Sharing A Little Christmas Joy

While my family gets ready for the big day with shopping and baking, I am continually reminded how lucky we are. There are many families in need this year. While there is year-round need, everything is amplified by the holidays, and I can’t bare to think about small children not having gifts to open Christmas morning.

In addition to donating toys to several local drives, I also have the unique opportunity to go all out to help make Christmas a little brighter for one special family. 

For the second year I am thrilled to be part of Kohl’s Pay It Forward program. Last year I had the extraordinary good fortune to work with a team of local bloggers to pool our resources together to give four families a special Christmas. And when I was invited to be part of the program again this year, I couldn’t wait to go shopping!

This year, I reached out to my friends and family to inquire if anyone had a personal connection with a family whose Christmas prospects were looking scarce. As it turned out, there was such a family.

Through extreme circumstances a newlywed couple already with one child found themselves taking in three additional children from their extended family. Not only is this family that has suddenly doubled in size struggling financially, but the emotional weight of this year is unimaginable.

Deciding to help in a big way, my sister and I set out to make Christmas extra special for the family by hitting up Kohl’s in a big way — armed with a $250 gift card. With Kohl’s deals, I was amazed how much I was able to get for our family. 

Although the kids (ages 3, 6, 9 and 10) were our primary focus, we wanted to do something special for mom and dad too. After all, they opened their hearts to these children so they deserve a little spoiling too. 

I have to admit, shopping for someone you have never met and know very little about is tricky, but it is also awesome. 

Take a look at our picks for this very special family.

For the three-year-old girl:

For the six-year-old girl:

For the 9-year-old boy:

For the 10-year-old girl:

For mom, dad and the whole family:

I am pretty sure Christmas morning is going to blow those kids minds! Thank you Kohl’s!

In addition to the Pay it Forward campaign, Kohl’s invites customers to take part in its ongoing Kohl’s Cares program with Gifts that Give Back. This holiday, Kohl’s offers exclusive hardcover books featuring Peanuts classics by author Charles M. Schulz along with coordinating plush toys for just $5 each through the Kohl’s Cares cause merchandise program. Also for $5, Kohl’s Cares merchandise brings shoppers the Holiday Cheer cookbook, the holiday CD Upon the Winter Solstice from Trans-Siberian Orchestra and a Peanuts jigsaw puzzle. Through the Kohl’s Cares merchandise program, Kohl’s donates 100 percent of the net profit to children’s health and education initiatives nationwide. Since 2000, it has raised more than $231 million for children’s health and education programs in local communities across the country.

I feel very blessed to be part of this program, and to know that on Christmas morning there will be wide smiles on the faces of our very special family. Thanks Kohl’s.

The gift card was provided by Kohl’s, no compensation was received and my sister and I each chipped in to do even more.