I admit. I’ve done it. I’ve taken my girls to Five Below before it opened and stood in line to buy squishies. I’ve gone squishy hunting by going to various stores to try to find these elusive toys.

When I was a kid, it was the Cabbage Patch Craze. People stood in line and fought to get these dolls for Christmas. People were violent over a toy. It’s no wonder it is called a craze. It makes people do crazy things.

Why? Why does it become so important to get a toy that everyone else seems to want? God has the answer. It’s called coveting, wanting something that others have. It’s no wonder he said, “Thou shalt not covet.” Isn’t that what we do when we want something that others want or have? We see YouTubers with thousands of these things, so we want them too. Our friends have them, so we want them too.

It drives us crazy. We spend money, lots of money, for something that eventually just takes up space on a shelf or in a toy box. Our selves in the playroom are currently filled with Squishmallows from the past craze.

Lesson Opportunity

One day at work, I received a phone call from my wife. My girls were at Walmart and had found a “rare” Needoh squishy and wanted to buy it. The problem was they didn’t have enough money in their allowance to buy it, so I did the evil thing and said, “No.” That’s right, I said, “No.” I purposely deprived my kids of what they wanted because they didn’t have the money. They knew I had the money, but I wasn’t going to give them an advance.

Aren’t I just a mean dad?

Well, my girls came home, but they weren’t dejected or mad. They know they can do extra chores to earn money in addition to their allowance, so they cleaned the yard. I paid them. They went back to Walmart, but the “rare” toy was gone. I was happy. Lesson taught. It’s a hard lesson, but a valuable one.

I wanted to teach my girls this valuable lesson: You can’t have what you can’t afford. It’s a lesson we all need to learn, especially if we live in rich America.

My wife knows this lesson. She grew up in the Philippines. She had no dolls. She took a Coke bottle and some of her siblings’ baby clothes to make a doll to play with.

The girls have now been very diligent trying to earn money. They’ve cleaned the yard, vacuumed the house, washed and waxed the car. I’m trying to teach them the value of money and a job well done.

Coveting Doesn’t Give You Satisfaction

Today I asked the girls, “Does having these squishies make you happy?” They said, “Yes.” So I pushed it a little further. “Do they give you lasting satisfaction?” The answer this time was “no.” I hope they are beginning to see the point. I remind them of the Squishmallows in the basement. It may take time, but I hope they will eventually understand.

I am proud of them for one thing. They do give away squishies they no longer want to friends who do want them. They also inform friends when they find one they know their friends will like, and they buy it with the understanding that the friend will pay them for it. Sometimes though, they buy it and don’t ask for money. They just give it to their friend. Bravo.

Think About It

Do you get caught up in crazes like these? What do you do when your children don’t have enough to buy what they want?

What lessons are we teaching our kids when we participate in a craze? Should we? Am I wrong to even buy these squishies?

What do you think?

Coveting says, “I want what you have”; generosity says, “I want you to give what makes you happy.” Do you think my girls are learning that lesson? Are your kids learning that lesson?