Packing Operation Christmas Child Filler🎄$.01 Journals, $.01 Jumbo Erasers, Stuffies, Pencil Packs 

Oh, thank you so much, Niki. I appreciate that. Thank you, too, for sharing your exceptional talent for crafting and packing beautiful and unique boxes to bless these kids 🥰

FOURTEEN!! WOWZA!! You cleaned house, girlfriend!!! God bless you!!! I only have 3 cartons, so I think I’m going to cart mine along with me to Aurora. I wish there was a way for me to get it to them early enough so that we could see it during our shift 🙂

@@byrdfeed9071 I know me too! I was packing filler all year long too. 300 pencil packs in various forms 🤓 ✏️ ✏️ 🖊️ 🖍️

Thank you, Anne, for blessing, each child who will receive one of your shoeboxes 🥰

Oh, thank you Denise. I appreciate that. The choking hazard question for the 2-4-year-olds is a tough one. It’s pretty much the 2-year olds to be concerned about, but not all two-year-olds put things in their mouth. Pretty much all toys have an age 3+ disclaimer on them and most 3 and 4-year-olds play with those toys. I started feeling bad that I was depriving the 3 and 4-year-olds of fantastic toys that were perfect for them, so I’ve relaxed a little bit about packing small items or toys with small parts, because a 2-year-old will always have a parent, guardian or caregiver of some sort who is going to go through the items in the shoebox. I leave it up to them. That said, I do pack differently for the 2-4 year olds than I do for the older age groups. I avoid packing cap erasers, pens (due to caps and other small parts on a pen), the mini bounce balls, marbles, small magnets…the obvious that really aren’t necessary for a 2-4-year-old anyway. I used the word avoid, because I don’t want to say never. I don’t make myself crazy over it. Like I said, I leave it up to the parent or guardian. However, you should definitely pack how you feel led and are most comfortable. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment 🥰

That’s awesome, Deborah!! 🥰

Thank you! I appreciate that. So glad you are enjoying them. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment. 🥰

Thanks so much, Denise. And, thank Y😍U for all you do for this ministry, the kiddos and viewers! Y😍U are an inspiration and I’m so thankful for your friendship. I hope you had a wonderful time on your European vacation! Enjoy your time volunteering at the PC and take lots of great pics! Now on to 2024 😄

Yes, those stickers will be great filler items. Anything that you would typically pack in a shoebox that is left over always makes for great filler. 👍😊

I did! I found many great deals this year. They were harder to come by than in years past, but I still found plenty to bless some kiddos.

Thanks Sharon! Have fun at the processing center! 😘

Thank you, Dale, for always being so supportive. 🥰

Thank you, Kim. Yep, pack ‘em up!! 😄

You are welcome, Fiona! And thank you for all you do for this ministry. Already working at the PC? Wow, our processing centers don’t start until November 22. I wish I had a closer PC location. I have to drive a little over 4 hrs to the closest one, so I’m only working one day, driving up at the crack of dawn, working 5 hours, then driving home. I expect to be wiped out at the end of that day 😵‍💫. If I lived closer, I would volunteer every day they were processing. Last year I stayed over a night, but it’s just too costly. Too bad they don’t provide free hotel room stays for their volunteers 😲😆😂

@byrdfeed9071 Would you believe my PC is a 15-minute drive. I had a situation last Wednesday where I had to go home mid-morning. So, I did and hsd a nap, then returned mid-afternoon to finish the day!

