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Packing a Christmas Shoe Box

ByKendra Stamy Updated onJanuary 30, 2023 DIY
Christmas Shoe Box

What’s in your shoe box? I remember helping pack a Christmas Shoe box for operation Christmas Child when I was a kid, as we got older we would each help pack a shoe box.

November is the month, to get these Christmas shoe boxes packed up and dropped off, at one of the many drop off locations.  If you have never packed a Christmas shoe box before, it’s really easy.  We decided to pack two this year. One for a boy and one for a girl.

What went in the box for a girl. I selected 5-9 years old, so what I bought will reflect that.

Christmas Shoe Box

  • Clothes, I bought a skirt, tee shirt and socks. Since the age is such a large gap I bought to fit a larger child. The shirts are ok big, but the skirt may fall off. I really don’t know how it will fit, but they were on clearance for $1 so I bought them. 🙂
  • Toys, every little girl should have a doll. There are two different ones, plus a teddy.
  • Coloring book, colored pencils, (crayons will melt so I bought the pencils), and stickers.
  • Combs, mirror, and hair clips.
  • Hard candy, and bubble gum.
  • Washcloths soap and toothbrush. The guide says you can send toothpaste as well, but I am worried it would squish out somehow so I don’t send it.

Total cost, probably $20. Plus $7 for shipping.

You can wrap your shoe box if you wish, make sure to wrap the lid and box separately. I was lazy, since the box didn’t have writing on it, I left it plain and wrapped only the lid.

Christmas Shoe BoxI taped the label on and marked what age child the box was intended for, wrapped a rubber band around the box and it’s good to go.  Oh, you don’t see a rubber band? Yeah, I don’t have any right now. lol

On to the boy’s Christmas Shoe Box. Age 5-9 yrs.

  • Christmas Shoe Box for a boy.
  • Two tee-shirts. Once again I bought for an older/larger child. Too big is ok, too small is not.
  • Personal care: combs, soap, washcloths, toothbrush.
  • Hard candy.
  • Toys, what boy doesn’t like cars, and noisy things? I also added a small teddy that didn’t make it into the photo.
  • Flash light with extra batteries.
  • Coloring book, stickers, and colored pencils.

The total cost is a little over $22, plus $2.50 for the tub and $7 for shipping.

What do you do if you don’t have a shoe box to pack? Buy an inexpensive plastic tub to put it all in. I layered wrapping paper inside the clear area, to make it look pretty. I didn’t wrap the lid at all.

Christmas shoe box in a plastic tub

Hubby thinks we should always buy tubs now. Because the child will have a sturdy place to keep their treasures in. I argued that we had already spent enough on the stuff to fill it, and then the shipping. He responded that it was worth it and that the $30 of stuff we send would bring $300 worth of enjoyment to these children.  Hubby won that round. 😉

Where can I drop off my Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes? If you look on the OCC website you will find a handy little map, enter your zip code and the locations will pop up for you. National collection week is November 12th through 19th.

If you would like a list of items to include/not to include, OCC has a list here, that is where you find a label for your box as well.

Have you ever packed a Christmas shoe box? Did you track it? I know there is a way to track and see which country it goes to, I guess I just never really cared. As long as a needy child gets it. 🙂  You can write a letter and enclose a photo as well, if you put your address in, the child may write back. Once again, this is not something I have ever done.

Kendra Stamy

Welcome To Hello Sensible

This blog is the best resource for women who want to live their lives to the fullest and are looking for ideas/support in Finances, Travel, Family Life, and more.

This blog is the best resource for women who want to live their lives to the fullest and are looking for ideas/support in Finances, Travel, Family Life, and more.

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