One of the most important things I want to instill in my boys is a servant’s heart. While this is something I try to teach by example throughout the year, it’s especially on my mind during the holiday season. We are so blessed to live near family and friends to celebrate the holidays and equally as blessed to be able to have the worldly things in our lives to make the season a joyful one.
If I have one goal in life as a mom, it is to raise my boys to be kind and considerate people who think of others and the world around them. For all of the bad in the world, I think it truly is my responsibility to raise kind-hearted human beings that are able to see outside of what we have going on in our lives. It is with this in mind that I try to use the holiday season as an opportunity of teaching my kids about the gift of giving. As someone who finds the ultimate joy and happiness in serving others, it is a privilege to be able to share this lesson with my own children.
Even though the boys are young, they are starting to understand what Christmas means to our family. And in my book, it’s never too early to start teaching my kids about the gift of giving. Especially during the Christmas holiday. It doesn’t take much for them to get excited for the holiday, but I like to start the season with highlighting the importance of giving to others as much as we receive in our lives.
We make a list of people we will buy gifts for and make plans for what we’ll buy and where to shop during the holidays. If you think shopping with three boys in tow is probably a circus, it usually is! But, I actually like taking them out (most of the time), since we’re holed up in our house during the cold days. I love that I can take them to our local Sears to shop for nearly all of our friends and family and beyond. The kids and I love to browse the Sears Wish Book for gift ideas for everyone on our list. This year, Sears reinvented their 2017 Wish Book to provide a complete guide to hundreds of gift options for every family member, as well as offering convenient access via mobile and online shopping through their website and the Sears App.
Here are a few simple ways I am teaching my kids about the gift of giving during this holiday season and in the future:
1.) Gifting our Family & Friends
The boys are blessed to live near both sets of grandparents and a plethora of extended family and friends. Needless to say, our kids are spoiled silly through the holidays and beyond. Because of this, I make sure to actively pick out and choose gifts for our family and friends with the boys. I love that they are able to pick out different things for different members of our family. I can already see their consideration of what they think someone will like and their attention to the unique qualities about each of our family members.
Like I mentioned before, the 2017 Sears Wish Book is our go to source for shopping for our friends and family. The 120 page Wish Book is filled with quality products sold at Sears. Right now through November 25th, Sears is hosting its first ever Holiday Blowout, everything is 10%-50% off! It’s definitely a bonus to save some money while shopping for the important people in our family.
2.) School Charity
A’s preschool always participates in a charity program that we can participate in during the holidays. I love that it’s a lesson that they teach at school and we love joining in as a family. The school’s Christmas tree is decorated with paper ornaments that has items, like special toys or winter gear that the adopted family and kids need and want for Christmas. It’s super easy for A to pick out a few things that he wants to shop for the kids. I love that I can find all of these items in the 2017 Sears Wish Book. It truly is a one stop shop for a family’s needs and wants from winter gear to books and toys, home furnishings and kitchen essentials. The school’s charitable giving program is a great way for me to teach my kids about the gift of giving.
3.) Adopting A Family
Similarly to the school program, in the future, we would like to adopt a family during the Christmas season. We feel grateful to have our needs and wants fulfilled without a second thought. I want to make sure that I maintain a heart of gratitude and spread that appreciation to my kids, too. And I think that giving back to the community or another family no different than ours is a great way to show our love and support to those around us.
4.) Volunteering
As the boys get older I want to participate in volunteer projects in our neighborhood and greater community. I think it’s important for them to learn that we can also give to others with our time. Whether it’s through our church or other volunteer opportunities, we will make sure to actively participate in these programs in the future.
The Christmas season is full of so many wonderful opportunities to give to our loved ones, as well as our community. I truly hope that as the boys grow older, I’ll continually be able to impress upon them the importance of giving back and truly understanding the meaning of Christmas cheer and joy.
Teaching My Kids About the Gift of Giving
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