SIP Summer Camp Week 8 - Puppies!!! Humane Society

Week 8 - Volunteering at the humane society.

My mom is one busy lady! Work, school, church, family, and she is always helping organize some big event from the high school graduation to Genealogy Fairs. She was hesitant to take on one more thing, I get that, I know you get that! She did take it on and she called me after she left the animal shelter and sounded so happy... just HAPPY dang it! I don't know how to describe it exactly so I'll stick with happy. Never mind that my kids were tired tantrum throwing little turkeys while we were on the phone and on our way home. We had been in town at the hospital for our Random Acts of Kindness which was last weeks post. Hearing her excitement made me happy even with crazy wore out kids, it was the combination of excitement at the hospital and two hours of running errands that did them in.

My mom in her own words...

"I thought I was too busy for a service project, besides I don’t have any kids at home or grandkids near.  Thank you DeAnn for encouraging me to find the time.  It was such a wonderful experience!  And FYI not nearly as time consuming as I was imagining it would be.  Thinking about what kind of service project was not as difficult as I thought it would be either.  Kids and animals are a natural combination which led me to our local Humane Society.  I contacted them to inquire about their needs.  Donna, the vet tech, went over a list of items and we set a date and time for a tour.  I then designed an invitation with info and gave it to parents and kids at my church and posted it on Facebook.  Kids came to me very excited and asked for the door hangers to leave at homes in their neighborhoods.  The boy scouts leave bags and notes when they have food drives and so I borrowed this idea.  Leaving a list of needed items and a date you will return to pick them up allows people time to go through their house or to the store to purchase the items on the list.  And judging from the items donated it was definitely the right way to go about it.  Two families that participated in getting donations weren’t able to make, but arranged to get the donations to me.  

We met at the Humane Society at 1:00 and Donna gave us an introduction to the equipment used in rescuing animals of all kind and the purpose for the Humane Society.  She walked us through the cat and kitten rooms, dog and puppy runs and outside where larger animals are held and checked out one of the trucks they have for transporting animals.  A lot of the puppies are sent to Denver where they have a better chance of being adopted.  We saw the operating room where injured animals are treated and where they are spayed and neutered by volunteer veterinarians. 

A lot of newspapers are used in the kennels and areas where puppies play and so we unfolded newspaper to make it easier and faster for workers and volunteers to place clean newspaper in these areas.  And then came the best part, getting to bath and walk the puppies.  One mom brought her daughter during her lunch hour and had to leave just when we started to give the puppies baths. She was so sad, but mom promised to bring her back again.  Another mom plans to bring her boys back to volunteer before getting a pet so they can understand the work having a pet involves.  Another mom plans on returning and volunteering because she and her daughter enjoyed it so much.   

What a rewarding experience, service is painless and fun!"

The loot they collected to donate to the humane society, not too shaggy...haha.

How to organize it. 

1) Call the humane society in your area and talk to them about their needs and there rules on volunteering. I don't imagine they will turn you down. If they do their crazy! Don't give up just call another animal shelter!

 2) Put the word out on Facebook, super easy!                   

3) E-mail a list and info to those who want to participate. Feel free to copy this info. 

This is what my mom sent out...

This is an opportunity for us to get together to serve our animal 

friends, I hope you will join me!The humane society is always in need 

of supplies and we can help. You and your children can walk through

the neighborhood and hand out the list of needed items to friends 

and neighbors. Most will need time to collect the items. Arrange a time

to pick them up at a later date. On the designated day we will take the

supplies to the humane society. On that day they will give us a tour

and explain what the humane society is all about. After the tour kids

under 12 can unfold newspapers for cages. To bath and walk dogs kids

under 12 must be accompanied by an adult. Remember to take into account 

any allergies your kids may have.

The shelter in your area may have different needs or may have an item or two that aren't listed below. I left a little space so you can add an item or two if you need to. You can also highlight the most needed item on the list once you print them out. Print it out in landscape and you got 4 lists ready to give out!

Click to download

 

How cute are these puppies?!

