'Tis Better to Give than to Receive

A few weeks ago, Avery took a liking to baby doll in the toy store.  He put that baby in a toy grocery cart and pushed it all over the store.  When we left the store, he gave the baby kisses, waved goodbye and told the baby he'd be back soon.  My little boy loves nothing more than to push his own grocery cart around our house with one of his many lovies in it, telling us that he's shopping with his baby.  It's really way too adorable.

Knowing that Avery would love nothing more than to open that baby doll Christmas morning, but also knowing my husband would um, well, have a slight cow if I gave our son a doll, I did what any other desperate mom would do.

I called one of my best friends.

Sharon is hippie free loving tree hugger (I say that with love!) and can get away with things like giving a doll to our son, because Shawn and I think the world of her.  There's no way Shawn would ever argue with her!  Sharon also thinks the world of my boys (God bless her), filling many of the roles left vacant by our absent families.  Besides, she would've paid money to see the look on Shawn's face when Avery opened it!

This morning, Avery got his beloved doll.  He has rocked his baby (dubbed "Moonbeam," just to make my husband grin, cringe and shake his head even more, of course!), fed his baby, snuggled with his baby, played This Little Piggy with his baby, given up one of his blankies for his baby, and tonight at bedtime, I heard him singing to his baby in his crib.  Avery has repeatedly told us, "I'm a good daddy!" because that's what we've been telling him throughout the day.

Sharon gave Avery his doll and made his day, but she gave our family so much more than just that.  She gave my mother and grandmother smiles and laughter from the pictures and stories I texted to them all day.  She gave me a warmer heart than I've had in months, laughing through tears as my youngest son loved on his little baby.  She's teaching Shawn to relax and let go, that it's okay for little boys to pretend to be daddies.  In watching Avery play with his baby, Sharon reminded us that maybe we're not doing so bad as his parents after all.  She filled our home with love and warmth, as well as a reminder of what this day is really about:  A baby sent to save the world.

And what did Sharon get out of this?  She got the joy of being Santa to our little boy, the gift of knowing that at least for one day, all was well in our world because of one little doll.  As I texted her the first story of Avery opening his doll, exclaiming, "Oh!  Oh!  My baby!  My baby!" today, she told me that I'd made her day and she was all choked up.  All I could think was "I've made her day?!"

In this day and age of the Me Generation, it's nice to know there are still some of us who remember it is always better to give than to receive.  It's comforting to know that not just me, but my entire family, is surrounded by my friends who love all of us, and we surround them and their families, loving them right back.