Shopping, Shopping, and More.....Shopping!

We received many in-kind donations this year! Totaling around $2,500 Country Day School, Educarte School, and La Paz School families all joined together to make it happen. With the exception of food, nothing comes easy here in Guanacaste. Meaning, everyone who donated new clothing, household supplies, and/or toys, had to make AT LEAST the 1 hr. drive to Santa Cruz or Liberia, if not all the way to San Jose ( a 4 hour drive minimum.) The effort was well worth it. What we collected was truly amazing and took days to sort!

Donated Items:

• Toys new and gently used
• Clothing, clothing, clothing!
• Food
• Sheets
• Dishes
• Pots/Pans
• Diapers
• Pillows
• Shoes
• Hygiene Kits
• Tupperware and Tubs (especially useful here for food storage, laundry tubs, make shift closets, etc.)
• Makeup/lotions/jewelry

For those of you who donated via pay pal, America First, or check by mail, your contributions equaled around $3,500. That money was to be spent to provide food, household supplies, clothing, and toys. In Guancaste, $3,500 has the value of about $1,000 U.S. Target dollars, so Tom and I headed to San Jose to get the most bang for our buck on the money we had already collected. We left at 6am, arrived in San Jose at 10:30 am, shopped until 9pm (with the exception of 3 much needed food breaks), returned home, and finally climbed into bed at 2am. We were slowed down on the way back because our little KIA was so weighted down by goods, we kept bottoming out! I think we need to take it in to get a few things tightened up underneath now, lol. It's hard to believe, but 7 of our actual shopping hours were spent at two stores; Pequeno Mundo (an 'all a dollar' but better, is the best way to describe it), and Price Mart (code for COSCO BABY!) We kept getting 'crazy gringo' looks, because our carts were so loaded up. At Pequeno Mundo I had 5 full carts, literally brimming with toys, clothes, and household items. I'm pretty sure some people were thinking, "there is another Gringo, overdoing it at Christmas." Heheheh. It took us 45minutes just to check out there. We gave the cashier and the bagger a candy bar, they needed a 'Snickers Moment' after that fiasco! Here is an abbreviated shopping list...you'll get the point:

Price Mart

Food Packs:

• Massive bags of rice
• beans
• cooking oil
• sugar
• corn flour
• tortillas
• pasta
• pasta sauce
• canned tuna
• canned vegetables
• consume (chicken broth cubes)
• soup mixes
• dried milk
• dish soap
• sponges
• mayonnaise (quite a treat)
• Salsa Lizano (a local staple sauce)
• Juice packets
• A variety of snacks and candy for handing out to children on Christmas Eve

Hygiene Kits:

• Toilet Paper
• Tooth Brushes
• Tooth Paste
• Body Soap
• Towels

Pequeno Mundo

Household Supplies

• Garden Hose
• Gas stove
• Plates
• Cups
• Cutlery
• Pitchers
• Tubs

Clothing:

• clothes
• clothes
• clothes
• hair accessories
• socks

Toys:

• water guns
• dolls
• dinosaurs
• power rangers
• bouncy balls

• pencil bags
• puzzles
• fairy wings
• musical instruments
• baby squeaky stuff
• cars, trucks, diggers, oh my!
• stickers
• glow-in-the dark stick on wall stuff
• Little Dr. kits
• Plastic Animals
• and so much more!

Before I entered the stores, and throughout my shopping experience, I had a little prayer in my heart. I prayed that Heavenly Father would give me a little nudge here and there, and I tried to open my heart to His promptings. I knew that only He knew what was truly needed, and I believe He cares. At the same time, when you are shopping for a hundred kids, it's hard to get too picky. I grabbed the stuff I felt good about, even it it wasn't on my 'list' and left everything else behind, and tried to have faith that it would all come together as it was meant to. With the clothing especially, I had children in mind, but knew going into it I couldn't possibly have all the genders and sizes right. Not to mention I figured I would find a few more families in need along the way. After Tom and I had finished paying at Pequeno Mundo, Tom and I walked out to the car. I knew right away I had to go back inside. I had $150 left, and I felt like I needed to spend it on clothing, so I did. I went back and grabbed almost exactly $150 in clothing, paid, threw it into our car, and we were off. Phase 1 of the shopping complete (without a camera sadly!) Following the San Jose shopping trip, there was still a Liberia trip and two Santa Cruz runs. In Liberia we went to Mundo Magico, a smaller version of Pequeno Mundo, and Econo Mart. The trip was mostly for clothing. My friend Sarah, played a big part in the project, and saw it through to the end, despite the fact that she underwent a c-section only 2 weeks ago. She had her 2 week old baby with her on our shopping trip, as well as her 6 and my almost 6 year old daughter. They were all troopers!

Mundo Magico in Liberia - I tried to capture the madness, but I don't think I was successful. It was such a crazy store!

It should be called Mundo 'Madness', but we got a lot for a little, so it was worth it.

Brooklyn helped me sort through the clothing. The baskets in the background represent about 2/3rds of a food packet.

I had stuff squeezed throughout my house as it added up prior to the delivery days!!!

The toys being sorted for ages...

The Final Tally - $6,000

Thanks to EVERYONE who chipped in with donations big and small to help us raise over $3,500 in total cash donations!!!!! Cash donations and in-kind donations combined for a total of about $6,000 in Christmas aid for local families. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU. I will try in the following blog entries to convey to you, in some way, the immensity of your contribution to our communities. You changed the lives of so many children and parents this Christmas and forever. It truly felt like a 'conspiracy of love'! Thanks for being a part of that.

A Shout Out to Our Sponsors

From all the way across the world, our family and friends from New Zealand are reaching out! Back in Utah, individuals taking the time to mail a check, big or small, and make a difference! From here in Costa Rica, young and old alike getting together to celebrate Christmas and have a food drive. THANKS TO ALL FOR YOUR GENEROSITY!

