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Why We Stopped Going House to House for the Holidays

We hit a breaking point. We were so tired of rushing from house to house; we had truly begun to dread holidays. It was time to make a change for our family.

WATCH: Hobby Lobby Lights Up Mom Hearts With Viral Christmas Ad

Has Hobby Lobby entered the world of emotionally persuasive holiday short-form cinema? It would certainly seem so! And their Christmas ad effort is 100% geared toward what is undoubtedly their most loyal customer: busy (exhausted, out-of-time) moms.

“This Christmas I Want Food”: What These Foster Kids Want For Christmas Is Heartbreaking

None of them asked for this year’s hottest toy, or another video game to add to their collection. No, the children who filled out these tags listed their “innermost dreams”—things that should be part of everyone’s childhood.

We Are Forgetting About Our Boys. And That’s Not OK.

Boys are strong.

Boys are protective.

Boys are kind.

Boys are silly.

Boys are hardworking.

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Boys are inquisitive.

Boys are giving.

Boys are fun.

Boys are intelligent.

Boys are forgiving.

Boys are everything that girls are.

Boys are complicated (in a good way).

And boys are important.

Boys are just as important as girls.

Here, repeat that:

Boys are just as important as girls.

BUT, boys will only be these things, if we, as their parents and a society, avow that they are.

Still, I can only hope, though, that most of the pint-sized gents in our homes hold an innate exceptional sense of self-worth that will persist despite an unfortunate lack of backing from the general public.

Article after article needs to contest how dire it is for us to raise our girls and boys to be strong, self-sufficient, and capable.

It is of uber-importance that our sons are encouraged to use their voice, own and tell their story, and never cower in the face of other men (or women); one or many.

To raise a good human being – female, male, or nonconforming – we must hold, encourage, and perpetuate the belief that no gender is worthier or in more need of attention, support, and love.

Our sons are just as important as their sisters and it’s about time that notion is exemplified and pushed forth in more of the articles we come across.

**This article originally appeared on JThreenme.com. Connect with her on Facebook

Nicole Merritt
Nicole Merritt
Nicole Merritt is a mother of three, a freelance writer, co-host of I Am The Worst Parent Ever Podcast and the Owner and Founder of jthreeNMe; an imperfectly authentic peek at real-life marriage, parenting, and self-improvement. jthreeNMe is raw, honest, empowering, inspiring, and entertaining; it’s like chicken soup for those that are exhausted, over-stressed and under-inebriated, yet still utterly happy. Nicole's work has been featured by NBC's TODAY Show, Love What Matters, Scary Mommy, The Good Men Project, Elephant Journal, CafeMom, Popsugar, Motherly & many others. You can follow Nicole at jthreeNMe.com and as @jthreeNMe on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram & Twitter!

Why We Stopped Going House to House for the Holidays

We hit a breaking point. We were so tired of rushing from house to house; we had truly begun to dread holidays. It was time to make a change for our family.

WATCH: Hobby Lobby Lights Up Mom Hearts With Viral Christmas Ad

Has Hobby Lobby entered the world of emotionally persuasive holiday short-form cinema? It would certainly seem so! And their Christmas ad effort is 100% geared toward what is undoubtedly their most loyal customer: busy (exhausted, out-of-time) moms.

“This Christmas I Want Food”: What These Foster Kids Want For Christmas Is Heartbreaking

None of them asked for this year’s hottest toy, or another video game to add to their collection. No, the children who filled out these tags listed their “innermost dreams”—things that should be part of everyone’s childhood.