This is a great time of year to look at the numerous blessings we enjoy. We live in a time of such abundance. As you prepare for the Thanksgiving holiday, if you are in the US, spend some time reflecting on this abundance. Read the fall chapters of Little House in the Big Woods, by Laura Ingalls Wilder. They have so much prep work just to make it through winter in tact. Discuss with your kids how different it is today. Did you have a garden this year? Have you been to a farmer's market? I think we're more grateful for our food and other blessings when we know how much work goes into creating them.
Create Thanksgiving cards to share with your loved ones. You can use the traditional drawing a turkey by outlining a hand or perhaps cards showing the things your family is grateful for. Creating a centerpiece of harvest items can be a great reminder.
Contrast our current Thanksgiving activities with those of the past. Read the Thanksgiving chapter in Farmer Boy, also by Laura Ingalls Wilder, or in Eight Cousins, by Louisa May Alcott. They had a feast and had to work very hard to create it. Have the whole family help in some of the holiday cooking preparations-maybe in making pies.
Have older children do some online research to find out what was served at the first Thanksgiving in Massachusetts. It sure is different than we normally serve now, unless you normally include such seafood as eels. If you live in New England, this is a great week to visit Plymouth. The Mayflower was tiny-imagine spending weeks in such close quarters. The plantation settlement was pretty small as well. Even our smallest houses today are huge compared to these homes.
Although they didn't spend the day watching Football or shopping, games were included in this first Thanksgiving. That's another area older kids might enjoy learning about. It wasn't just spectator sports, most of the men were involved.
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