Give Thanks {A Family Project}

Thanksgiving.

Have you heard of it? It's the non-revenue holiday hidden between the big money-makers, Halloween and Christmas.

Marketing companies and toy manufacturers have made Oct. 31st and Dec. 25th every kid's dream. Those are the days you get stuff.

And I'm not above it. It was my own child that answered the question: "What is your favorite part of Thanksgiving?"

Answer: "Pulling out the Christmas decorations."

But Thanksgiving isn't about stuff. It's not about hype or candy or gifts. It's not even about pie. (Although....)

It is a day worthy of being celebrated. It's a day to be generous. It's a day to be gracious. It's more than a day.

Thankfulness cures my children's complaints. It stops grumbling in it's tracks. Bickering doesn't stand a chance with thankfulness in the room.

During this season, I'm giving thanksgiving a place of honor in my home with a Give Thanks Countdown Calendar. I think this can be a fun family project, the making and the doing.

Object: Every day remove the paper from the corresponding date and write down one thing each family member is thankful about.

You can order an adorable countdown calendar here on Etsy. But I decided to make my own with everyday materials. Feel free to be creative with what you have on hand or can find easily.

Supplies:

Fall placemat

Scrapbook stickers, leaf-shaped cutouts (mine have a sticky dot on the back)

Small brown paper sacks-enough for how many days you are going to count down-the whole month, 3 weeks, 1 week, etc. (I found mine in the gift bag section at Target)

Ribbon

1 Dowel

Glue gun

Chipboard letter or stickers for the "Give Thanks"

I numbered the scrapbook leaves with dates:

I cut the brown paper bags and placed them on the placemat (It took me several tries to fit them all on there, so there's no right or wrong way).

I hot glued everything into place:

I glued three ribbon loops to hold the dowel rod:

I printed and cut slips of paper to put into each envelope (see below to print "I am thankful" template:

I've also written a Parent's Activity Guide for Celebrating Thanksgiving!

Below is a printable jpeg for "I am thankful for" inserts and guide to Thanksgiving activities (scroll down to view them):

Iamthankfulfor1

More countdown calendar inspiration here and here

by Kristen Welch