Celebrate the Small Things

Have you ever celebrated a stuffed animal’s birthday? I never have—until a few nights ago.

One of my children recently asked how old one of his stuffed animals was—his beloved Biscuit Doggie who I have mentioned a couple of times in my past blogs (November and December). My son and I discussed how Biscuit was gifted to him a few days after Christmas several years ago. We came up with the most likely date of receipt (since I couldn’t remember exactly) and he then decided we should have a birthday party for Biscuit. To appease him, I said I could try to make that happen. However, since we got distracted with Christmas festivities, Biscuit’s “birthday” came and went.

A few days ago, my son reminded me that we should still celebrate Biscuit. Recognizing this was truly important to him, I decided to throw some things together and make it happen. I was realistic, and told my sweet boy I didn’t have time to make a cake; but, I had just as good of an idea to make the birthday party special.

I always let my kids choose what they want to eat for their birthday dinner. Out of curiosity, I asked my son what he thought Biscuit Doggie would want for his birthday dinner. He thought hard about it and decided Biscuit would love ribs. I chuckled, realizing that was an obvious choice!

It was the weekend, we had a bit of flexibility, and I knew my husband wouldn’t oppose to his new favorite BBQ spot. So, we all went out for BBQ—close to home, inexpensive, and easy to do with little ones in tow. Oh, and a doggie. Biscuit joined us at the table! Then, we went home for the celebration.

It was a small, simple party with just our family. I made an easy dessert dip to pair with Scooby-Doo graham cracker snacks, animal crackers and apples. We put a candle in the dip, sang Happy Birthday, and enjoyed our little party for our beloved furry stuffy.

The kids had planned to make cards and a homemade storybook for Biscuit but forgot. One of my children had some sour behavior earlier in the day and lost the privilege of treats, so she humbly ate apples and peanut butter while the rest of us enjoyed the birthday dessert.

It certainly wasn’t the perfect party. It almost felt silly hosting a birthday celebration for a stuffed animal. I wasn’t even sure my husband would be so willing to participate when he had a million other work-related things to worry about. We forgot to make gifts, and had the one little with an unpleasant attitude. So why did we do this?

Because it meant a lot to the kids. My son asked. The other kids thought it was a fantastic idea, and they asked too. How could I say “No?” I experience such contentment when I can fulfill the sweet requests of my children’s creative ideas and schemes.

We all tend to rush through life, don’t we? Our weeks become blurred with commitments, and time is stolen away so quickly.

I have felt frustrated with myself for not taking an extra moment to snuggle a little one longer, read an extra storybook to them, or listen to the kids’ entire, never-ending fairytales instead of having to cut them short. I want to be more intentional with how I use my time. I want to steal back some moments to celebrate the small things.

Realistically, I’m not going to be able to carry out everything my kids ask. I won’t stress too much and guilt myself into accomplishing it all. My kids need healthy boundaries, and a solid “no” once in awhile is good for them. However, I can sure try to balance my time to stop and smell more roses along the way. When an opportunity presents itself, I will certainly try to make the most of it this new year.

I guess it’s my New Year’s Resolution: To celebrate the small things.

I can’t wait to see what fun this year brings!

If you enjoyed this, you may also like More Manageable New Years Resolutions and Celebrating Military Miracle Moments.