Mom Talk

Does every kid under the age of 18 want EVERYTHING they see for Christmas? My daughter says she wants everything she sees on TV, in sale bills. . .every advertisement she’s seen over the past month or so elicits a loud, “I want that for Christmas!!” It’s gotten to the point that I am having trouble knowing what to get her for Christmas.

I sat her down a few days ago and asked her, “If we could only get you one item for Christmas, what would you want?” She did give me an answer, a short pause followed by ten more items. Arrgh! So, I’m trying to listen to her talk to others and write down the stuff she mentions more than once. From there, we’ll see what I can find/afford and hope the excitement of getting Christmas presents is enough on Christmas morning. If it’s not, it will be a good time to talk to her about the true meaning of Christmas (of course we’ll talk to her about that either way) and to emphasize that getting presents is just part of the fun, not the main focus.

Either way, I’m going to use this as an opportunity to help her understand about the needs of others around her. She’s a bit too young to take her to a homeless shelter or soup kitchen this year so I’m trying to think of other creative ways to instill a sense of helping others in her. Any ideas are welcome! Leave a comment if you have one.