Dollars for Dinosaurs

It all started before Christmas 2013 when I told Brennen , age 4,and his little brother, Gavin age 3, that if they didn't learn to pick up their dinosaurs I was going to bag them up and take them to kids who would appreciate them. At first they were argumentative about the subject, but as weeks past every now and then Brennen would say," Mom I could give some of my dinosaurs away to kids who need them, I have so many of them anyways". I told him that was a nice gesture, but didn't have to pack any up right now. I wasn't aware of what was actually happening in front of my eyes at that time. I just thought he was tired of picking up after himself and wanted less work to do, which would have worked if he had less toys to pick up. You see, Brennen is obsessed about dinosaurs. In fact, I don't believe obsessed would even begin to describe his excitement about them. Dinosaurs have been his life since he was around 16 months old. He knows everything about every dinosaur and it has been quite an experience to not only watch him learn about them, but also educate his friends and family all about dinosaurs. He has even convinced his 17 month old little sister,Emersen, that dinosaurs are the best toys EVER! Brennen would see the St. Jude commercials and talk about how sad it was to see the sick kids, but didn't really understand how cancer or any kind of serious illness can effect someone so young. He didn't understand why it was happening to them. This made him think to ask many other questions about cancer and other illnesses that effects a child's life. In fact, his Godfather passed of prostate cancer in 2012 and his Grandfather is currently receiving treatment for CLL, a type of Leukemia. He talked about how he could buy a lot of dinosaurs to make him feel better as well!! A few months had went by and on the way home from a trip from Tennessee, in February 2014, Brennen out of no where said," Mom I want to raise a lot of money and buy dinosaurs and to give to kids who are sick". I about ran off the road in shock! I asked him what made him want to do such an amazing thing and his response was, " Because I want to make the sick kids smile and just as happy as I am when I play with my dinosaurs". My heart melted!!! As we discussed everything together we came up with the name "Dollars for Dinosaurs". My heart was filled with joy and praise for my little boy!! I announced Brennen's idea that night on Facebook and within minutes we had a good amount of support of friends and family asking where they could donate to help out! I couldn't believe it!! I couldn't believe a four year old could come up with such an amazing idea with such a great cause on his own. God has truly touched this child's heart with inspiration that has empowered me to want to help raise as much money as possible! With the help of everyone we know we cannot only help raise money to donate, but also give a dinosaur to a child that deserves a smile. If we can make their day by giving them a toy that my son is so passionate about, that will not only make our own hearts smile, but also complete one mission that God has guided us to fulfill!!