Such a Sweet Soul

Meg came downstairs to find presents wrapped and waiting under our Christmas tree this morning. While she and her slept last night, I finally had a chance to wrap many of the things we'll be exchanging this weekend when we do our family pre-Christmas gift exchange. I wrapped and wrapped and wrapped . . . trying to coordinate wrapping prints with the person receiving each gift.


"Look! Mickey!" Meg said when she saw the Mickey/Minnie wrapping paper under the tree.


"Those are Kate's presents." I told her. All of Kate's gifts are wrapped in crimson paper with everyone's favorite mouse and his girlfriend (and dog) all over them.



"These presents have Charlie Brown," she then told me, very matter-of-factly.


"Yep. Those are Daddy's presents," I told her.



"Who 'dese?" Meg asked, pointing to green paper with caricatures of Santa.



"Those are for Aunt Juju and Uncle Greg. See? They all have Santa."




"Oh! Ok!" was Meg's response. Then she saw that one of the Charlie Brown presents had mistakenly be placed on top of one of Aunt Julie's gifts, and she promptly had to place it back in it's proper spot with the other Charlie Brown gifts. (Type A. First Born. SOOOOO particular.)


Meg stood back and admired the tree for a moment, then asked to watch her "Mickey Christmas Movie" while I made her breakfast.



She did not ask, "Where are Meg's presents?" Not once. It was like the idea did not even cross her mind.



Of course she has presents . . . and I have all the Disney Princess paper ready for wrapping them . . . but I just ran out of steam last night before I got to her pile. I really didn't think about it until she woke up . . . that she'd see all the presents for others, but there would be none yet under the tree for her.


But, I liked it better this way. She saw all the gifts for those she loves, and she didn't even seem to care that there were none under the tree for her. What a little sweetie. I'm proud of her . . . for being so thoughtful, for not being greedy and wrapped up in the me-me-me that will smother many kids her age this time of year.


True, it could be that she's only 2 1/2 and doesn't get the idea of presents! presents! presents! just yet. She could just be blissfully unaware. I'd rather think that it is because she is genuinely sweet and isn't growing up to be a selfish and spoiled child. I'm going to go with that thought.



I smiled to myself as I went about making her breakfast. "She didn't even think of herself . . . of her own presents. What a sweet little girl we have," I thought. Meg, our sweet little soul.

Merry Christmas, Meg-a-loo. I'll be sure to wrap your presents tonight so that your Princess paper will be waiting for you under the tree tomorrow morning.