There were some families who couldn't come to the animal shelter on the day of the service project but who really wanted to go so they are all going again. Will all the families go back every week or month, I don't know, but it's good to expose yourself and your kids to these opportunities and experiences. You don't know how it may impact them, or you.

Thanks Mom for doing this! Thank's to everyone's effort on making this a success! We are all in this together :)

Buttons are on the right side bar. I wish I had more time to try and get my blog out into the blogoshphere more. I do things, trust me I do but I spend most of my time coming up with ideas, organizing outings for The SIP project etc. If everyone who reads this took a moment and shared it ONCE you would be doing me a great service. 

SIP Summer Camp - A Ray of Sunshine Craft

    

My kids patience with me taking photos has been VERY limited. The photo above was the best I could get in the 3mins they let me take photos of them modeling the service craft we did. She must be saying something to him in Tagalog cause he looks confused.

The service craft is a card holder. You make the card holder and write 10 cards or however many you want to the SAME person. The idea. Say you know someone who is battling cancer or some other disease or ailment. Or just anyone you want to shower with love or you know is having a hard time in some way. We are sending one to my grandma who lives alone and stays pretty busy but I know she gets really lonely. I don't live close enough to her to be there and give her a hug and hang out very often.  So when she feels the sky is looking pretty grey she can pull out an instant ray of sunshine to push those clouds away and pull in some sun. You can also tell the person to hang on to the card holder so you can replenish it when it's empty.

 Also if you don't feel like you can write 10 cards to one person - find small cards, cheating? Not if you are a person who isn't long winded like me. Just find a card size you know you fill up.Put your favorite quotes on the cards and share why the quote lifts you up. Tell them about how they have helped lift you in the past. Or just share fond memories the two of you have had together. Write a joke you know will really make them LOL.

In my head as I pictured how this activity would go with my kids I imagined me imparting to my kids the true value of service and how it makes us and others happy. Yeah...well it didn't go that way. I procrastinated putting this post up because I felt like I failed. But I know it's better to try and fail then not to have tried at all. My husband told me I didn't fail but I still kinda feel like I failed. I know they must have gotten something out of it...right? I know I learned a few things like what was I thinking my kids can't write yet, which makes it harder to do the important part, writing heartfelt cards. Yeah I can fill them out for them which I planned on doing but they also have a hard time really thinking about the person in a meaningful way. I am one of those parents who looks at toys and the age will say 8+ on the box and I will think oh...my 3 year old will totally love this, and I am wrong %90 of the time. This is one of those moments. Here is what I would do differently

-Pick a time when kids are the mellowest during the day or do something to help them focus or mellow out a little.

-Do the activity in 3 parts, you know your kids and if you think you can bust it out in one shebang go for it. 

1) make craft 

2) Talk to your kids about people you are writing cards to, and discuss service and why you do it and when (I did my best at this). Take a break, a few hours a day whatever works for you. 

3) come back and write cards.

Making the craft 

1) Glue scrapbook paper onto card board. 

No he's not playing air maracas he is pounding the paper onto the cardboard after he glued it on.

2)Cut scrap book paper out that you glued to cardboard with razor.

3) Paint card pockets. We used acrylic paint which took two coats of paint. I think spray painting would work great but I am not letting my 5 year old do that. The card board bends really easy so either measure out how big you want it to be and then make your folds or cut a small box that already has the folds (where the flaps are) so you don't have to measure it all out.

Here's my theory, we are all bipolar kids just don't know how to hide it like adults. Two pictures below taken within a few minutes of each other.

 Moving on...

4) Glue card pocket onto scrapbook paper with hot glue gun. Glue trim or ribbon on if you want to fancy it up some. I think it would be cute to glue a pom pom trim around 3 sides. Depending on your kids ages they will be able to do more or less of this craft. Some kids may enjoy using a Silhouette this is where it could come in handy, it would look much better to print out what you want it to say. As you can see my hand writing isn't great, maybe I should just tell them Zaya wrote it. Which I would have had her do if she had wanted to. If I were smart I would have done this with my talented scrapbooking friend Misty. If anyone does this project I would love to see your completed work, upload it onto The SIP project Facebook page so I can see it, please :) 

5) Make a stand for the back of your card holder and glue on with hot glue gun. Attach ribbon with hot glue to keep the cardboard stand from sliding out.

