The Season of Giving
A long time back, I did a post with the message that gratitude starts with attitude. At Emma’s age, it is hard to teach about gratitude. Kids at this age are naturally self-centered and sometimes it is hard to break through. Here are two things you can do to help your kiddo. It might even help you be a bit more grateful in your own life too.
Demonstrate Gratitude– Perhaps the easiest thing to do is to show gratitude in your everyday life. It doesn’t have to be a big production. A simple thank you to someone for holding the door, sending thank you’s, pointing out things to be thankful for…… Try to be natural
Talk About Gratitude in Daily Life– while this one isn’t the easiest to apply, I have found it has had the most impact on Emma. The dinner table is a great place to add this to your daily conversation.
My post from back in February on Random Acts of Kindness Week Random Acts of Kindness Week might also help. These are also great ideas for Elf on the Shelf if you have chosen to do a Good Deeds Elf.
Speaking of Good Deeds Elf, Olivia made her return to Erie, CO before Thanksgiving. I need to get some creative juices flowing (and my Pinterest research skills) and find new ways for Olivia and Emma to give back this holiday season! Here are some of our favorites from the past.
- Pay for the person behind you in the drive through line and tell the checkout person to tell them Happy Holidays. Emma loves doing this!
- Buy some large candy canes from the store and secretly place them on strangers cars (we call this candy cane bombing). Be sure to include a note to say Seasons Greetings. This is Emma’s favorite!
- Donate some new toys to Toys for Tots. Emma likes to be part of the selection process and always has the biggest smile when we place the toys in the collection bin.
- Tell 5 strangers Happy Holidays. It instantly brings a smile to their faces.
- Leave change on a vending machine or a popcorn surprise on a DVD rental machine.
Some new ones we are going to try:
- Stash dollars in random places in a store for people to find.
- Be a helper by picking up five things around the house that aren’t yours.
- Pick up trash at the park or in the neighborhood.
I created a Pinterest board with great ideas too.
We had a great trip to Chicago for Thanksgiving. It was quick, but we maximized our family time. Emma even did a task from Olivia that was delivered by a Charlie Brown stuffed animal my parents had since Olivia went back to Santa’s Workshop for Thanksgiving.
I am pitching new outlets this week while also working on an article for coloradoparent.com on drop off date night places in the Front Range. I wrote a piece on running in Philadelphia for motivrunning.com that is live now. And, I am always working on my big project.
Enjoy the season and adventure on,
Courtney
adventureswithmylittleray 
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