Holiday Plans

photo: US Embassy Sweden, cc

With frost on the proverbial pumpkin not far away, it's a good time to think about ways children and teens can embrace the upcoming season of gratitude & giving. Three easy ways to put a kids-helping-kids spin on this time of year:

• Take your child(ren) shopping for a child in need, then to drop the gift at a collection site for Toys for Tots, a church's or other organization's wish tree, etc. Even more meaningful if kids contribute toward the gift from their allowance or savings and (if instructed to do so by the collection site) help wrap the gift. 
• If your family does its charitable giving around the holidays, have your child(ren) select a children's charity to donate to this year.
• Have your child(ren) pick out a family holiday card this year that features art by kids to benefit kids. Check out the annual Kids Helping Kids holiday card line from MAC Cosmetics, with art done by and for HIV/AIDS affected kids. Featuring art done by and for young cancer patients, this line of holiday cards from the M.D. Anderson Center Children's Art Project helps fund college scholarships to prepare for life after cancer. And don't miss our family shop's offerings, KKG winter holiday (stamps too!) featuring kids' art & benefitting Save the Children.

Miss Merry MAC

photo: beautyzine.com

How can a blog called Kids Helping Kids be complete without an annual plug for the MAC Kids Helping Kids holiday card line? Made with artwork by HIV-affected kids to support their peers, these are always a wonderful charity Christmas card option. Only problem? They disappear fast! So dash over to your MAC counter if you're interested.

Meowy Christmas

Just in time for holiday card mailings -- this Christmas cat stamp from our family store's winter holiday collection.

The brother & sister kittens we adopted over the summer -- bringing the grand total to 3, including an ever-sleepy senior cat  -- inspired our 15-year-old artist in residence.

As always, half the design proceeds go to Save the Children.