Every parent I know wishes that they could give their kids the sun, the moon, and the stars as presents.
After all, when it comes to parenting, there’s no better feeling than seeing a smile light up your little one’s face.
Fortunately, most of the kiddos I have the privilege of knowing don’t need the sun, the moon, or the stars to gift their parents with a big grin.
That’s because, for the most part, kids aren’t really concerned with material things. As we saw with this sweet little girl and her awesome playhouse, they’re usually just as happy with a marker and a few cardboard boxes as they are with fancy and expensive toys.
For parents who don’t have much, it can hurt to feel like you can’t give your child everything they deserve — but remember, at the end of the day, your babies probably appreciate the little things in life a lot more than you realize!
One mom learned that firsthand recently, when her 4-year-old son taught her an important lesson about being thankful for the simple pleasures.
What do you think of this Mom's life lesson? Let us know in the comments below!
A few days ago, a mom set the internet ablaze when she uploaded this simple photo to the image-sharing site Imgur.
The picture, capturing her 4-year-old snoozing in his kid-sized bed, doesn't seem at first like the kind of thing that goes viral in a flash.
But people couldn't help but respond to the story of two impoverished parents struggling to give their child his very own room, even if it's not quite what they pictured.
The mom, posting under the handle ahyn1104, left a description of the backstory on the sweet picture.
Her words, and the emotional story behind them, touched hearts, and earned the picture hundreds of thousands of views.
She explains that her family of four is strapped for cash; she and her husband live in a one-bedroom apartment with their two children, aged 2 and 4.
She explains that her oldest "has been drawing his own room and asking both my husband and I when he could have his own room."
One-bedroom apartments, like the poster's, are common for single people and couples — but she admits that it's close quarters for her little family.
She explains that she and her husband are on a very tight budget, and can't afford the expense of moving right now.
They've been living in the space for three years without a problem, but their oldest is definitely starting to want more of his own space.
Even though they can't actually move just yet, the parents still decided to find a way to honor their son's developing independent streak.
They got an Elmo toddler bed secondhand from a friend, and set it up in the corner of the room.
In her post, Mom adds, "We created a corner 'room' for my son, and he was so happy and thanked us for such [a] wonderful 'room.'"
They put up two low play walls at a right angle to cordon off the space and make it private for their big boy.
He was so thrilled with the arrangement that he immediately got started planning a decorating scheme, and informed his mom that "he was going to make phone calls to his friends in his own room."
His delight with the situation made it clear to his parents that he was just as happy with the gesture of creating his own space as he would be with an actual separate room.
For his mom, the moment was a learning experience.
She realized that she spent so much time worrying about what her family didn't have that she didn't have her son's capacity to appreciate the tiny bonuses, like having your own space in a crowded house, and having your whole family within arm's reach.
She writes, "I always complained and compared my life to everyone else who seemed to be doing so much better, and never really counted the blessings in my life."
Now, she realizes just how wise her little boy is.
If you were touched by this sweet story about appreciating every blessing, make sure to SHARE on Facebook!
