The Daily Mail has some quotes from Brad Pitt they attribute to Hello! Magazine, but maybe they’re in an upcoming issue because I have the current print edition and couldn’t find them there or on Hello!’s website. (Normally I wouldn’t be so skeptical, but this is The Daily Mail, so you have to verify their source.)

They say that Pitt mentioned that his children do get gifts for Christmas of course, but they’re not very expensive and they limit their access to television to make sure they’re not begging for stuff. The older Jolie-Pitt children also make gifts for each other and it sounds like they’ve made a nice tradition out of it. This is consistent with things Angelina has said in the past about encouraging her children to be creative through arts and crafts.

‘The kids don’t ask for big gifts for the reason that they don’t see a lot of the American cartoon television, which is packed with all those manipulative commercials for big toys that look so fantastic.
‘When they do see that stuff is when they start asking for the toys, so we figure if they don’t see them they won’t know they’re there.

‘So we have gifts, but we try to keep the money spent to a minimum. The rule is that everyone’s got to make something for someone else, you got to put time into it.’

Pitt told the magazine his children have embraced the idea that they come from different countries.

He said: ‘As they’re getting older, we’ve been coming up with some idea for a ceremony for everyone around this time, but right now, it’s still at the ideas stage.’

Speaking about his family life, Pitt said cheerfully: ‘We haven’t found any reason to stop yet.’

He continued: ‘It’s chaos at times but there’s also such joy in our house right now.

‘I look down at the family and I see our boy from Vietnam (Pax) and our daughter from Ethiopia (Zahara) and our girl’s from Namibia (Shiloh was born there) and our son who’s from Cambodia (Maddox), and… they are all brothers and sisters, man.

They are all the same blood. It is such elation to see them all living together, and getting along together, and to know that we were able to give them a home – in some cases, to give them a life.

‘It’s a wonderful thing that we are able to do this because of the jobs we have – and it’s a selfish thing, too, because the rewards are extraordinary.

‘We’ve always said that we’ll carry on until we find a reason to stop doing this – and, no, we haven’t found that reason yet.’

And giving some fatherly tips he told the magazine: ‘You know the secret of good nappy-changing?

‘You got to do it quick. There’s something about the air contact that makes them want to go again, so you got to get in there and get them changed before that happens, because those things stink!

‘I’m pretty good at being quick, I must say – got it down by now.’

[From the Daily Mail]

It’s not just American TV that features flashy ads to encourage kids to beg, and Brad would know that if his kids watch any local TV in Berlin. Advertising aimed at children is pretty universal around the world. That’s a cute story that the children are making each other presents and it’s nice they’re trying to dissuade them from coveting big toys. As many parents know from experience, those flashy plastic masterpieces are only interesting for so long. My son’s favorite toy is a box we cut holes out of for his head and arms. He loves running around the house pretending to be a robot. He plays with that much more than the giant hot wheels set he just had to have.

Photo credit: WENN