Your done with the craft!

I also thought I would share a game my husband used to do with his family growing up. This was great  to do while paint was drying. It's called Don't Eat Pete! Take a bunch of M&M's and put them on the table. Have one person turn around so they can't see the candy. Pick an M&M and name it Pete. Have the person turn around and start eating the M&M's one by one. When they pick up Pete everyone yells DON'T EAT PETE!!! It's easy and the kids love it!

My daughter is looking up at my husband wondering if she has Pete.

 The next day. My son was being super cooperative when it came time to write cards. Zaya got frustrated with the writing part. I had her practice on paper before she wrote it on the cards. I know the biggest thing is to keep trying, learn from my mistakes and don't give up. Teaching my kids about serving others is not going to happen all in one moment it's consistently doing for others and involving them that is going to have the biggest effect on them. I wanted them to have a good experience so if they got upset I didn't try and force them do finish it. I don't want them to associate frustration with service. When they get a little older I can do more to persuade them to finish what they start, at least that's my thinking.

I hope you found this post helpful in some way. I WILL be doing another post for SIP Summer Camp this week. It's already planned out and ready to go :) Also spread the word about SIP Summer Camp via Pinterest or Facebook or whatever I have no motive other then to get people serving others.

If anyone wants to do a Dish & Serve post (follow link to see an example) please let me know. You know you want to!

SIP Summer Camp - Father's Day

Father's day is Sunday and well since I don't plan a head super well for the blog (I have tons of ideas written down but have a hard time staying ahead) I thought why not start our SIP Summer Camp off by doing something for dear old dad. This post will take a few minutes to read not the normal 90 seconds but I promise it will be worth your time.

What is SIP Summer Camp? It's an opportunity for me and you to teach our kiddos how to serve others. Every week this summer there will be a post on a service project you can do with your kids while they are on summer break. There is no commitment. You just do as many as you can. I am not trying to overwhelm you with one more thing; no guilt, just do what you can! Some peoples summers are crammed. Look on the bright side: the ideas are just ready for you to apply; a lot of the work has been done already. Summers can get kinda crazy but since I have my daughter home all day I thought what a great opportunity to teach her hands on service. During the school year on our drive to school I talked to her a lot about finding ways to do kind things for people around her and quite frankly I have no idea if it helped. Was it just lip service? I wasn't doing anything with her actively, I mean I do nice things for others pretty consistently and she sees some of it but a lot of the time I don't think she really gets what I am doing and why. We have to set an example but if we don't let them know what we are doing and get them in on it they may end up resenting all those cookies you make and don't let them eat because they are for such and such. Again this is a way to engage your child or children in service in the most meaningful way. After this SIP Summer Camp is over I wonder how it will affect them and it will be neat to see the positive changes in not just my kids but our family.

This may seem a little bit of a lack luster start but really it's all about just getting your kid to think of Dad and how they can serve him in meaningful and fun ways. Ways that show thought and love and are just plain fun. If you are looking for some last minute ideas then this is the way to go, you don't have to get anything fancy to do this and most importantly it's fun and meaningful.

                    Here are several ways to make Father's Day a success!

1) Service with a smile...serve dad by putting a smile on his face. He will get some good chuckles out of it too. I came up with the questions and my Sis Amy made it super cute! I would love for you to come back and comment and tell us what silliness your kids said in response to one of these questions. My daughter put down "apples and pineapples are dad's favorite foods because they rhyme." Way out of left field...more like pork chops and ice cream. Click to download and print.

2) I am sure we have all done some kind of coupon book before but were they really meaningful? If you know someone then you can sit down and take some time to think about what they will actually want and use. If you do this they will really know you gave it some thought who wants a coupon book with random crap that they don't care about or they don't feel applies to them. If you kids get stumped or start throwing out random stuff that you know hubs won't care much about, Mom start asking questions. If you know your husband hates it when the kids are fighting when he gets home from work then ask them "what does Dad hate when he gets home from work and you kids are doing?"

