Candygrams!

It's Summer and my 3 kids are all home with me 24/7. They occupy every waking (and sometimes even non-waking!) moment of mine and I have to temporarily cut back on the time that I am spending on this blog. I will try to post once a week and it is unlikely that I will be posting any more frequently than that. My kids are young and as much as I like to craft, I'd rather be spending time with them while they still want me to. I will be posting more again when Summer Break is over. Having said that, here is a quick idea that I have been wanting to share with you.

My girls had their dance recital at the end of June. This year, in addition to recital tickets, the dance studio sold "Candygrams" for $5 a bag. Basically, it is a little bag of candies with a note from the purchaser (usually the parent).

I was intrigued and was totally ready to plop down $15 for 3 of these bags. That is, until I realize that I have no control over what kind of candies will be put into the bags. I was told that they will just bag up "some kind of candy" and then hand the bags directly to the dancers backstage and during Intermission. The parents will not know first what kind of candies will be in the bags. All that the parent will get to touch before the dancers is the note that they will be writing on at the time of purchase. This "note" really is just a postcard-sized photocopy of some random pictures on a thin card.

It did not take me long to decide that I cannot buy their Candygrams. My youngest daughter has a peanut allergy and if the studio is unable to guarantee that only peanut-free candies will be provided, there is no way that I will buy their treat bags. I went home and pondered about the situation. I do not regularly give my kids candies but I can't let them watch the other children get treats and they go without. Since I can't buy those candygrams from the studio, I will have to make my own.

 

On the night before recital, instead of going to bed, I stayed up to make 3 goodie bags. It took me 20 mins to whip up three candygrams. I used the Mini Monsters cartridge to make the little note cards and then stuffed a treat bag full of candies that I had bought in the afternoon.

I gave the girls their Candygrams when I dropped them off backstage. I think that they do love what they received even though they said they had to share their candies with the other dancers.

I have to credit the dance studio for coming up with the idea. Besides a dance recital, I think that Candygrams can also be given in any other scenarios where the kid is dropped off at an event without the parent, say, like at a Summer Camp. It's such a nice way of telling the little ones that even though Mommy or Daddy isn't there with them, they are thinking of them.