@@fedwards2023 ❤️

Thanks Marie. I definitely will 🥰

Thanks, Morgan. Pack those babies up! 😆

Welcome, Lisa! One cent deals at Dollar Tree are few and far between and they are not physically marked, so I feel like I need to explain why there is occasionally 1 cent merchandise at DT. Every so often DT corporate clears an item out of stock, usually due to age, by marking it to “salvage” by reducing the price on record to 1 cent. (They take it to 1 cent in order to keep it on record for tracking purposes.) This merchandise is not physically marked to 1 cent. It is “supposed” to be removed from the sales floor by the store managers and disposed of, but that doesn’t always happen as it should. If a customer tries to purchase that merchandise, it will ring up as 1 cent, so that is one way to find it, by accident. FYI, if a cashier notices that it rings up for 1 cent, they may not sell it. Some will and some won’t. The best way to find this merchandise is to stay connected to others who find it by accident and then share it on social media (DT haulers and OCC shoebox shoppers on Instagram, Facebook and RU-vid). That is the only way to actually see a visual picture of what the merchandise looks like in order to know what you are looking for. The same holds true for Dollar General 1 cent merchandise and Walmart, except that Walmart reduces their salvaged merchandise to 3 cents. I know, long answer to a short question but I hope it is helpful. 😊

Smart girl! I’m turning in my boxes tomorrow. I opened one up, arbitrarily, and realized it didn’t have my letter/photo from me, so I got paranoid and decided to open up every single box to make sure it was in there. Good thing I did, bc I missed 4 boxes 🤦🏻‍♀️. It wasn’t too hard, though, bc I always slip the card down the side or lay it on top. I never put it on the bottom. Too hard for the PC to find it and I don’t want them tearing up my boxes looking for it, L O L. It was kind of nice to see what’s inside each box one last time. I got a big smile across my face with each box that I opened, which makes me confident it will bring a smile to each of the children, as well 🥰

Sorry, Doug. I am unaware of any one specific person who sells beanie babies at that price. Try Facebook marketplace in your area or eBay. I typically find mine at thrift stores with the tags still intact.

Wow, you’ve been busy, Ursula! I love your organization ideas to keep yourself in check. Sounds like a plan! So glad you finally found the prayer cards. I find them in different places in different stores. Thanks for taking the time to comment 🥰

😆😂

Good question. I think it depends on how you’ve packaged it. It is my understanding, the integrity of the gift will stay as you meant it to be. If it’s packaged as a small gift, as in this video, such as with the little stuffy in a cup inside an organza bag, it will stay together. If it’s loose in the carton, it will be used as needed. If you’ve packaged 12 stuffed bunnies in a gallon Ziploc, however, I doubt they will put 12 stuffed bunnies into one shoebox. They will use their discretion and assume you meant to send 12 bunnies for 12 shoeboxes. The OCC volunteers will abide by your wishes, so if it is not obvious as to what you want done with your filler, you should specify with a note in the box or a sticker on separate plastic bags, etc.

Thank you, Diana. I’m not surprised you are sending the backpacks as filler. They really are a bear to pack. 😉

Except the bigger bears wouldn’t fit in the cups with the hat and/or t-shirt and other things I put in them, and I wanted to use up the little bears, so they really worked perfectly 🥰

😯 I think donating filler has only become more popular within the last couple of years. Maybe they just weren’t accustomed to seeing it. I didn’t drop off my filler to the collection site this year (or last). I’m taking it with me to the Aurora PC when I volunteer at the end of the month. Thanks for watching, Joyce 🥰

That’s a tough one. I love packing for all ages, but I have to say 2-4 is probably the most fun. They are the easiest and least expensive to pack. Everything for toddlers is so darn cute and the ideas for themes are endless. That being said I find the 10-14 age group the most rewarding to pack. Maybe because they are the most challenging, but I get excited when I come up with great items and ideas for that age group, and I always love how the boxes turn out in the end.

Thanks, AnnaBeth. Now, on to 2024!!

Thank you so much, Nancy. I know what you mean about being able to pack them easier if they’re flat, but if you send them flat, I would fold them to fit into a Ziploc baggie, then label the baggie as to what it is and the age group it’s best for. Rolling them up is another good option. Whichever works for you. Just to give you an idea, filler gets handled a lot. Inspectors will go through the filler before they put it into the filler bins which are BIG bins. Then smaller bins will be filled with an assortment of filler from the big bins and brought to each workstation. There are six people at each workstation, who will continually dig through the filler bins for what they need for a specific box. So, make sure tags are securely fastened. God bless you for making filler! Merry Christmas!

Thank you for the great advice! Merry Christmas! @@byrdfeed9071