Early Spring Cleaning?

So as I mentioned in my last post, we have a few material things that we are required to get for Nastya while she is here. At this point we are prepared to buy these things for her if necessary, but I thought I'd reach out first and ask if maybe some of you have some things that you were looking to get rid of anyway and would like to donate? Take a look, maybe we can help you with some early Spring cleaning:

1. She comes with the clothes on her back. We plan to buy her a few things (underwear and shoes for sure), but if any of you have girls clothes sized 7, 8, 9 or 10 that you are done with, we'd love to take them off your hands. Jackets and snow gear would be much appreciated too. The reason for the wide sizing window is that these kids are typically a bit smaller than the average American child of the same age. I won't know until she gets here what size best fits her, but it would be nice to have some things for her to try when she arrives.

2. We need to send her back with a suitcase for all her new things. There is a standard size: 26 to 28"  soft sided suitcase. It must fit into these measurements and be on wheels (rolling). Any chance anyone out there has one that they want to get rid of? If not, can you let me know if you see a good deal on one somewhere (it can even be used from Goodwill or whatever...just needs to get Nastya and her stuff home)?

3. She has expressed an interest in rollerblading while she is here. I'm wondering if any of my local friends have an extra helmet/pads, rollerblades or a scooter that they might be willing to let us borrow while she is visiting? We would obviously return them upon her departure.

4. Some of you have expressed an interest in getting her gifts. If you wanted to send her a small denomination gift card (Target, Kohl's, Marshalls) that she could use to buy some clothing items, school supplies, toiletry items and other necessities, that would be the best type of gift for her to receive. Everything she takes back with her has to fit in that 28" suitcase so we have to be very strategic about what she gets while here. Just getting to go shopping for clothing herself will be a fantastic gift for her!

Of course the main thing she needs from us is love and the knowledge that she is wanted. I have some ideas of ways that we can all welcome her that I will be sharing as we get closer to her arrival day so for those of you still looking for a way to help...keep your eyes open for an upcoming post!