to mind, but pumpkins would be ridiculously expensive to ship, so I thought of Jack-be-Littles and their bigger cousin Tiger Stripe. And since they're too little to really carve (and carving would be messy in a dorm, in Lyndsay's case, and in Dylan's, he'll probably get to do that with his dad), I thought that decorating them with markers could be satisfying for both of my artistic children. So began my hunt for mini-pumpkins, which I finally found at Trader Joe's. (Should have started there.)
Of course, some candy had to go in the package. The Cadbury Screme Eggs are new to me this year (thank you, Cadbury!) as are the White Chocolate Candy Corn M&Ms. I sent more candy to Lyndsay, because I imagine Dylan will still have access to lots of candy either through Trick-or-Treating, or from raiding the bags of his younger brothers. And, I wanted Lyns to have some to share with roommates or friends.
I went to Office Depot to get the markers for the pumpkin decorating (which I'm sure will get lots of use beyond that), and I saw this cute owl USB that practically screamed Lyndsay's name to me, so I picked that up and tossed it in her package too.
Plenty of color options. Little ribbons for the stems would be cute too. They each got their own set of markers and 3 pumpkins.
And I sent Lyns some Halloween-colored lights that she can decorate her dorm with. I think they'll fit perfectly on the shelves above her desk.
Then I got them each a card and we all signed it for them with a little message. I asked them in my message to take a picture of their decorated pumpkins, so we'll see if they do, and what they come up with. Off they went to the post office! I hope they enjoy!
(And I hope they're not reading my blog, or that others who do will not spoil the surprise!)