Need Get Well Ideas for friends!!

[cvrapclark]

A good friend of mine was in a real bad car accident this morning with her 7 yo daughter and 9 yo son. All are okay but are very shook up. Daughter had to have some surgery to fix some tendons in her arm and has a drain and it's pretty messed up. But they FLIPPED five times in their Suburban!! We thank God they all survived with so few injuries!!

I want to do something special for them since they're going to be home for a few days. Anyone have any ideas on gifts or something for that age children, especially the boy. I'm not sure of his likes at this age. Mentally, the children and mom are pretty affected as you can imagine.

Thanks for any suggestions.

 

[AKL_Megs]

I know Target sells like, Nemo and Disney Princess themed gel "ice packs". They would be cute for bumps and bruises, poor kiddos!

Everyone likes candy...

How about a pizza night coupon, like, enough for a pizza, breadsticks and a soda... delivered.

 

[ontariomonkey]

I think taking a complete, healthy meal over would be great. You need good nutrition to heal your body. How about a nice family movie to watch.

The 8yo boy in my life loves TecDecs (mini skateboard toys) and action figures.

 

[tinkarooni]

I totally agree with PP. I would take over a nice homemade dinner, kid friendly, maybe baked ziti with meatballs, green salad. A family friendly movie is a good idea everyone can relax, or how about a family game? When I was in the 4th grade we were in a pretty serious car accident and I just wanted to be with my mom and dad. It was a pretty scary feeling learning that my parents couldn't protect me from everything. I think that was my first reality of that.

You're a good friend and anything you do to show you're thinking of them I'm sure would be appreciated.

 

[dfchelbay]

I like the home cooked meal idea. Make them a good pasta dish, and if budget is a concern, you can go to your public library and check out some movies for the kids to watch over the next couple days and return them next week...that should be free. Also, you could tell mom that you'll look after the kids if she would like to go to your house (or her own) and just relax and maybe get some good, deep sleep for a couple hours, or even overnight.

 

[akcire]

Last time I had surgery, the BEST things were by far.... the home cooked meals, a friend who offered to be my errand runner for 3 hours, a neighbor who brought home movie rentals & returned them, and finally a cookie bouquet (but I really like junk food)--oh and the neighbor kid sent over to mow my lawn (he didn't ask but I paid him-I was sick not broke)

 

[NYCDiane]

You can also send over an easy craft kit for them to do as a family. One of my faves as a kid were those "suncatcher" things... you would put the plastic pieces in, bake them, let them cool and then put a string through the hole and hang it by the window. It's a really fun thing to do together and very relaxing. A couple of board games might be relaxing and fun, too.

Something for the kids to do themselves so mom can get some rest might be good, too. Not too sure what your budget contraints are, but I know they sell those cheapy hand held video games at Walgreen for about $10 each (you can probably get them at TRU, too)

 

[Justsyd2]

I think that bringing over a meal, and offering to do chores and errands for them, light housekeeping, laundry, etc, would be most appreciated!

 

[NYCDiane]

I think that bringing over a meal, and offering to do chores and errands for them, light housekeeping, laundry, etc, would be most appreciated!

I agree that the mom would appreciate that more than anything, but I was thinking about the 2 kids.

This is a very traumatic thing for a 7 & 9 year old to go through! The car flipped 5 times, the girl had to have surgery on her arm, etc. My thought was that simple craft things would calm their nerves and give a feeling of closeness, calmness, etc.

I had a very minor accident with my DD in the car a couple of years ago when she was 8. She had never experienced anything like this and it really traumatized her --- so much so that I actually had to take her to a psychologist to get her past the fear of being in a car (she would get in the car with no problem, but would be nervous/anxious the entire time, looking around, getting scared if any other car came near us, etc. ) Thankfully, she's OK now about being in a car.

 

[wdwfan16]

I would give the family money and the kids a small stuffed animal or other token gift.

My sister was hit by a underager drunk driver and at first it appears she got away with minimum injuries. It became obvious a month or two later that there was a major problem that would require a expensive surgery, much lost time from work and much physical therapy.

Dealing with insurance and such has been difficult. They eventually pay her for lost wages but it took about 3 months before they started to pay. She needed cash to help her get over the initial hump.

 

[zoemurr]

I would probably buy a Lego model for him to work on or a new video game for whatever system he has if it is in your budget.

You could also offer to run to the library and grab books/movies/etc.

The meals would be great too of course.

 

[Disney Hot Mama]

for the family - a home cooked meal ad some quick snakcs plus an ffer to ru to the grocery store to stock them up with basics...a movie to watch together

for mom - some magazines or a book that she enjoys

for the kids - a stuffed animal, a book to read or just offer to spend a little time with them if they are up to it