Have you had fun at our backyard party? I hope so! I have so enjoyed reading and interacting with your comments. Hearing all your fabulous ideas and insight makes it feel like a real party–with us sitting around chatting!
Like every good party, it must always end with a goody bag. Now, normally, I’m not a fan of the Goody Bag. First of all, they are usually plastic. Secondly, they contain more plastic inside. Third, nothing in a goody bag lasts longer than about 2.4 seconds.
Instead of goody bags, I’ve tried to do thank-you gifts. When a guest leaves one of our parties, they get a small (very small, and very cheap inexpensive) that has a handwritten (or who am I kidding?) computer generated Thank You note on it. As I am also not great on the thank-you-card-follow-through, this is perfect!
Here’s a few fun thank you gifts we’ve done in the past…
Chocolate Dipped Marshmallows (which were supposed to have mini Moo stickers of Lydia attached…but the stickers arrived AFTER the party…which turned out ok, because now I have a pack of 2 year old Lydia stickers for my very own!) for the Snowflake Party.
A sucker and a finger puppet for the Puppet Party complete with a handwritten “L” from Lydia.
I’ve used this idea twice for Asa (it’s because he’s just so darn cute!): a thank you photo. Kind of like a Christmas card, only a thematic picture of my little boy.
And a few I don’t have pictures of…
- My thank-you-gift fail was at Lydia’s Snow White Party. I wanted to give everyone mini caramel apples. (Apples. Get it?) But they were a disaster. If I did it again, I’d try this apple cuteness.
- The Tangled party gift was a brush and comb from the Dollar Store. *snicker*
- Lydia made a mini loaf of bread and a thank you card at the Little House Party. I found mini loaf pans at Michael’s after Christmas for like 20 cents!
Fun, huh? A good thematic gift makes me happy.
On this blog, I hope I can give you a goody bag with every post. It may be as simple as a download or a link to a good book. Whatever it is, I want you to walk away with something you can actually use, do or treasure. I want to say thank you for honoring me with your time–and give you more than just ramblings on my day.
So, in honor of a Goody Bag, I’m giving away a bag today!
I met Plywood People at Orange two years ago. I fell in love with them immediately. They make these adorable, modern bags from old vinyl signs! Like billboards or those signs your church gets made when there’s a VBS going on. You know what I’m talking about?
What’s cool about this is that the people they employee to make these bags are legal refugees in Atlanta and Charlotte. When refugees come to America, they have ninety days to get a job. These are people who know no one, have nothing and cannot speak the language! Plywood People provides jobs for these people–but do much more with language classes and community.
The other cool part about Plywood People is you can donate your old signs to them. Or order bags in bulk and use them as a fundraiser, etc. I just love how they take a simple idea and take it further.
I have two of these bags (a commuter satchel and another one that must have been a special edition because I can’t find a link to it) and love them. You can fit a ton in them and they are so durable! And since they are made from a billboard, every single one is unique.
Plywood People is giving away a Messenger Bag today! And to make the deal even sweeter, I’m going to fill it with a few goodies for you:
- Plan a {Fabulous} Party Without Losing Your Mind by Mary Carver {kinda appropriate for this week, no?} **Mary just gave us a coupon code for 50% off the book with code OHAMANDA! Woot!**
- Create Your Perfect Cleaning Schedule by Christine Satterfield {a simple book that helps you conquer the clutter and all that jazz!} **Christine just gave us a coupon code for 50% off her book with code 3PerfectCleaningSchedule!**
- Truth in the Tinsel: An Advent Experience for Little Hands by ME! {Just thought I’d throw that in there as it’s 66 days till Christmas!!}
- 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess by Jen Hatmaker {did I tell you I met Jen at dotMom? I did!}
- What’s In the Bible: Episode 1 {If you haven’t ventured into What’s In the Bible-land yet, you are in for a treat! A very funny, puppet treat!}
plus, a thank you note from me! (Aren’t you excited? I know you are.)
CONTEST CLOSED!!!
To be entered to win, just leave me a comment telling me how cool you think Plywood People is (are?) and how you could potentially partner with them (maybe buying a bag as a gift, sending the link to your church who prints those banners for every single series and special event, giving them a tweet, pin or Facebook like, or praying for them, etc.), or your favorite goody bag idea or just how much fun you’ve had this week. Whatever, I’m easy.
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