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The amount of gifts my kids get this time of year borders on gluttony. Even at five they seem to expect that if they want it, they will get it...and then some... from Santa and the dozens of generous family members who adore them. I feel like it’s a consolation that at least my girls say thank you, most of the time, before ripping open the next shiny box. 

As a woman who values gratitude to our Lord up there with kindness and honesty, I really try to teach my girls to be thankful and show gratitude to those around us and generosity to everyone. I’ve put together 5 tips for helping kids, even the young ones, learn gratitude any time of the year.

1. Write Thank You Cards

At four and five my girls can barely write their names but they can color something fierce! I make sure they color a thank you card for every gift they get year round. I tell them who it is for and why, and make sure they get them done within a week. I also like to take recent photos of them and make them into thank you cards.

There's always a deal on one of those picture sites that makes the cards less expensive than the kinds you find at the store. It's also a great project for rainy, snowy days.

2. Make a Video

Snail mail too 2009 for you? Do what the kids are doing theses days and make a video. We've started a tradition of making short 10 second videos every Friday morning at breakfast that we send to individual grandparents or aunts or friends. Just to say hi and we love you. Everyone has a phone that takes video these days, so it’s as easy as texting or making a call. Now, when the girls get gifts from anyone I try and videotape them opening them. I have trained them to say thank you to the camera right after they open it. They are a hit and it’s a bonus that you have videos of your kids over the years.

3. End With Gratitude

Each night we finish our prayers with what we want to thank God for that day. I encourage the girls to say something that happened that day that made them happy. If they are having a rough night (which is not uncommon at their age, where bedtime is the enemy) I can at least get out of them "I want to thank Jesus for my mommy " or "my daddy " or "sissy. " We pray for everyone else too, and they often ask why we are praying for Bess or Beth and when I explain a little about someone having Cancer or going through a rough time, it teaches them to be thankful that they are healthy and happy. We always give God the glory in the end and don’t take for granted a good day. I do a gratitude journal every night and I thank the Lord for at least four things each day. I even take it a step further and write down what I am thankful for that will happen tomorrow. Advanced gratitude. That’s a high level move, so stick with me, ha! The point is, get those kids to realize something good happens every day.

4. Give

My kids have a piggy bank. They love to empty our pockets of change and feel the little pink porcelain pigs get heavier. When the pigs are full we take them to the bank and fill up their bank accounts.

We are teaching them saving early on. We’re also teaching them about giving. In my family we tithe. It’s not even a consideration that we wouldn't. No matter how bad times are, we always give at least 10% of what the Lord blesses us with. My kids see this in church or when we go to the local shelter and give money or goods. I talk about people who are less fortunate and kids who may not have a mom or dad to take care of them. I make it age appropriate and not scary, but try and help them understand that they have been blessed with an abundant life and not everyone is as lucky. I’ve tried to gently suggest they do what mom and dad do and give to the needy, but I never force the issue. 

But last month they did it on their own. The preschool sent home little boxes to put loose change into and then return for Unicef. I explained what they were and without even asking the girls went upstairs and started taking coins out of their piggies and filling the little orange cardboard box. I praised them for their generosity. Each day they would find coins around the house and put them straight in the Unicef box, until one day when they came to me and said they wanted to give the "Shelter" all their coins from piggy. Talk about mom pride! Which leads me to the most important way to raise grateful kids…

5. Lead By Example

Are you saying thank you to the waitress who brings you your drink, or putting money in the offering plate at church? Are you talking about how blessed you are to have the small house you have or are you constantly complaining that it isn’t as big as the Jones’s? Everything I learned about gratitude, I learned from my mom. She wouldn't let me out of the house until my thank you cards were done. She made sure we spent thanksgiving at a church serving the needy, and the number one gift she gave me is she taught me the immeasurable benefit that comes from giving 10% ("of gross Kerstin not of net, do you want God to bless all of it or just what comes after taxes?") My mom was a single mom with a job as a teacher. She had every right to complain and I’m sure she did, but what I remember most is her generosity and gratefulness. What do you want your little ones to remember about you?

Have a blessed Thanksgiving, and In case no one else says it, please know I’m thankful for you!!! 

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XO,

Kerstin