We still have a long way to go to reach our goal, so spread the word. If your visiting this site for the first time, read on for details about the project and join with us, it's easy! :)

OUR GOAL: The Families In Need - Together we CAN make a difference!

The following families are in dire need of assistance, not only at Christmas, but year round. Inspired by the king's generosity in the story of "The Quiltmaker's Gift" we are accepting and asking others to join with us in an opportunity to make a difference in Costa Rica this year. While our goal includes providing these children with some unexpected Christmas cheer, showing up with toys and treats would be seriously underestimating the fact that their living conditions aren't fulfilling their basic day to day needs. Our top priorities include, but are not limited to providing;

• providing sanitary shelter
• food storage packages
• basic sanitary supplies including soap/towels/toothbrushes/
• clothing
• dishes and kitchenware
• toys

With your help, we will be providing relief for the following families this Christmas:

1 - Magali: 2 children ages 2 and 4

2- Juana: 3 children ages 1 and two ages 13

3 - Ana Isabel: 2 children ages 3 and 13

4 - Luz: 2 children 12 and 15

5 - Stephanie: 3 children ages 3, 8, & 9

6 - Mayra: 1 child, age 1

7 - Milagro: 5 children ages, 3, 5, 9, 11, & 15

8 - Martha: 2 children ages 1 & 9

9 - Emiliano: 1 child age 13

10 - Grettel: 3 children ages 1, 2, & 4

11 - Miguel: 1 child age 3

12 - Reyna: 3 children ages 5, 7, & 14

13 - The Orgtega Family: 9 children ages 2, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10, 12, 14, 15

14 - Diane: Elderly Woman in need of a hearing aid

15 - Gustavo: 1 child age 2

In total, 50 individuals will receive prepared packages. Our goal is to double last years donations (over $3,000) by connecting with families and friends worldwide in a "conspiracy of love" to provide a deeper and more lasting impact on the quality of life for these families. Please see our post titled, "How to Donate" for information on donating and participating.

Please keep in mind while reviewing these photos...

there are a variety of reasons in which families are living in these conditions including; death of a parent or spouse, illness and injury, escape from an abusive relationship, etc...

Sponsor a Family or Make a Donation

No matter the size of your wholehearted donation, your generosity will make a difference. Your love and kindness will be felt accross the world, providing laughter and surprise for children, offering fathers hope, and mothers relief. Pura Vida!



FROM COSTA RICA:

TWO LOCATIONS TO MAKE DROP OFFS IN COSTA RICA:

• Country Day School, Flamingo
• Langosta Beach Club, Tamarindo Preserve
• Contact acostaricanchristmas@gmail.com back to make an appointment for another drop off location or to have picked up.

Items needed for drop off: (cash donations welcome)

1. New or used children's toys.

2. New or used clothing / shoes for child. Sizes 1 year - 15 years required for both sexes.

3. Foods like rice, beans, maize flour, milk boxes, soup mixes, juice packs ....

4. Toiletries such as toilet paper, soap, tooth brushes/paste, etc...

4. Sheets

5. Dish/hand/bath towels

5. Cooking utensils, dishes, pots and pans large, plastic cups, etc.


Large donations needed:

1. single bed frames
2. single bed mattresses

3. gas stove w/gas supply

4. kitchen sink

OUTSIDE OF COSTA RICA:

1. Send your check, payable to a Costa Rican Christmas, to our U.S. Representative.

A Costa Rican Christmas

c/o Lindsay Ivins
2001 South 850 East
Bountiful, UT 84010

2. Pay Pal Deposit to

acostaricanchristmas@gmail.com

Caralee Burton


3. Utah only: Deposit into America First Credit Union

Account Name: A Costa Rican Christmas
Account # 9044090

IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN SPONSORING AN ENTIRE FAMILY OR INDIVIDUAL, or YOU HAVE SPECIAL SERVICES YOU WOULD LIKE TO OFFER

PLEASE CONTACT US AT

acostaricanchristmas.gmail.com

Mail a Check

Last year, one of our generous donors took the time to write out a check for $5, put it in an envelope, addressed it, and sent it to us. It brought tears to my eyes. So many of us think about helping out, and we want to help out, but actually sitting down and taking a minute out of your day, or $5 out of your budget can be the hardest part. THANKS so much for making the effort and making a difference!

Send your check, payable to a Costa Rican Christmas, to our U.S. Representative.

A Costa Rican Christmas

c/o Lindsay Ivins
2001 South 850 East.
Bountiful, UT 84010

A Costa Rican Christmas - Last Year´s Success

By a miraculous string of circumstances, what was meant to be an extended family vacation, has turned out to become a new permanent life for me and my family here in Costa Rica. While living here has offered us many, countless, opportunities for education, fun, and leisure, it has also been a daily reminder of how blessed we are. Our education, life experience, and basic genealogy has provided us with the tools we need to live comfortably. We have endless opportunities, the world is our playground, and we can ALWAYS provide.

Those feelings I was experiencing, coupled with my then new found favorite book, "The Quilt maker's Gift" led me to search for a way to give back to the community last Christmas. When I couldn't find the usual "Sub 4 Santa" so convenient and common in the states, my husband and I decided to take the project on ourselves. With the extremely generous donations from family and friends back home, we were able to raise over $3,000 to provide food, clothes, and toys for families in need.

Christmas Day 2009

We are doing it again this year, but of course we can't do it without your help! Last year, even the smallest donation of $5, was part of the big picture to give to others something with no price tag. See our post "how to donate" for an opportunity to be a part of A Costa Rican Christmas and join in our "conspiracy of love."