Last year, my sister and her husband shared the idea of foregoing the annual family white elephant game to do something more helpful. They adopt an Angel from the Salvation Army Angel Tree each year, and Sam and I decided that we would love to start this as a tradition each year for Banner (and now Quinn) to learn the importance of giving to those in need. At that time, when Banner and I went to select our Angel, I made a spontaneous decision to adopt a child about his age each year. I felt like that would be more meaningful for all of us, and it certainly helped me choose a child from the large group. It turned out to be a great idea, in my opinion.
Last year, Banner didn't really understand the idea at all. He was 18 months old, and honestly, I didn't even really try to explain it to him. This year, I think he understood it somewhat. Because we could really only afford to select one child, we decided to pick an Angel in between both of our boys' ages, so when we found a one-year-old boy, we knew he was ours! His name is Axel, and his wish for this holiday is a toy firetruck. How much more perfect could this be for my Banner?
The day came when we would go looking for his gifts, and I explained to Banner that not all boys and girls have what he and Quinn have. I explained to him that some boys and girls don't have all the toys he has, and their parents can't always buy what they want or need. I got a little teary explaining it to him, just knowing how many children this really is and how fortunate I am to be able to provide for my kids (even if I'm always wanting to give them more). I told him that we were going to help make a little boy very happy by getting him some things that he wanted and needed. I told him Axel's name, how old he is, and what he wanted for the holiday. Banner seemed really excited about this idea of going shopping for "our boy," so we went to a few places looking for all the things on Axel's list. Each place we went, Banner and I kept looking for the perfect firetruck. He was very helpful, and he kept his eyes open for any firetrucks we could find. We were having a great time (minus the part when my cell phone was stolen from our stroller in one toy store)!
Then, just before Thanksgiving, we returned our gift bag to the Angel Tree. I snapped a few shots of Quinn and Banner delivering their presents, and then we headed home - knowing we had done something special for a special boy out there somewhere. Next year, I hope to be able to get each boy his own Angel from the tree and be able to do more, but we did what we can this year, and Banner can feel proud of himself for helping choose some great gifts for "our boy!"
