And the Christmas lists will start. My girls will circle everything in the American Girl catalog, write down every toy they see on Nickelodeon commercials and tell me on every Target run we make that they want, essentially, three of everything.
While I absolutely love everything about this time of year, I sometimes struggle with teaching my girls to think of others and not just themselves. I remind my oldest constantly to stop worrying about what vacations her friends are taking or how many birthday gifts so and so got at her birthday party (and then I find myself worrying about the same trivial things). I tell my girls that yes, someone will always have more than us. More toys. More cars. More clothes. More vacations. But there are many, many more people that have so much less.
As we tumble toward Thanksgiving, I am trying to fill my girls' time with activities that teach them more about the world around them. I am working toward teaching them to do good for others. To selfishly give- not for recognition or applause, but because giving is a reward in itself.
It isn't always easy with young ones, I've found. Many of the organizations in the area have minimum age limits before kids can volunteer for their projects, big or small. But here are a few ways we will be giving back this holiday season:
1. Trash Pick Up.
-My Girl Scout troop will be picking up trash at River Legacy next weekend. We will put on slubby clothes and gloves and hit the trails to pick up discarded trash. During the clean up, we will also be discussing the importance of not littering because of its environmental impact. The nice thing is- this type of activity doesn't have to be sanctioned. You can hit up any park, trail or area in town (that is a safe space from roadways) and pick up trash. Teaching our kids to care for the world they live in is a great lesson!
2. Mission Arlington Help.
-Both my Girl Scout troop and my mommy group will be at Mission Arlington in the upcoming weeks to help them prepare for the busy holiday season. What rocks about Mission Arlington is that they will work with volunteers of all ages. I will be bringing my 3 and 4 year olds to help out there! They designate age-appropriate activities for anyone who wants to get involved. For example- they will have little ones help sort out donated cans (green beans go in this box, but corn goes in that one). We will also collect items for their Thanksgiving Baskets before we go. I will have my girls shop for these items and pay for the goods at Kroger, and we will talk about being thankful that we get to have another Thanksgiving with good food and wonderful family.
3. Host a Soup Mobile Cookie Party.
-Last year my friend Sara hosted an easy, fun playgroup for our littles during Thanksgiving Break. She asked each mom to bring cookies to her house- homemade, store bought- whatever. She provided zip lock bags. We made an assembly line and the kids put 2 or 3 cookies in each zip lock bag and zipped them shut. We packaged more than 100 baggies in about 15 minutes (we only lost a few cookies to hungry tots). Then she took them to Soup Mobile charity in Dallas (www.soupmobile.org) where they were distributed to the homeless by volunteers with the charity. It was a fun, easy way to get the kids involved. I even let my oldest pick out the cookies at Kroger that we brought- and we talked about how these weren't for us, but for people less fortunate.
4. Adopting an Angel
-One of my favorite parts of the holidays is shopping. I love finding the right gifts for people- bonus if I can find a great gift at an amazing price. But still, I really enjoy scouring toy stores and discount stores in search of fun, unique gifts for the loved ones in my life. So I've adopted an angel from the Salvation Army giving tree every year I've lived in Arlington. Usually, I pick out boys, because I'm a pro at shopping for girls and love the excitement of shopping for little boys. This year, I'm going to let my oldest pick a deserving child off the Angel Tree (oh how I wish I could adopt them all!) and have her help me shop for his gifts. I'm going to remind her that not everyone wakes up during the holiday season to a room full of gifts- some mommies and daddies can't afford it. This will serve as a reminder to her that she is very fortunate- for her always-messy playroom full of toys, her overstuffed closet, her full fridge. And again, it will help to remember that it is more fun to give gifts at the holidays than it is to receive.
5. Closet Clean Out for the Pregnancy Center
-One of my least favorite parts of the holidays is the stuff. We have so many people in our lives that love my girls and shower them with gifts during the holiday season. And with two October birthdays- we barely finish unwrapping birthday toys and we are diving head first into Christmas chaos. This year, before we open all the gifts that will flood our family room Christmas morning, we will clean out our playroom, and each of my girls will pick out three toys she no longer plays with. We will take these toys over to the Pregnancy Center on I20 between Little and Green Oaks for donation. We will talk about how these toys will go to their resale shop to be resold to another sweet little girl, and the money will be used to help out young mothers who may need financial assistance to help them raising their babies.
Other great ideas for tots:
1. Have your kids make holiday cards for soldiers stationed overseas. Crayons, paper and a fun imagination are all that's required for this. (soldiersangels.org can help you get them to the right place)
2. Have your kids have a lemonade/hot chocolate/cookie stand and pick their favorite charity to donate the money to. If you want to have them personally hand over the money, have them drop it in a Salvation Army pot outside the mall during the holiday season.
3. Go caroling at a senior center or rehabilitation center. Bringing cheer to others will certainly help your kids see the impact of their kindness.
4. Part of a large mommy group or other organization? Host a coat drive through onewarmcoat.org. Have your kids help make flyers advertising where and when to drop off gently-worn coats. Or have them help you pick out a few new ones at Walmart or Target to donate.
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