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Triplets and Toe Shoes Blog
Behind the scenes of a mother & daughter's 
 humorous journey in creating new characters, writing, illustrating,
and publishing a children's book. 

Move over Dora. There's Three New Girls in Town and They Say Their Bedtime Prayers

In this era of selfies, things are becoming alarming. When I saw a photo of a smiling selfie taken at Auschwitz, maybe the stats are right: According to a recent study, we are witnessing a 40 % reduction of empathy in our youth. It’s not surprising. A sense of entitlement fostered by the immense privileges, popular culture, negativity, and receiving too much and being required to do little for it, certainly contribute to a lack of gratefulness and empathy.

What can we do? Start with the children.

Our mission is to focus on the future and how The Birthday Triplets can influence culture in a powerful way.

Every morning, Candi, Coco and Cookie dance into one of their Granny Rosie's magical adventures to give a magnificent surprise party to those who are sad and alone on their birthdays. The focus is on serving others and the joy that comes from giving.

From the book, The Birthday Triplets

In Kristen Welch’s book, Raising Grateful Kids in an Entitled World ( How one family learned that saying no can lead to Life’s Biggest Yes) she states, “When we try to protect our kids from unhappiness, we make life down the road harder for them."

"Many kids think life should be easy- free of disappointment, frustration and heartache - and are unhappy when it is not," writes Thomas Lickona, in the Time Article, How to Raise Grateful Kids in an Era of Unthankful People. The virtue of fortitude begins with understanding and accepting a basic truth: Life is difficult. With our help, kids can learn to be grateful for life’s challenges and for the opportunities it provides to grow in wisdom and strength.”

Children can identify with many of the emotions that the triplets face within themselves and in those that they meet. As they travel into the adventures without Granny Rosie, the sisters are given the independence to courageously face and resolve conflicts with the help of each other.

Although Cookie, Candi, and Coco’s adventures are comical, our goal is that a bit of wisdom be obtained by the time Granny Rosie's magical cloud flies them back home– even on their most challenging days. Nestled in the cozy comfort of Granny's lap, the girls feel safe to talk about feelings and what they have experienced.

Gratitude

The Birthday Triplets' stories remain secular, but the triplet’s bedtime prayer, Thanksgiving Poem by Ralph Waldo Emerson, while celebrating gratefulness, bequeaths a reverence for a power higher than themselves. Children are born with an innate sense of wonder and faith. In their combining prayer and gratefulness, the triplets perhaps will be giving millions of children around the world the only prayer and example of being grateful that they may ever hear.

“Thank you for the morning’s light,

For rest and shelter of this night,

For health, for food,

For love, for friends,

For all the gifts your goodness sends.”

In the article, How to Raise Grateful Kids in an Entitled World, by Jeannie Cunnion, she discusses the importance of gratitude in creating happiness.

"The word gratitude is derived from the Latin word gratia, which means grace. It's therefore no surprise that gratitude is the natural overflow of a heart that has received and now enjoys the grace of God. It is also no surprise that grateful people are happier people..."

In Andrea Reiser’s 11 Tips for Instilling True Gratitude in Your Kids/ HuffPost, she recounts that one of her most memorable lessons in having a grateful perspective came from a salmon slicer at Zabar’s in New York City.

“When I asked how he’d been, his response stopped me in my tracks.

‘ Blessed,' he said. 'I go home to a warm bed. There’s food on my table. I have running water and I can take a hot shower. I am blessed.’

…Just imagine how different life would be if we all adopted this attitude and passed it on to our children as well.”

The book, The Birthday Triplets, can be found on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.


Author, Kelly Tooman with illustrator, Lynn-Tooman Cser

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