presents

I've been thinking about Christmas presents already because it will come before we know it and it seems like it is always a bit stressful to find the right gifts for our kids or someone special.  Especially when it comes to the kids, you don't want them to get too many presents that they just expect getting more and more each year.  It can be hard as the kids get older and they watch what their friends have, especially in this day of tech toys and video games.  On one hand it is good for them to learn about computers and tech gadgets when the whole world is going that way but on the other hand how much do they need.  The big thing for younger kids like our Kade is to have a cell phone.  Really?  Who are they going to call?  Ehren and I don't even have normal cell phones and I don't see any reason for our kids to have one until they drive.  Anyway, Christmas can get a bit carried away in some families where aunts and uncles buy gifts for everyone.  We are just a very materialistic society and I don't think it will change.  If it changed we would have a huge economy crisis. :)  But talking to some friends and family, our kids really don't need anything.  They have plenty of toys and plenty of things to do.  With our family, we used to do the cousin exchange for Christmas but it came up to be cheaper gifts that kids didn't really need anyway so we decided to just do Operations Christmas Child instead.  I usually show our kids youtube videos of different countries around the world where the children are getting the shoe boxes and it is so fun for our kids to see that.  When you see those kids getting so excited about their first present in their whole life, it just makes sense and it makes you feel like why do we think we deserve all these things in our lives.  We also buy gifts at Samaritan's Purse where you can buy goats, chickens or cows for families in third world countries in the name of someone.  I really enjoy doing that versus trying to find the right gift that the person will like.  We do get some special gifts for our kids though because birthdays and Christmas is about the only time they get new toys and they get so excited for it.  It just doesn't have to be anything huge because really, they are happy about a lot of little things but I am more conscious now about buying them toys that are good quality and have some educational value in it.  I can see though that it is tougher with teenagers and older kids that want a lot more expensive gifts and seeing some families I know I don't know how they're able to afford gifts that they get unless they use credit cards or loans.  It is just good to remember the real reason for Christmas and talk about it often with our children so we can help them move away from what I am getting and towards what I am giving to others around me.