Give the Gift of Time this Christmas

Maybe you are like me, and you are overwhelmed with the amount of stuff your family is collecting. This year, instead of more stuff we will be encouraging our family to give the gift of time this Christmas.  I will providing you with a list of ideas, but I also would love you to head to the Kids Activities Blog search bar  and type in "10 Things to do with Kids in" because you'll find great resources to do with kids in a variety of cities across the globe. Maybe you will find your own city there. If you are in the Seattle or Tacoma Washington area, I have some great resources on my site, Meaningful Mama.

Please hear my heart. I am not against toys. I love toys. I walk into a toy store, especially the really cool smaller ones, and I feel like a kid again. However, the truth is that kids can get overwhelmed with too much stuff. I often find myself buying just to buy at Christmas time. It's what you do. I do believe that we can set our kids at a disadvantage  when they have too much. Buying just to buy doesn't help. Rather than focusing on one set of toys, I find my kids flitting around from thing to thing without a lot of engagement. I wonder if we are stifling their creativity because of our "too much stuff" issue.

Does your child's space often look like the picture above? Perhaps you have the problem of having an amount of toys that your child can't manage well. If you feel overwhelmed with their things, I can tell you that your child feels overwhelmed too but doesn't have the words or insight to be able to express it.

One solution we have had in the past is that at Christmas and birthday times we have a clean out. We don't have a big house. We have no space left. We don't need extra stuff. Therefore, for every gift we are given we try and give one away. This applies to the adults too. There are a lot of great charities out there. Some times we fall into the trap of only wanting to give things away if they are broken, torn or stained. We do this at the cost of acquiring more, often creating chaos in our home. I was super challenged and inspired by a post entitled, "Dear World: Let's Stop Giving Our Crap to the Poor" by We Are That Family.

What is another solution if you are struggling with the amount of stuff your family is acquiring?

Give the Gift of Time this Christmas

What does it look like to give the gift of time? There are so many great ideas, and I want to be able to explore the possibilities with you today. Maybe you're not ready to get rid of the idea of giving toys and things completely, but perhaps  this will inspire you to make some of your gifts the gift of time, which really is more valuable than anything you can buy off the shelf. As you can see, below, I've compiled a list of ideas that range from super inexpensive to expensive to accommodate all income levels.

The gift of time is a great gift idea for grandparents to give as well. This is a win, win because it becomes not only a gift for the child but also a gift for the parent of that child.

Let's look at the options for giving differently this Christmas:

Time with You –  Kids need you. They need you to take the time to focus completely on them. We can be so distracted, and it takes discipline to take the time, put the cell phone away and be present with your children. This gift can be fancy and involved or simple. Here a some fun ideas. Create a flyer that you can wrap up that explains the gift of time they have been given.

• Game Day – Create a day filled with board games, active games and puzzles.
• Zoo Trip
• Children's Museum Trip
• Fancy Dinner Date with Mommy or Daddy
• Movies
• Bowling
• Family Vacation – "Hey Kids, Rather than presents this year, we are going to DISNEYLAND!!"
• Baking Day – Deliver your creations to friends as a random act of kindness.
• Camping Trip
• Craft Day
• Scavenger Hunt
• Wii Play Day
• Take a Staycation
• Make a Coupon Book with ideas like: "Mom Does Your Chore," "Get out of Consequence Free," "Good for an Ice Cream Date," "Dad will Play a Game of Your Choice," "Extra TV Show," or "Dinner of Choice." You can get super creative with the coupons you make.
• Family Slumber Party in the Living Room
• Sporting Event or Season Tickets
• A Day of Memories – Look at family home videos or pictures. Edit your videos together, setting it to music or create a scrapbook.
• Family Nature  Day – Take a hike. Head to the mountains to sled. Go to the beach. Explore the natural world in your region.
• Dance Party
• Ice Skating or Roller Skating
• Bus or Train Ride to the City
• Musical, Concert, Dance or Other Performance
• Car Races or Monster Trucks

Time Developing their Own Talents, Interests and Activities  – Another way to give the gift of time is to give them the time to explore their own interests and abilities through lessons or passes. Extracurricular activities don't need to be assumed by the child. It is beneficial for them to see this as a privilege and a gift. The trick is finding their passions and then support them in those pursuits. Here are some ideas:

• Music Lessons
• Sports
• Zoo Passes
• Children's or Regular Museum Passes
• Season Tickets to Sporting Events
• Season Tickets to the Theatre
• Art Classes (crafts, pottery, drawing, painting, sculpting, etc.)
• Membership to a Gym that Offers Children's Classes
• Martial Arts Lessons
• Cooking Classes
• Golf Lessons
• Chess Clubs
• Science, Math or Robot Clubs
• Voice Lessons
• Opportunities with Theatre Camps or Shows
• Dance Lessons
• Educational Classes
• Horseback Riding
• Swimming Lessons

Time and Focus on Others  – Christmas isn't about you. It's about God sending his son to be the Savior of the world. What did he teach us? To serve others. If you really want to focus on the true meaning of Christmas, make this a time to teach your family to focus on others. Use your family time to make someone else's life better. A motto we are trying to adopt in our family is "Spend Less. Give More." I say "trying" because it's hard, and we have a ways to go. Christmas is a great time to put our call to serve and focus on others into action.

• Adopt a family – Dress up as Santa Claus and take gifts, cookies or even throw a Christmas party for a family in need. Do this as a family, and let your kids help with the shopping.
• Give Life – Did you know you can give a family in need a goat, ducks, medical supplies, clean water and hope? World Vision  produces their Christmas catalog where you can help families who have little.
• Make Homeless Packs – A couple years ago my family (my parents, sisters, nieces & nephews) decided we didn't need to be buying gifts for all the cousins. The kids all agreed that for our gathering we'd buy the supplies, make cards and put together homeless packs rather than opening trinkets from one another. We kept these packs in our car to hand out as needs arose.
• Serve at a Food Kitchen
• Stuff a Stocking – SOAR International sends stuffed stockings to children in need in Russia.
• Adopt a Soldier – Find a soldier to adopt over the holidays. Send letters and care packages.
• Help Foster Children – Children are often taken out of their homes quickly, with only the shirt on their back. Contact your local foster child program to see if there are ways you can provide a stuffed animal, clothes or back packs filled with activities for a child who comes into their system with nothing.
• Christmas Cookie Delivery – Make up a bunch of Christmas cookies and deliver them to your neighbors. For the past two years our small group has done a cookie baking party and exchange, making up loads of plates to take out to our neighbors with an invitation to church.
• Give to Your Local Food Bank – The food banks have a high need during the holiday times. Consider giving over the holidays or throughout the year.
• Invite People Into Your Home – There are many people without a family this Christmas. You might know a widow, a single mom or dad, a single person, a college student, or someone in the military who you can invite into your home. You can be the family that they don't have.

You might be a family that wants to adopt this concept of giving the gift of time as the only method of giving this season. Great. You might want to still give toys, clothes and things to your kids at Christmas. Great. This post is an encouragement to consider cutting back and finding creative ways to give something that is more valuable than things – time.

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