They had no trouble picking things out (they are excellent shoppers, lol!) but putting it into the box was a different story. They had difficult time parting with the items and I kept having to remind them of how much this little girl who would receive this box needed these items and how happy she would be to get it. They kept asking me who she was, the concept of an unknown person in need is hard for a 3 & 4 yr. old to grasp! We managed to fill the boxes (while not going broke in the process) and headed home to prepare them.
Once we laid everything out to begin packing, the real difficulty began! The lil divas wanted to open the toys they had picked! I reminded them (again) these toys weren't for them, but instead we were giving them to someone else as a special Christmas surprise. I told them we were being Santa's special helpers and that both he & I were very proud of them for being so generous and thoughtful. In the end, they packed those boxes with such care and obvious good intentions that my heart was overflowing! In their own way, they got it!
I know this was a difficult task for my lil divas and I am proud of them for being able to move past their immediate wants and actually do something for someone else. Together we planted a seed that we can nurture and grow. I plan to do more of these types of things with them now that they can begin to understand what it means and why it should be done. I want them to grow up knowing how fortunate they are and not only appreciate what they have but to also be charitable towards others. We have taken our first steps in that direction and I am proud of their efforts! Little kids with big hearts can make a difference in our world and I want my lil divas to know that!
