Potholder Organizer

My calling at church is the Relief Society Meeting Coordinator (but I still call it Enrichment, because nobody wants to go to extra RS meetings!) It's such a fun calling and I love coming up with activities every month. In January, we had a "Favorite Things" party that was basically just like a grown up show-and-tell for everyone to pass around their favorite things. I brought spraypaint (of course) and there were other things like cleaning products, favorite kinds of candy, cookbooks, you get the picture. My cute friend Tiffany brought a little organizer she had made out of a potholder and ziplock bags and everyone loved it, so we decided to make our own for our activity in April!

I couldn't actually go to this activity because it was the same night as my girls' dance recital, but I snagged some of the supplies and made one on my own to send to my sister-in-law Morgan, who is currently serving in the Chile Vina Del Mar mission! Her birthday is in a few weeks and I thought this handy little organizer would be the perfect gift. 

I got a huge package of really cute buttons for $6 at Joann--they were in the checkout lane, not with the buttons, in case you are looking for a big variety pack! They were all different sizes, styles, shapes, and colors. I picked out this big red one to go with a navy blue potholder.
After I sewed the bags in, I got to do the fun part--filling them up! I went to the dollar section at Target and they had a bunch of cute stuff.

I put in "thought bubble" shaped post-it notes...

A set of cute heart and arrow shaped paper clips and some bright binder clips....

And gray and white chevron tissues and an owl contact case. I also put in hair elastics, bobby pins, band-aids, and a fingernail clipper. I thought the stationary type things might come in handy when they are making contacts with people and might need to leave a note or their phone number on someone's door. Plus, they were too cute to pass up!
So if you are looking for an easy gift for a missionary (or a new mom, or a recent high school grad, or a teenager just starting to babysit), why not fill up one of these little potholder organizers with all kinds of goodies!

Sister Missionary fashion + ideas for care packages

So, let's face it, sister missionaries used to be thought of as sort of frumpy. 

Well, my friends, that has changed!

My sister in law Morgan recently left on a mission and we were surprised by the kinds of LDS Sister Missionary Clothing she was encouraged to bring: colorful, fashionable, with fun accessories that she can mix and match. This was great for Morgan, because she really likes to look nice :) She had a blast picking out clothes that were both stylish, modest, and adhered to the instructions she received with her mission call. Sister missionaries really have a lot more options than elders do--they pick a few suits, a couple ties, and that's it. Morgan packed basic pieces like pencil skirts, dresses, and cardigans that she can mix and match, but also lots of fun accessories: scarves, jewelry, tights, shoes. The best part is, she'll still be able to (and want to) wear most of her mission clothes when she comes home!

Doesn't she look cute in her official mission picture?

Morgan has been called to serve in the Chile Vina Del Mar Mission. Right now she's in the Missionary Training Center in Provo, Utah, learning to speak Spanish and teach the gospel. She'll be there until the end of February (just five weeks total!) and then they'll ship her down to Chile, where she will work seven days a week, teaching and serving the people. She is allowed limited time to email family once a week and will be allowed to call home on Mother's Day and Christmas Day. Besides that, it's just snail mail for the next eighteen months.
And because I am bound and determined to be better about writing and sending packages to Morgan than I have to Tyler, Josh, Sean, and Austin (brothers and brothers in law), here is a short list of sister missionary care package ideas:
Nail polish (nothing too bright, though!)
Chapstick/lipgloss
Mini sewing kit
Sidewalk chalk
Cute LDS quotes in refrigerator magnet frames
Accessories like lightweight scarves or a subdued necklace (nothing too expensive!)
Midol (sad, but necessary)
And of course, CANDY!!

This is a sponsored post however, all the points and views are my own.

Missionary I-Spy

Jason's little brother is on his mission in Panama. He's been out for 8 months and we haven't sent him anything since he was in the MTC... whoops. Sorry, Austin.
Well, his birthday is coming up, so we thought we better put a package together for him. The girls all colored pictures and dictated letters to us and we filled an envelope with some of his favorite treats. I wanted to add one or two other things, so we made a mini tie keychain from an old issue of The Friend and then we made a special missionary I-Spy picture.
I gathered as many "missionary" things I could find from around the house and Tempe and Helena helped me fill in the gaps--hence the mini teapot and Rock the Vote button. We took a picture, printed it out, and I wrote a little riddle to go with it!

I spy Panama, a keychain tie and a key, too; three oil vials, A for Austin and We love you!