It was the end of another school year. Except this one was different for me because I've been part-time teaching all year. The woman I worked with has been wonderful in sharing her art room and showing me how things go. I wanted to give her a going away gift and thought about the times that we have had emergency drills. (We live in Tornado Alley) I came up with this bitesized classroom emergency kit. It's not a comprehensive kit, more of a make the kids feel good while they're in emergency positions kit. So I filled it with a few things, designed and printed an insert label, and tied a bow. One box, one label, one shopping trip, one gift. Easy peasy. I've included the steps and downloads for you if you'd like to give this gift a go. (It doesn't have to be just for a classroom, you could use it for an office or some other place.)

Start off with a clear pencil box, the long ones found in WalMarts & Targets. (It's about 13" long)

Then download the label and print on a legal size paper. (I've left the name off and your content area blank on the templates.)

I use a paper cutter to cut the printed label.

Fill the kit. Here are the contents for this classroom emergency kit. (But add whatever you'd like.)

30 light stick bracelets • 1 large black trash bag • 2 small trash bags • 2 packages of tissues • 2 sticky note pads • 2 ink pens • 1 paper tablet • 1 small red sharpie • 1 large black sharpie • 1 lighter • 4 bullnose clips • 4 thick rubber bands • 1 bottle hand sanitizer • 1 spray hand sanitizer • 2 hand warmers • 16 wipes • 13 tie wraps • 10 safety pins - You could fill it with anything really

Here are the downloads below, in several versions for legal size paper (8.5" x 11").

When my daughter Alisha was almost due with her baby, I was invited to the baby shower given by her school co-workers. We had planned a family/friend shower and I already had a gift in mind for baby Caeden to give then. So, for this shower I wanted to give a gift that would be fun for her. But, of course I waited until the day of - nothing like a little self-imposed pressure to get the creativity going.

Trying to think of something, I mentally went back to my baby hospital stays and remembered that after deliveries I was always starving. My friends would then smuggle in a burger or pizza – contraband. Then I thought, “What if you planned for the contraband before going into the hospital?” As a result, I came up with the idea of a Hospital Contraband Kit.

The Hospital Contraband Kit is a clear make-up bag with a printed label inserted inside that is then filled with personally tailored contents. For my daughter, I chose chocolate contraband and she loved it!  Shortly after that, another friend’s daughter had her baby. It was Christmas Eve afternoon and I didn’t want to fight any crowds at the stores. I remembered that I had an extra make-up bag and quickly printed the label then headed out the door. On my way, I stopped at a convenience store (more expensive but worth it to miss the Christmas chaos) to pick up the contraband. It was a pretty effortless gift and she thought it was great.

Here are the fast and easy steps for you to put together your own kit. Print. Fold. Fill.

   #1 Print the free download   #2 Fold on the printed lines    #3 Fill with 1 of 3 options    

You don't really need to get sick to have or make one. Here are the different things you can put inside.

To Do -
• Print - PDF Download on 8.5 x 11 white cardstock
• Fold - printout on light grey lines
• Buy - clear make-up bag approx $6 (Modella Brand WalMart)
• Buy - contents, your choice
• Fill - and give 

So, what  would you put in a Hospital Contraband Kit?