Shoebox Christmas: как научить детей ценить то, что есть

Decided that this year is going to be a "Shoebox Christmas"... Last year was a "big" Christmas and my girls were too young to appreciate what we gave them.

They are 3 and 5 and the baby is only 3 months atm. I got the idea from the Samaritan's Purse charity that many churches support yearly. We have participated in the past and I want my girls to learn that abundance is not always better. I want them to know what it is to appreciate and show gratitude for what they have. So now I have to come up with meaningful gift ideas for them. I will be telling my in-laws that the only gifts we will accpet must fit into a shoebox and wxplain the full reasoning behind this. I will be allowing them to fill one and will fill one for each child also so they will have 2 shoeboxes each. They do have one big gift each of a new scooter(they were bought last year and held until this year), so I still think theybare getting far more than many. I also will be having each one help me fill a shoebox with items they pick out at the store for the Samaritan's Purse to teach them about giving. We also plan to purchase items for our local VA for homeless Veterans.

Any like minded mamas have any good "giving" ideas to add to our lesson? I really want them to learn about selflessness rather than the constant showering of gifts they have experienced. It drives me crazy!!! Thought about volunteering at our local soup kitchen but its not a safe place for children their age(per the staff), so we have to wait until they are older.

Thanks for any comments or ideas!!!