Barnes and Noble…one of our favorite places to go! There is a fabulous one within ten minutes of our house that even has a Starbucks in it. Books, magazines and a Starbucks? What more can a girl ask for?    We make it a habit to hang out there at least once a week. It is also kind of works as a bribe for my youngest son who is not keen on doing homework…have anyone like that in your house? I pick him up from his bus stop and we go straight there to get a Blondie Blast, his favorite treat, under the condition that he does his homework there. He also gets a break in between subjects to hit the upstairs where he peruses the kids books, which he also loves. Anyway, we have been participating in their annual Christmas book drive for the last few years.

Tonight is the night we made our way to Barnes and Noble for each of the kids to pick out a book that they think another child/young adult would like to read. They purchase them at the front and then Barnes and Noble delivers them to the school that they are participating with. It is something very small but when combined with many other things, it should wrap up into one big feeling of helping those in need. Once home, we made up a list of other projects and activities that we could participate in as a family to bring some joy to others this Christmas season.

Some ideas that we came up with:

Shoe Boxes for Samaritan’s Purse

Cradles to Crayons Un Gala this Saturday the 7th

Heffer International

National Wildlife Foundation Adopt an Animal

Ronald McDonald House-sign up as a family to make and serve dinner

Various Food Bank Drives that are being held throughout our area

Spend the day at their Great Grandmother’s house helping her decorate, do repairs and clean up

There are many ways that we can become an angel to another in this season where people’s needs, emotionally and physically, are often felt more deeply.