 = Coupon for  an immediate cease fire, all parties must retreat to designated demilitarized zone. Why not make it fun and witty? I am sure older kids will have fun with this! You could also throw in that all parties must when presented with coupon start singing kumbaya. Another example, Dad has a job where he stands all day and comes home with sore feet = Coupon for 30min foot massage 10min by each kid. Here is one I know my hubs would love, a Coupon for a 10min back scratch from each kid. 

This is a super cute printable you can always let your little artist make their own but this is just another option and an especially good one in a crunch.

Or this one

Got a Father with a sweet tooth??? This would also be super fun and easy to make for a last minute Father's Day gift. 

3) Father's day gift. Here's the deal, I LOVE buying presents for people especially on their Birthday because it has been my experience that the older one gets the less people make a fuss about their Birthday and Father's Day doesn't seem to be any different. Surely you see that what I mean by this is people don't always put much thought and love into what they do for someone else on their day. Well I just LOVE getting people gifts period. There is something fun about surprising someone with something they wanted but didn't know anybody else knew they did, or getting something that suits them perfectly and wont' just sit in the closet because they feel bad throwing it away or re-gifting it. Sure you can get someone something they have been broadcasting that they want, which I would recommend getting them if you can but if you aren't sure, here are my tricks for getting the perfect gift.
1. LISTEN. Yep, I know! People will tell you what they want, need, and enjoy if you listen to them and talk about something besides yourself. Don't get me wrong I do have to give it thought. If you are thinking they haven't told me anything, um...yes they have you just need to take some time to think about it. If you do, I promise you will remember something they have said or come up with the perfect gift based on their interests and personality. Sometimes the perfect gift is obvious but the majority of the time it takes some real thought but there is some real joy in arriving at the perfect gift. If you have really listened to them in your conversations then they may have a need and you may know of the perfect gift that will be the solution to their need or problem.
2. Listen
3. Listen

This is a great opportunity to talk with your children and see if they really know dad and what he likes and is interested in. If you see that your kids really have no idea. Help them by leading them with questions this will help get them thinking and keep them from giving up and just buying Dad a hammer for the 5th year running. Maybe you realize your family needs more quality time together? Don't be discouraged if you do, no family is perfect.

How is this service? Well women who are reading this has your hubby or boyfriend or friend ever given you a gift that said you could only know I wanted this because you listen to me :) *Que heart skipping a beat and love increasing dramatically.* Service is love. When you love someone you listen and when you listen and take the time to think about it you can give good knocked it out of the ball park gifts. Getting your kids to think of others in a deeper way is teaching them to think about someone else's needs and wants and what will make someone else happy. It will help them see that by putting someone else's needs and wants before their own makes them happy.

Can't afford the gift that would really blow dad's socks off? It's not to soon to think about next years gift.  I mean come on, it's already June people! So let's say you have 3 kids 12,15,17 and Mom of course. You put together a secret jar somewhere hidden like a geocaching (some where safe) and when you have some cash deposit it in the jar. You all sacrifice - The selfless good deeds for others or a short term loss in return for a greater gain to get the amount you need for this gift, i.e 'doing without something' or 'giving something up' to get that 50'flat screen . Imagine Dad's surprise next year when you present him with this gift and you tell him you all sacrificed to save all year long for it. This has some serious potential to bring your family together, just think about it! Include everyone in the brainstorming session and understanding that this will mean sacrifice on everyone's part like maybe not getting that new pair of heels you have had your eye on. Or your son not getting the top of the line phone so he can put $100 bucks in the jar. It won't be a hard sacrifice if you keep thinking about how happy Dad will be when he gets his gift.

4) Talk to your children about finding ways to serve Dad. Think about his daily tasks and challenges. Dad normally takes out the trash before he goes to work. He goes to take out it and it's already done. Maybe you know of a few tasks around the house that Dad has been meaning to get to and you take them off the list for him. What Dad wouldn't go for his favorite dessert being made by his adoring kiddos? What parent isn't filled with love and happiness when their child does something thoughtful for them or another family member?! To bring in some extra accountability have the kids present dad with this certificate of continuing stealthy service. I came up with the idea for this certificate but wasn't sure how to make it and what to say so I asked my Sis Amy and boom! Isn't it dang cute! What are you waiting for? Print it out already! Click to download.

















