Feeding the Pigs

She did it! She saved up enough money for her "Wii"! Here she is with her big stash of money, ready to open up her first account at "First Federal Bank"! (They've been our bank since the new Old Fort Bank President fired Shayne last September. Obviously, we took our accounts elsewhere and although Shayne could care less, I'm still amused when others tell us they did the same thing with their accounts. Actually, one person working for another bank in town told us their saying is, "Old Fort firing Shayne was the best thing that ever happened to our bank!" Too funny!) Regardless, he's been at his new job at the quarry for the past 13 months and our family is incredibly blessed as a result of it all!

First Federal Bank's program for little ones is if you open up an account, they'll add $10.00 and give you a piggy bank. Well, for our little piggy bank collector, this was the perfect fit!

“Local Girl Finds Way to Feed a Pig” (Shayne wrote this article for a newsletter)

Shayla Thomas, 9 year old daughter of Shayne and Angela Thomas of rural Tiffin, is a saver. Her thrift goes well with her collectables-piggy banks. Ever since she was little, Shayla had a taste for saving and she was fond of her piggy banks. Now a fourth grader, her collection has grown to include twenty banks from all around the world. When it came time for her to empty some of those banks into a FDIC insured account, two of her passions came together. First Federal Bank of the Midwest has a “Young Saver Program” that allowed her to open a savings account and receive a complimentary piggy bank. Now she has one more vessel to keep her savings safe.

Some of her banks have special memories. Her late sister, Christi Thomas, made her a “piggy bank” out of paper mache’ shortly before she died; that one is priceless. Another was given to Shayla by a good friend in Philadelphia. Christi accidently broke it one day so Shayla’s grandma glued it back together. Christi nicknamed it “Puzzlelina”. Shayla’s father brings her banks from his travels which adds an international flair to her collection. Her favorites are a Haggis bank from Scotland and one with a light on it from China. She also has one in Swedish. Ultimately though, the best ones have money already in them! This was the case on her eighth birthday when she received that gift from family friends who work at COSI.

PICTURES: It was Christi's 9th birthday, but she wanted to give Shayla a gift. For a couple of weeks, she'd been working on the piggy bank she was making for Shayla. (It's hard to be sneaky when your sister loves nothing more than playing with you and you have a secret gift for her you're trying to make which requires many stages....paper mache, the legs of the pig were tooth paste caps and she had to collect them first, etc., etc.)
We think Shay really liked her gift and it sits upon her bedroom dresser today! Thank you, sweet Christi!

FUNNY: The first night after I got the "wii" at Wal-Mart, we played the bowling game. Shayne immediately got a strike. Shayla said, "Wow, dad! How did you do that?" In a very serious tone Shayne said, "Well.....I didn't want to have to tell you this, but.....we have a wii at work and that is what I do all day. People wonder what I do at my new job and now you know. Now you know why I love my job and why I'm so happy all day." She looked at him stunned, then realized he was joking; they don't have a wii game at work. He just got lucky with his first attempt at bowling! He's a hoot!

PICTURE: Playing wii with a friend.

UPDATES: Tracey Smith was not successful in her bid for state School Board.

Yes, Shayla does "hang up" her shoes. Due to lack of space, we have a shoe organizer on the back of a door. Just like her coat, we expect her to "hang up" her shoes. Shayne's such a sweetie, he hangs his shoes up out in the garage. It really helps to have our shoes out of the way.