Giving Everything Imaginable

The title of this post is the current slogan for, I believe Crayola, for one of their latest and greatest toys.  I wasn't paying much attention to the commercial but my ear cued into that statement.  Huh?!  The statement goes along with the commercial ok I suppose, but the statement itself really bothered me.  Is that not such the attitude of society these days??  And with the holidays fast approaching, it seems those words are more and more the focus, particularly with our kids.  But really?  Is that really what we want to do?  It's not what we want in our family.  Do you see the pictures above of those super sweet, very personable, overly observant, incredibly active little boys???  I don't want them to have everything imaginable!!!!!  If they get everything imaginable, what's left to imagine???  What's left to create???  If they get a real sounding "something" every time they turn around, how will they know how to really PLAY!?  "They" talk of how children are so easily bored these days, how they have short attention spans, how they struggle with fine motor skills and the list goes on and on.  Could it be that perhaps it's because they don't have to do much of anything?!  Their trucks make noise, so they don't have to make the truck noise.  Their guns look like weapons that could get you pulled over and questioned about instead of a curved stick found on an adventure in the yard.  They don't play hide and seek with friends and dogs, they play hunt the enemy on their video games.  They can't do fine motor things because they don't play with Leggos or Lincoln logs, they build things on the computer.  

And then, there's the whole overweight option.  Perhaps it's because they don't ride bikes or jump on trampolines, but rather start their scooters or sit and watch the latest fabulous movie in 3D.

I'm not saying ANY of this is wrong, bad or should be forbidden in our home or anyone else's home.  I AM saying that we want to raise children who do not have an attitude of entitlement, neither large nor slight.  Children who put value in people and good character and quality relationships, rather than what is that person going to give me.  And children who can create and try again when the first creation doesn't work as planned.  Children who are satisfied with what they have rather than expecting that they should have more.  

And, I think as adults, we could strive for a little less of the "having it all" mentality.  Is there really so much badness in the things, or even lack of things, that perhaps we had as kids or have currently???  

Stuff is not the enemy but it definitely can evolve into that.  

This holiday consider scaling back on gifts, creating new traditions, giving more of yourself.  

Perhaps if the focus of our families changed, the focus of the world would be different?  

HAPPY BEGINNING OF THE HOLIDAY SEASON!!!!