This card deck of reasons why I love you would also be a great gift but one I think to be truly heartfelt would be best started now for next Fathers day, if it's all coming from one person. If it's between 4-5 people then coming up with 10 or so reasons each should be quite easy. You would definitely need to make sure the reasons are different. I am sure there will be some overlapage in reasons in which case it would be good to give an example for the reason why you love him. If more then one participant then put names on each card.



I hope you have make it a special Father's Day for any special men in your life!

I hope you will be joining us week to week for Service Is Painless Summer Camp. 

I think I have said this a million times I want you to participate in this blog by leaving comments or throwing out ideas you would love to see done. Coming back and commenting after you have done something from the blog.  I put a lot of work and love into these posts and it's just nice to know someone is getting something out of them. Oh...I think I hear the worlds tinniest violin playing, I guess that's my que.

Have an awesome day!

Brittney & Josh's engagement photos and service project

I have now taken Brittney's portraits, engagement photos and wedding photos :) It has been an honor.

This is Brittney & Josh Kohl's engagement photos and their service project...

“The more you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”                                                                                                         -Dr. Seuss, “I Can Read With My Eyes Shut!”

I find reading to be one of the most enjoyable past times there is, and I also find that helping someone to better himself or herself brings me a very deep gratitude for those who have helped me to better myself. To me, reading is one of the best ways to have a great adventure and never have to leave the comfort of a school, workplace, or home; we can keep our childlike imagination, and yet gain a rich knowledge and understanding of the world as we immerse ourselves in all different types of books. For my most recent service project, I chose to once again tutor students. I chose this project because I have found that helping kids and reading are two of my favorite things; so why not combine them and try to pass on the love of reading? This time around though, I chose to tutor specifically second graders who are below their reading level goals. 

I have been tutoring at Hayes Elementary School in Oklahoma City, OK; and it has been a fantastic experience. The students I have helped are hungry for knowledge and want to be better at reading. I love that these kids aren’t ashamed of the fact that they are a little behind other students, and that they find reading to be fun! It has been very rewarding to help them read short story books, play word games, learn to pronounce words properly, and see them gain confidence in their reading abilities. 

Coming into this tutoring program more than half way through the school year, and traveling so much has made the number of tutoring days less than I would have liked, but I am so glad I was able to tutor as much as I did. I believe children need good mentors and tutors no matter how short the time you have with them. I don’t think most people know how wonderful helping a child learn to read can really be. It certainly takes patience, and a love for reading, but it is so rewarding; for both the child and the tutor. I may be repeating myself, but I don’t know how to fully express the joy that comes from helping some one else to learn something, or strengthen their ability in something they already know how to do.

I am so glad I chose to do this project even though I am new to Oklahoma. I sometimes feel like I don’t know anyone here, but each time I went to Hayes, it was wonderful to have the students greet me and have them remember me. I am so grateful DeAnn encourages others to serve and uplift others through the S.I.P. Project. If I could give any advice on how to pick your own perfect service project, I would say: sit down and think about what are things you like doing? Are you talented at something? Once you have come up with something or a few things (which I am sure you will), think of a way you can teach your talent to someone else. I also highly recommend going to volunteermatch.org to look for volunteer opportunities in your area. I love the opportunities we have to serve others, and I really hope I have encouraged you to go help a child to learn how to read!

I hope you are as inspired as I was by her service project. Take something you love in life and find a way to teach it to someone else. What is one of your talents that you would love to share? Take a few minutes and think about how you can make that happen. If you need help coming up with a way I would love to help you :) When you share your talents it's hard to say who benefits more the giver or the receiver, what do you think??? The "what do you think" sounds pretty cheesy but I DO really want to hear what you think. Before I was a blogger I didn't understand how much it means to bloggers for someone to take the time and leave a meaningful comment. Now I totally understand.

The school in Oklahoma City where Brittney was able to serve...

 Have a good one...