Our favorite Kellys (Kelly, Nick, Connor, and Colton) need support. As part of his duties as a Captain in the Army National Guard, Nick recently left on a 10-month deployment to Africa where he'll be stationed mainly at Camp Lemmonier in Djibouti. We are immensely proud of Nick for his service and their family's sacrifice. As Kelly will be holding down the fort at home with Connor, and also Colton a couple weekends a month, it's time for us to come together as the village Kelly deserves to make their time at home easier. Since Kelly has a very long daily commute and there are dietary restrictions and toddler preferences at play, and she's just 1 adult to feed, a typical meal train is a little tricky. Right now, it seems the most impactful support would be in the form of: - gift cards or donations for groceries, gas, take-out, and other day-to-day supplies; - ordering and delivery of certain supplies or groceries that Kelly will communicate she needs; - texts/emails checking in on her and letting her know she, the kids, and Nick are thought of and supported; - occasional freezer meals/food prep [see Special Notes for restrictions and suggestions] delivered on certain days for the week*; - potential future funding for lawn care, snow removal, and/or house-cleaning. I'll also be putting together monthly care packages to send to Nick once he gets settled in Djibouti and we have an official address plus any restrictions or rules about what can be sent. I will post some lists here of supplies and gifts as that process gets rolling.
Since Connor is a typical toddler and his food interests change day to day and meal to meal, most meal/food support is for Kelly. Helpful foods would be freezer meals that can be portioned out for multiple dinners during a week and/or large trays of salad or grilled chicken (must be fresh, real chicken and not processed) she can then use to meal prep lunch for the week. *I'll update a calendar as Kelly gets more settled into this latest chapter and we can pinpoint which days/dates will be most helpful. Dietary restrictions: pork, deli meat, processed meat, beans, hummus/chickpeas, mango. Giftcards or Venmo: - Visa gift cards to be used for gas for Kelly's 3-hour round-trip commute each day; - Visa gift cards or Venmo for take-out or groceries; - Care Cards through this site that can be swapped for 200+ different retailers of Kelly's choice; - Big Y is Connor's favorite grocery store (he is his mother's son and LOVES grocery shopping); - Colton LOVES Chipotle, and Panera is another easy family meal take-out spot; - Amazon for home supplies.