Spread the Love: Care Package Ideas

In these crazy times it's nice to take a moment and do something kind for those you love. It can be small things like a text or a phone call. A letter to check in and catch up. A playlist with your or their favorite songs. A box of cookies or flowers dropped off on a neighbor's steps. If you're looking for some inspiration for care packages to send to loved ones to brighten their quarantine, here's a few I love:

Box of Sunshine

Fill a box with all things yellow! Yellow socks, honey, funky sunglasses, instant lemonade (or a lemon and instructions), Sour patch kids and Lindt white chocolates truffles (with gold wrapping paper) for some sweetness, the yellow submarine (song) by the Beatles, and maybe add a banana? Look around for things to brighten someone's day.

Cozy Night In

Fuzzy socks, face masks, tea or hot chocolate, a movie, popcorn, some chocolate, and bath salts are the perfect setup for a lovely spa-day meets movie-night.

Adventure Kit

Get outside! Great for kids and adults alike. Explore with binoculars, a birding book, magnifying glass, plant ID booklet, and a camera to capture all the fun. Add a map if you have a certain area you want to explore, otherwise go wild in the wild! (Bandaids may be a good idea if young ones are joining)

Art Set Get creative! Send a friend a new form of art to try. This could be knitting, crochet materials, watercolors, paper, pen and ink, whatever you want! Get musical with a kazoo or keep it cool with some colored pencils and a mini-sketchbook.

Cook-Off

Bakers delight! Have a recipe exchange with friends via an email chain to get some new inspiration. Send out a challenge to people and see who can come up with the best recipe using certain ingredients in their fridge under limited time (cooking show style) and host a zoom cooking party to see the action live. Send a friend a few ingredients and a recipe in the mail (aim for non-perishable goods) and check in to see how it went or make it a challenge and have them send you something back!

Soothe Kit

Someone having a rough time? Cheer them up with a sweet note, a cozy or inspirational book, homemade playlist, print off some of your favorite photos together, and whatever else makes them happy. Journalling is really great to get out your emotions so maybe send them a notebook or list of prompts to try. Add some tea or hot chocolate and a little snack like a granola bar or their favorite treat.

These are just a few ideas, but there are endless possibilities that you can curate to perfectly fit the person you want to send a little bit of joy too. As a promoter of sustainability, I encourage you to reuse items you find around the house, like used books or gifts you never used (regifts are still gifts) to reduce the amount of things you buy. Reusing and recycling items both saves you money and helps you save the planet. Another tip is to be mindful of the person you're sending things too and if they follow a more minimalist lifestyle and wouldn't appreciate physical things as much, try sending a virtual care package with a nice note, recipe ideas, podcast recommendations, books or blogs you think they'd like to read, a playlist, etc.

If you don't have time to put a package together, please try to take a few minutes out of your day to connect with others. Social isolation and quarantine has been a hard time for all of us and harder on some more than others, and it's amazing how much even a five or ten minute phone call can completely change someone's day. Bring joy to others and joy will come to you.

Stay strong, hopeful, and bright.

Spread love wherever you go and light up the darkness.

Have adventures even in the mundane.

Give and receive gifts with kindness and love. Remember that you, yourself, can be a gift to this world.