Blogmas Day 4 – Christmas Kindness Bingo!!

Helllooooo merry readers!! (I figured that’s better than elves hey?) 

On the fourth day of Christmas my true love gave to meeeeeee… not a type of bird!! 

Last year I decided to share my Christmas kindness post, about great ways to give back during the holiday season, towards the end of Blogmas but I wanted to swap that up this year and rather share it at the beginning so everyone has lots of fun ideas of ways to give back before it’s Christmas eve and it feels like there’s not enough time to do anything. I always think that it’s important to take a minute, reflect and be grateful for what you have. It’s also important to show our gratitude and give something back to the world/community amid all the joy, celebrations and over indulgence. We’ve all gone through some really challenging times and I think this year we all need that Christmas magic more than ever, so even if it’s just a teeny tiny thing, giving back in whatever way we can can make such a big difference to someone and truly make their festive season magical. So today, in the same spirit as my ultimate Christmas bucket list (which you can read here by the way), here are 25 small things you can do to show a little Christmas kindness! I present to you my Christmas Kindness Bingo!!

• Say thank you – it’s often something that goes unsaid or gets forgotten, so make an effort to say thank you to someone today. 
• Make cookies for a neighbour – if you’ve made too many for yourself, or looking for an excuse to bake, I’m sure no one will say no to some homemade cookies (just be sure to check about allergies!) 
• Donate some old toys to your favourite charity/children’s home – if there’s a toy at the back of your cupboard, I’m sure you could donate it and make some child’s Christmas extra merry this year!
• Make a hug coupon for someone – is this something only I do? Who cares?! Everyone could always do with an extra hug in my mind. 

• Donate food to your local food pantry – it doesn’t have to be much, but a little something can go a long way so even a tin or two is a great way to give back this Christmas. 
• Write a Christmas card to someone alone – the Holidays are tough when you’re alone, so send a Christmas card to the elderly (or anyone alone) and you will definitely make their Christmas!
• Candy cane bomb a parking lot – I’d never heard of this before researching this post but now it’s all I want to do! Guaranteed to make someone smile. 

• Tape change to a vending machine– not only is it a chance to get rid of your change, but you could gift someone a snack or chocolate they really need to get through their next meeting.  
• Call a faraway friend or relative to say hello – there’s just something that warms you up inside when you get a call from someone you haven’t heard from in ages. Reach out to someone and spread the warmth!
• Take supplies to an animal shelter – we can’t forget about our four-legged friends! Even a spare blanket or a tennis ball or two will make a difference to those animals. 

• Pay for a stranger’s coffee – it will probably be a shocking, startling experience (because who does this sort of thing anymore??) but considering how important coffee is to some people, it’s kinda the perfect random act of kindness! 
• Give a compliment to a friend – bring a smile to a friend’s face just by giving them a compliment. It’s surprising how powerful a few kind words can be. 
• Let someone ahead of you in line – I know this idea might infuriate a lot of people (especially if it’s the queue to Flat White Kitchen), but in a world where we all hate queues, it’s the kindest thing I can think of. 
• Feed the birds – not inspiration from Mary Poppins, but when food is short in winter I’m sure there are some feathery friends that would appreciate your bread crumbs. 

• Remind your friends and family how much you love them – Another thing that I think we sometimes forget to do, so just let everyone in your life know how much you love and appreciate them. 
• Create care packages – who doesn’t love a care package? Filled with sweet things that just make you smile and filled with warm fuzzies and sparkly thoughts, so if you’re feeling it, make one for a friend or family member, or even a stranger? 
• Make a shoebox gift for a child – similar to a care package, this is a really great initiative where you can not only give children some things they need, but also some toys/gifts so that they have a really special Christmas. 
• Support a small business – this could be your local coffee shop, a small stall at a Christmas market, or even buy your gifts on Etsy but it’s always great to share the love and support small/local businesses during the holidays. 
• Pick up litter – consider it an act of kindness towards our planet, and all the cute little critters sharing it with us. Think of the hedgehogs, or turtles, or whatever other adorable animals you find cute that could choke on litter. 
• Smile at a stranger (an extra challenge with masks on) – I’m a big believer that a smile has the power to make someone’s day. The challenge is doing it without looking creepy, especially if you’re wearing a mask. 

• Volunteer at a local centre – I think there’s something so merry in volunteering at this time of year, because sometimes what is more valuable than time? Pick a local spot to volunteer at, either a shelter, children’s home, animal shelter, whatever speaks to your heart and spend a few hours giving back this Christmas. 
• Make a no-sew blanket for a shelter – I’ve made these before and not only are they really easy, but they’re also quite fun and surprisingly therapeutic. You’ll also be giving someone else not just a gift, but something to keep them warm this Christmas so lots of goodness in this choice. 
• Walk a neighbour’s dog – this is showing both kindness to your neighbour and kindness to the dog, and you get a smile out of it too because how much fun is it to spend time with a cute dog?? It’s also always good karma to do something nice for a neighbour. 

• Be kind to yourself – probably the most forgotten good deed of all is to actually be kind to yourself. We can give ourselves a lot of harsh criticism and negativity, so maybe just for a change, shed some of that kindness on yourself. 

• Have a merry Christmas!! And last but not least, this one is kind of self-explanatory but have a very merry Christmas!! 

I’ve always been a big believer that one of the best things you can do is give back, be kind and try help others in any way you can and I think that sentiment rings even more true at Christmas time. When things might not be so merry and jolly for some people, it’s so important to be grateful for what we have and try to help others have a good Christmas. I hope you all enjoyed my Christmas Kindness Bingo!! I challenge you all to see how many you manage to tick off by Christmas day, and maybe even add in a few ones that you think I’ve missed out – speaking of… let’s chat in the comments section if you do any of these each year, if there are any you think I’ve missed out or what sort of Christmas kindness you relate to the most!! Alright that’s it for your daily dose of jingly merriment from Blogmas on Tall Blonde Tales – I’ll see you all tomorrow. I promise it won’t be another list of 25 things!

Lots of Love

Blondey on a Mission xxx