Kids go through phases, right? Take the movie Frozen for example – how many times have you seen that movie? Too many times is probably most of our answers. The toddler girls who I know just love to fight over who is Elsa for dress up. And if you would have walked into my house right after Christmas, you would have seen an explosion of everything Frozen in every direction you turned. You also would’ve heard Alexa playing “Let it Go” on REPEAT. Why? Well, my strong-willed 3.5 year old loves to tell Alexa what to do.
It got to the point, though, where Lillian (my 3.5 year old) would constantly call her little sister “Anna” from Frozen, and her little sister, Gemma, would respond to that name in a heartbeat. “Anna, come here!” Lillian would say, and Gemma would naturally reply, “I’m here!” When this first happened, I thought it was so cute that they were pretending and using their imagination. Then things escalated.
One day a person asked Gemma what her name was and she said, “I’m Anna.” OH NO! I thought. Caught off guard, I replied, “Your name is Gemma Rose.” She then proceeded to correct me over and over that she was Anna, NOT Gemma.
This Frozeness had gone way too far.
So God instantly put it on my heart to have a chat with my girls about reality versus fantasy and having limits with worldly things, because the Bible is very clear on that. 1 John 5:21 says it so simply. “Dear children, keep yourself from idols.”
In my best toddler translation, I talked about how sometimes when we really love something it can try and change who we are, but who we really are is our identity and relationship with Jesus, the Son of God. Even as adults, when we get stuck on something we love, it can consume us more than we intend and become an idol.
I promise I’m not a fun crusher. It’s great to have fun, and it’s so good to play. But trust me, this Frozen obsession was pushing unhealthy limits. So now … we have BALANCE.
We listen to Hillsong Kids music instead of the 24/7 Frozen soundtrack. And thankfully Gemma knows that her name is … Gemma! We spend more quality time together doing puzzles and other activities instead of Disney+ being a go-to activity. We still have a little Frozen fun every once in a while, but keeping God first is where our hearts need to be so they don’t become frozen.
Danielle lives with her husband, two little girls, and 90 pound labrador retriever. Danielle works as a Marketing Manager for Hope Chest for Breast Cancer Foundation and loves helping her community. With balancing the working mom life, she enjoys all the snuggles from her girls, boating with her family, and appreciates croissants and endless chai tea! Connect with her on Instagram @daniraelene.