Day 38 of Organized Christmas talks about teaching children to give.  Some things our family likes to do is to have each child make gifts for their siblings, and really focus on giving of themselves, not just “stuff”.  Also, we want them to focus not just on giving to our family, so some places we like to donate to as a family are:

 

Feed My Starving Children – where you can help pack food to feed others.  This really resonates with my oldest daughter as she understands that having poor nutrition really matters.  This is one of her favorite things to do and she is planning on having her birthday party here.  

Operation Christmas Child – Have your child help pick out things for and pack a shoe box with toys for someone else who is your child’s age.

World Vision – They send out a gift catalog so your family can better choose what  they may be able to help with.  I think it is nice for them to be able to see and understand the different types of needs other people have in other areas they never have to encounter and how very, very blessed they are.  My kids usually like to give a gift of a goat (probably because of the cute factor!).  Try having your family save change throughout the year in a jar and see how far all that “forgotten change” can go toward helping someone else.  It’s amazing what we practically throw away can add up to!

 

The recipe for today is a jar recipe.  See the list of gifts in a jar here.