40 Random Acts of Kindness for 40 Years

Finally, a 40 RAOK for 40 years post! 

Here's the whole list, with a few photos for good measure.  Being the dork that I am, I couldn't just write on post-it notes; I had to make cute notes to use.  Dorky or not, they still make me happy!

‎Wednesday, 6/27:
1. Made Paul's lunch at 5:30am
2-5. Mailed actual letters to some special people
6. Paid for the car behind us at DQ - the cute, young drive-thru dude grinned & said "AWESOME!" when I asked him to tell the car behind us that it was b/c of my b'day
7. Smiled & waved on two different pedestrians while we were out running errands.

Thursday, 6/28:
8.-13. Delivered cupcakes to the neighbors - side note: I used a pinterest idea for making baskets/bowls out of paper plates to hold the cupcakes, and they were super easy & really cute!

14.-16. Put gift cards in some of our favorite kids' books at the book store with a note saying, "Like this book? Use this gift card to buy it!"

17. Gave $5 to the guy on the corner with a sad sign
18. Left a gift card for the next customer at our favorite bakery counter
19. Put a snack and a note in the mailbox for the mail man - he finally took it the following day & left a thank you note of his own

Friday, 6/29:
20-24. Left dollar bills among the toys at the dollar store - the clerk was kind of hilarious when I explained to her what I was doing & then left an extra dollar with her to cover tax... she just said, "That's.... different."  ha!

25-27. Sent thank you notes to a few houses that have beautiful gardens or awesome Christmas lights
28-30. Put up "Take What You Need" & "Free Compliments" signs at SBX, Bruegger's & Caribou - The strips on the "Take What You Need" sign had things like courage, forgiveness, joy and hope, and the "Free Compliments" included things like "You are an inspiration" and "You have a great smile!"  Starbuck's & Caribou have to approve your sign before you put it up, and both of the chicks who looked at mine were cute when they realized what it was
31. Tipped at Caribou for the first time ever

Saturday, 6/30:
32-34. Taped money to a vending machine w/ a note to enjoy a soda on me
35-36. Two more "Take What You Need" & "Free Compliments" signs
37. Dropped off a donation at goodwill
We were at the bookstore as well, and one of our 3 gift cards was gone!!!  It was fun to see Ben so excited about it.

Sunday, 7/1:
39. Brought in the neighbor's mail while they are on vacation
40. Emailed McD's corporate to let them know how great the staff is at our favorite location - I actually got an email back from them thanking me for taking the time to provide positive feedback!

Phew!  Many, many more Random Acts of Kindness were done by others in honor of my birthday as well, some by people I do not know!  I love the thought of the world being a little bit better place over the past few days.  Thank you to everyone who provided encouragement and did RAOK's of their own!!


One last photo, of the fun birthday gift I got from my mom & Ed - 40 of a bunch of different treats, including hugs & kisses, as well as a few $40 gift cards!!