Kristen Bell’s Secret to Teaching Her Daughters Gratitude

Kristen Bell may play a princess on the silver screen, but that doesn’t mean she’s raising her kids to be treated like royalty IRL. Recently, at a Winter Wonderland event run by Tiny Prints and Baby2Baby, Kristen Bell offered her time to give back to the community. Baby2Baby is a nonprofit organization that provides basic essentials to children living in poverty. During the event, Bell made cupcakes, played with real snow and had a few games of foosball with a group of second graders. While there, she spoke about how she taught her daughters gratitude during the holiday season. 

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BEST DAY EVER! Today we teamed up with @TinyPrints to throw a magical holiday celebration for the Baby2Baby kids! Thank you to our Angel @kristenanniebell for hosting the festivities and to our friends at Tiny Prints for helping us give the children we serve the most special day!

A post shared by baby2baby (@baby2baby) on Dec 5, 2019 at 3:22pm PST

“Just don’t overdo it [during the holidays], and don’t overspend,” Bell said. “It’s pretty simple. It’s exciting to buy presents for your kids, but the thing I make sure we do in our family is open gifts one at a time, starting youngest to oldest. We open all of our presents, so it’s not chaotic. My 4-year-old [Delta] starts, and she’ll open each one of her gifts. We all watch! It takes a little bit of the chaos out of Christmas morning because she knows that when she opens something, she is to look at the person who bought it for her and say thank you.”

Bell also tries to teach her girls that giving is more important than receiving. She said, “I take each of my kids to the store at separate times on a special day date to pick out a gift for their family members,” she explained. “I want them to feel ownership over what they’re getting. It can be anything. Get something for your sister, pick something out to make something for your dad.” When they get back home, Bell makes her daughters responsible for wrapping their presents. 

If you would like to donate to Baby2Baby, they are accepting money or gently used items. Check out their website for the full guidelines regarding donations. After the event, the children Bell visited with went home with a bag of essentials, such as a new coat, shoes, and a few toys or games. “It’s an honor to serve these kids!” Bell said. “It feels good. There’s no other reason than that. You get to meet new people, new kids. It’s just wonderful.”

—Jennifer Swartvagher

Featured image: Kristen Bell via Instagram

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