Making Thanksgiving Special

Making Thanksgiving Special: Decorating, Crafts, Desserts and More

This Thanksgiving is a first for us: Our family always travel to Orlando to be with all of our extended family, more than 20 Butler-Stocker-Allens in one home (thank you, Aunt Sarah, for always hosting us so graciously), but because of my grandmother's triple bi-pass surgery a few weeks ago, we are forced to stay home this year. So, how do we make a simple, small Thanksgiving special and meaningful without breaking the bank and without too much effort?  I can't help you with that 15 lb turkey and all the fixings, but I have come up with some things that I think will put my family in the Thanksgiving frame of mind without putting me over my stress tolerance.

The Thanksgiving Tree - A Family Activity - $5

I wanted to do something with my family that engages all of us, but not for too long, and not too much effort on anyone's part - but a memory maker, nonetheless. So, when I saw this idea I fell in love!

Shopping List
*  A medium/small clay pot or basket or container
*  A 2 to 3 feet tall tree branch with lots of tiny branches
*  Sand, dirt, or rocks to put in the container
*  Sheets of autumn colored construction paper or craft foam paper (depends how many leaves you want to make)
*  ribbon or yarn or twine
*  a single hole punch (optional)
*  markers

Directions:
Hold the tree branch inside the container and fill the container of your choice with the sand/dirt/or rocks so that the branch stands up right on it's own. Cut the paper into the shapes of autumn leaves, making sure you make enough leaves for 2 or 3 per person, and place a small hole at one end and thread a 5" long length of ribbon/twine/yarn through the hole and tie the ends together. Place a container of markers and the paper leaves next to the tree branch. Instruct everyone to write something that they are thankful for on a leaf and hang it from the "Thanksgiving Tree" - encourage everyone to do it as many times as they wish throughout the day until each tiny branch is filled.

Cheap but Crafty Decorations

I found some great photos online of different decor themes, and found a Sunflower Theme that came with a treasure trove of free printable templates and instructions on how to put it all together. Click here to check it out and download the whole kit and kaboodle. Below are two projects from this theme that I did, affordably and easily (1 hour of shopping and 2 hours of project time)

 

Give Thanks Banner - $10

Shopping list: 
*   mini-glue gun and glue sticks
*  5 sheets of bright yellow cardstock
*  a roll of burlap garland
*  a package of foam sticker dots
*   a Circle Cutter (pictured below)  - becuase it costs about $20, I see it as completely optional (you can definitely cut out the circles by hand) - I was able to borrow one from a friend, which made these projects much less expensive

Directions:
First, cut 11 pieces of burlap 6" wide x 7" tall, fold in half and cut away a triangle from the bottom of each panel (center point at approximately 1 3/4" up from the bottom). Use a circle cutter to cut 11 5-inch circles out of yellow card stock. Attach the yellow circles to the burlap panels using hot glue. Print the attached template onto white card stock, then use the circle cutter to cut out each letter (OR cut them out yourself with scissors). Attach the letter panels to the yellow circles using foam dots to add dimension. String the panels together with ribbon or tulle.

'Enjoy' Napkin Rings - $8 (not including the glue gun/sticks)

Shopping List:
*  12 plain/simple wooden napkin rings (these are optional, you could use the twine)
*  mini glue gun and mini glue sticks (already had them from project above)
*  natural twine
*  the burlap scraps left over from project above
*  2-3 sheets of 12x12 inch scrapbook paper in a color or design that matches the pretty printable napkin ring labels (they say 'enjoy' on them)

Directions:
For each ring, cut a strip of burlap 1' x 1 1/2". To make the accordion-folded medallion, cut two strips of decorative paper 6" x 1 3/4", then fold the paper strips back and forth, accordion style. To form pointed ends, use scissors to clip one end of each folded strip at a 90-degree angle. Hot glue ends of strips together to create a circle, then push the edge of the paper in and hot glue the center. Hold for a few moments until glue dries. Print the attached "enjoy" party circles to embellish the center of each medallion. Lastly, hot glue the medallions to the napkin rings or attach lengths of natural twine with hot glue to the back of each medallion and tie them onto the napkins.

 notice the circle cutter pictured on the bottom left - cuts circles from as small as 1" to as big as 6"

Thanksgiving Dessert Buffet - $40+ (depends on how fancy you wanna get)

Shopping List:
*  All kinds of tiers to place desserts on (turned over pots and pans, shoe boxes, cupcake stands, pieces of wood, pretty platters, etc - stuff that you have laying around the house)
*  Large table cloth or pieces of fabric or burlap to cover the tiers
*  Artificial or real flowers and pumpkins and autumn colored pretty things (Walmart is selling artificial sunflowers and other autumn flowers for $1.50 a bouquet, more than 50% off)
*  3 to 5 desserts that can be presented in small bites (mini cupcakes, puddings, cake pops, bite sized pies, chocolate covered Oreos, brownies, cookies, tiny slices of cheesecake, etc)
*  lollipop sticks & hot glue gun/sticks or tape
*  small mason jars or shot glasses to present the puddings or parfaits

Directions:
Plan your desserts and how many of each dessert you would like to have. Then, place dessert tiers all over the top of a small table - it is best to have various heights of stands to add depth and character to your dessert buffet.  Use flowers and table cloths and fabric to make your stands and tiers pretty. Once you have purchased or prepared your desserts, pick a spot on the table for each one. Attach the pretty printable cupcake flags to the lollipop sticks with tape or hot glue and stick down into the tops of cupcakes or other desserts of your choice. Layer pudding/fruit/wafer cookies/whip cream/parfaits/or mousse into the mason jars and shot glasses. Place desserts on platters and stands. Write the names of each dessert on the pretty printable menu cards and place in front of each dessert, so that everyone knows what they are eating. Make sure napkins and utensils are nearby and handy.

this pic is of course not of our dessert buffet, won't be able to post those pics til after Thanksgiving

I truly hope these ideas give you some ideas of your own and encourage you to know that Thanksgiving day can be fun, beautiful, special... and cheap! I would love to see your own ideas and pics of what you come up with, too. HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!!