Fun Friday: Create a Thankfulness Tree

Earlier this week, I shared what I’m thankful for this holiday season. Our Thankfulness Tree gave The Big Explorer a chance to do the same. This activity doesn’t have to be restricted to Thanksgiving, though; it’s a great way to celebrate the upcoming holidays and the end of the year, too.

We started by creating a “tree” out of sticks The Big and Little Explorer collected on recent nature walks (we even had a few acorns, too). We picked out a pretty vase to help make our tree feel extra special.

Using colored paper, we cut out a few different types of leaves, and even acorns, in a variety of colors then punched a hole in each and added string to create ornaments for our tree. If you can’t do this freehand, a quick Google search for leaf templates will give you plenty of options.

Now came the fun part: Writing down what we were thankful for on our leaves and acorns. I was surprised and touched by what The Big Explorer had to say.

Take-Home Tips 

• Involve the younger kids, too. At 2 1/2, The Little Explorer was more than happy to color leaves for our tree. I’m sure he would have loved painting some, too!

• Choose your own ornaments. Change the shape of the decorations and this activity works all year long (stars for a holiday tree, hearts for Valentine’s Day, etc.)

More Ideas for Outdoor Fun
If you’re enjoying a long holiday weekend, there’s plenty of opportunity to get outside – even if the weather doesn’t seem very inviting. Why not bundle up, head outdoors and:

• Go writing outside.
• Go puddle jumping (or sledding if the weather allows)!
• Take an alphabet hike to find letters in nature.
• Look for signs of winter in your backyard or neighborhood.
• Try one of these 50 ways to explore nature in your own backyard.

The best part? Enjoying some hot chocolate or warm apple cider when you head back inside!