Sunshine Bucket Gift Idea

My brother has a good friend – one he has had since high school – that is going through some tough things right now.  She has an uncommon form of uterine cancer (I think.  Sometimes guys aren’t known for getting all the details) and has been going through treatments for the past few months.  I can’t imagine how hard that is for her or her family but our thoughts are with them.

My brother has made it a point to go out to dinner or visit with her weekly, or as often as she feels up to it.  I really wanted to contribute something that would brighten her day, so I decided to put together a fun little gift to send with him on one of his visits.  Kaitlyn was enthusiastic about the idea too, so she helped me quite a bit shopping and putting it together.  We decided to go with a “sunshine” theme and just look for items that were in yellow or orange.

We found this great little double-walled tumbler, which I customized with some vinyl that reads “Do not disturb – busy kicking cancer’s butt.”  I hope she got a laugh out of that one.

Also in the basket was a journal and rainbow pens.  Kate insisted on the rainbow pens, which are exactly like a set my brother got for her a few months ago and she LOVES using them.  Sunshine and rainbows – it works, right?

Other items in the basket included:  goldfish crackers, popcorn, candy bars, and sparkling lemonade/yellow juices.  Oh and sunglasses – every sunshine basket should have a pair of fun sunglasses.

Kaitlyn also wanted to bake up a batch of lemon cupcakes to send (she and her friends are on a Cupcake Wars kick and really baking and experimenting with flavors.  It’s adorable) but she didn’t get home from school before my brother left with the basket so we’ll do that another time.  I think the basket turned out pretty cute even without the home-made baked goodies.

The tag was just some clip art from the internet that I added some white lettering to before printing.  The rainbow ribbon was already out from another project and I thought it worked well to tie in the rainbow pens while adding a little pop of color to draw attention to the tag, so we added a little rainbow bow for a final touch.

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While perfect for our purposes, this idea wouldn’t have to be used exclusively for those undergoing cancer treatment, or even just as a Get Well gift.  I could see myself giving this to a friend 6 weeks into life with a new baby, as a random act of kindness (in a smaller version perhaps), as a birthday gift for the person that has everything, maybe even Mother’s Day, a housewarming gift, or another special event.  The possibilities are endless.

When it comes to adding a little fun to someone’s day, I don’t think it takes a lot of money or even a lot of time (though I have to admit we did take about a week to pull all the items together as we just kept the idea in the back of our minds and would buy things as we ran across them while we were out and about).  All it takes is a little bit of thought and a touch of creativity – or, ya know, find something great on Pinterest and copy it!  😉

PS – if you do use any of my ideas I would LOVE to hear about it or even see photos! Thanks!

Linking to:  Lifestyle Link Up, Sundays Down Under, Snickerdoodle Sunday, Pretty Pintastic Party, Link Party Palooza, Saturday Sharefest, BFF Open House Link Party, Pin Me Link Party, Merry Monday, Your Turn To Shine,