When I was in college my mom sent me fairly regular care packages and my dad gave me monthly access to his credit card. College was a good thing.
My kids are no where near college-age, but as is common in adoptions, received care packages from us long before we met them. If you get graded on your care packages, then I totally flunked the first time around with each child.
The clothes I sent my man-child were quite snug. I went to the opposite extreme and sent Ying clothes that swallowed her and fell off her left shoulder. (I have since learned how to dress her.) Each time I saw pictures of my kids in their ill-fitting clothes I wondered if the caregivers questioned the competency of the parents coming for these kids. There were no raised eyebrows when we met Luk Chaai and Ying, so perhaps our care package missteps were forgotten and/or are a common occurrence.
The care packages we were permitted to send had to meet with some pretty stringent requirements: flat, silent, fit in a gallon-sized Ziplock baggie and weigh less than a pound. That meant for some pretty creative shopping.
Here are a few suggestions if you are planning a care package:
For both – photo albums, photo blocks (not sure if you can get this to squish flat though) disposable cameras, bi-lingual books, lift-the-flap books, crayons, sun hats, sun glasses, stickers, bubbles, wooden stringing beads (especially good for kids with a hand/arm limb difference), anything you can record your voice (Build-A-Bear, K K’s telephone).
For little boys – cars and trucks, plastic slinky
For little girls – nail polish, bracelets, hair bows
Happy shopping!
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