Support Our Troops Blog Day Event ~ March 21, 2009 ~ Please Join Me!

I haven't posted in a while, sorry, I have been under the weather and received a telephone call I wasn't expecting...

I have some news I want to share with everyone ~ my niece, who is 19 left for Iraq last Thursday and will be gone for approximately 16 months! I was upset, but proud! She joined the US Army when she was 17, yes ~ 17! She did her basic training at Fort Leonardwood, in Missouri, did very well and then was transferred to Washington State where she stayed until last Thursday. She trained as a medic and will be close to all of the terrible things happening in Iraq! Given the circumstances they weren't supposed to be sending any more troops to Iraq with the new administration in place, I was both very saddened, upset and worried about her being stationed in Iraq! I guess you could say it's better than Afghanistan, but who knows, with her tour of duty just beginning, she may up there along with the rest of her company. They sent another 16,000 troops over there! So anyway this is my thought and want I would like to do!

I want to host a blog event (certainly not a party) ~ but an event to Support Our Troops! I have been thinking about what to do and this is what I am going to plan:

I am going to post my niece's name, rank and APO mailing address here on the blog and would like to invite any blogger who would like to support our troops to participate, to please email me with their link and I will post it on my blog, with a link back to your blog. Please just drop a card in the mail, an email or possibly even a small package with some of the items from below! A card saying "thank you" would also be wonderful.

There are many wonderful creative people out there with beautiful blogs with hearts to match, and I think it would truly lift these "kids" spirits, given the location, living conditions not to mention what they will endure for quite a while!

It's a good way to keep up their morale while they are in this awful place and make them smile, given what they will see and have to do while they are stationed there.

If you send a box of "goodies and smiles", with a note asking Meggie to please share whatever items you send to the troops in her company, she will do that.

If you think about your "special tribute" post for your blog, maybe there is someone you know who is stationed in Iraq, Afghanistan or some other remote place in the world, who would love to receive a "care package" and post their information on your blog. An email would be great, as they love to receive news from the States with well wishes extended! When people read your story about your special person, friend or family member, they may choose to send a "care package" to them! I am hoping this will be like a "Pay it Forward" event honoring all of our troops!

Meggie has no idea I am doing this, I am sure she and her fellow soliders will be so happy to know that we, as Americans are just taking the time to send a note, an email or a box from home, especially being from someone they don't even know, it truly speaks volumes about each and every one of us. Oh, they also love pictures, especially when receiving a gift from someone they don't know, but are fighting for!!

So here is how it will work ~ and hopefully many of my wonderful followers and visitors will decide to participate! The "Support Our Troops" Blog Day Event will be March 21st.

All that is required of you is to have a "Support Our Troops" inspired event on your blog the day of this special tribute, a link back to my blog (Banner is above) and I will link to yours.

If you would like to post about this special tribute to "Our Troops" on your blog here is the flyer with the information, please feel free to copy this and post it on your blog, along with a link back to my blog! The more people who see it, the more participation we will have and the more emails, letters or cards our troops will receive!

Oh, and be sure to let me know you are going to participate by leaving your blog name and address either in a reply post or by emailing it directly to me at mimisrosecreations@yahoo.com (be sure to put "Support Our Troops" as the subject line).

The week of this very special tribute, I will create a list of all blogs/sites that are participating so that we can all visit each other's blogs the day of the very special event!

Some of the items which are most requested by our Soldiers are listed below:

wet wipes, individually wrapped in foil packs (not gel bottles)
body wipes in plastic pull-out canisters
disposable razors – men's and women's
chap sticks
floss
toothbrushes
feminine hygiene products

foot powder
and the like
magazines (clean content)
books (clean content)
fun posters & calendars for dressing the place up
AA batteries
AAA batteries
movie DVD's (clean content)
music CDs (clean content)
small earphones
1 GB and 2 GB USB memory sticks (external hard drives) (blank)
beef jerky and sticks
peanuts and nuts in cans with lids
tins and packets of flavored coffee and cappuccino
candy
gum
breath mints

Thank you for your support and I hope you will decide to participate! I have added Mr.Linky ~ yeah, if you want to participate, I am thanking you in advance. Just sign up following the easy linking device below! Then grab the small banner on the right side bar up at the top, along with the link to this post and place it on your blog.
Mimi

I received this email from Becky, her husband is a medic and also in Iraq. There is some information on shipping items to our troops which is very helpful ~ Thank you Becky!!

I left a comment on you blog. But I wanted you to know that you should mail all packages priority mail. It still takes about 2 weeks for them
to get it but you have less chance for the boxes to get lost if you send it priority.
Also the post office have boxes that you can pick up just for the troops. The boxes are free they are a flat rate box so you can fill it as heavy as you want.
It is $11.95 a box to send I think. But I do not know if they will go up in May when the stamps go up.
I hope this info helps.
And some thing to add to your list if you want. The sand is real bad there so they
need computer wipes and some good eye glass cleaner. They wear goggles alot because of the sand storms. Plus the sand is always bad.
Thanks so much.
Hope you have a great weekend.
Becky

Mimi

Support Our Troops Blog Day Event ~ March 21, 2009 ~ Please Join Me!

http://mimisrosechenilleboutique.blogspot.com/2009/02/support-our-troops-blog-day-event.html