I'm interrupting Luke's silliness a little today for something I find to be VERY important!
I am a holiday junkie, and I know that I'm raising my kids to follow in my footsteps. We have a lot of fun with decorations, treats, parties, and personal traditions, because we love to celebrate and spend quality time together. But it's also really important to me to teach my kids about the other side of holidays - giving, love, support, and kindness. It's hard to explain these things to toddlers and preschoolers - it's such an abstract thought to them that some kids out there may not have loving homes with dozens of gifts under their trees on Christmas day! So I think the best way to teach them is to lead by example.
I've been looking for ways to give back - some simple, easy things to do that I know I can get my kids involved in. I want them to get some impact out of it, AS WELL AS the children we aim to reach out to. I found out about Samaritan's Purse and their Operation Christmas Child just by searching around online. I haven't done too much research about the organization, but what I do know is that they are a group of Christians doing what they can to offer help and love to the less fortunate, all over the world!
This program is so great, and SO EASY to participate in! All you have to do is grab a shoe box or a plastic storage bin (they have them at Dollar Tree for..you guessed it....a dollar!), fill it with little toys, candy, personal hygiene items, etc - wrap it up, and deliver it to a drop off point with a $7 donation to cover shipping. There are more details on how to do this on their website, but here's the kicker - drop off week is NEXT WEEK! November 12-19th. You can check their website for a drop off location, OR....
If you are in the WNY area, and arrange a way for me to get your box, I will deliver it FOR YOU along with mine at my chosen drop off point!
You could either drop it off at my house, meet me somewhere half-way, or pass it along through someone you know that lives close by. PLEASE leave a comment here or on Facebook or email us at askLukey at gmail dot com if you want to set that up!
So how can you get your kids involved? This is what I plan to do!
1. Ask Luke who he would like to give our gift to. You have to choose Boy or Girl, and an age range (2-4, 5-9 or 10-14). Letting him chose this makes the gift personal to HIM, and gives him a good idea of who to chose gifts for. I'm betting that he will chose a 3-4 year old boy (just like him!) and he will likely chose things HE would like to have. [Edit: Surprise! Luke chose a 4 year old boy! :)]
2. Let the boys help me pick out gifts. Henry is a bit too small to know what he's doing, but I plan to set them loose in the dollar spot at Target and Dollar Tree and grab whatever they pick out. I'll throw in a few things of my own choosing, but letting them pick gifts makes it more special (I think!), and will mean more to Luke when we pack it all up! [Edit: So far we've picked up stickers, markers, flash cards, a coloring book, dinosaur figurines, and a bouncy ball...we're still getting a bunch more, but there are a few ideas for you! We plan to add candy, socks, matchbox cars, some travel size hygiene items, and more! ]
3. Have Luke draw/write a note to add to the box. He loves to paint and color, so I'll have him make a special picture to the child we are gifting.
4. Have Luke help deliver the boxes. It'll be important for him to witness the actual delivery, and knowing him - he'll probably want to be the one who hands them over!
5. Talk through the whole process, in painful detail! Luke is a very verbal child (you're shocked, right? haha) and talking him through everything in life is kind of business as usual. The more you explain things to him, in as many ways as you can, the better he "gets it". And chances are, he'll probably start telling everyone else about it, too!
So, will you donate a shoe box to a child who has never received a real Christmas gift before?
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