The Gift of Giving

So this is what we have told Owen about gift giving:

God gave us the greatest gift EVER on Christmas Day just because he loves us so much: His Son Jesus. We celebrate the gift God gave us by sharing gifts with the people we love on Jesus' Birthday.

To help Owen grasp the selfless art of gift giving, we allowed each Boy to choose a gift for his Brother. This gift must be something they would think the other would like, rather than something they themselves might want. (Of course, we "helped" Noah with the task this year!) And so, Owen and I ventured to Walmart, the wonderful world of toys, to pick something very special for tiny Noah. Let's just say that it was no easy task. Owen took his job very seriously and proceeded to play with almost every toy Walmart carries. "Would Noah like this puzzle, Mommy. It's fun!" "What about some Play Do?" After several conversations, O finally grasped the concept of selflessly choosing a gift just for No-nos. He carefully selected a quirky, bobble-headed green dinosaur. "Nosy will love this!" exclaimed sweet Owen. After the sale was complete, we brought the treasured green guy home, and O and I ever-so-carefully wrapped it very specially just for Noah. We put it in a bag, colored by Owen, so Noah could open it all by himself. And Owie chose a gaudy, gold, sparkly bow to adorn the package. What a precious time it was with my O, teaching him about how blessed it is to give to loved ones.

We allowed the kids to open their gifts to each other on Christmas Eve, just to make it a little more special and appreciated. Here is how the gift-giving unfolded:

Owie helping Noah open the gift. He looks so surprised to see what it is!

I think Scooter likes it!

Noah gave O, the budding musician, a piano keyboard. O was super-excited about that! Great choice, No-nos!

Exchanging thank you hugs.

What a blessing these Boys are, to each other and to us, as their parents!