At our extended family Thanksgiving dinner for the Jones clan yesterday, I received a couple really neat ideas for young families.
1. My niece, Pat, and her family who hosted this year and did a great job, have a tradition called the Thanksgiving box. Each year, each member of the family writes down the thing or things they are most thankful for on a piece of paper with their name and the year. Then they put it in a special box labeled “The Thanksgiving Box” and save it. Then in following years, if the family wishes, they can look at what each person gave thanks for. It provides a kind of family history of Thanksgiving.
2. My nephew, Doug, and his family have a different variation on the same idea. They have a designated Thanksgiving tablecloth that is only used on Thanksgiving. Each year they get out markers and each family member writes on the tablecloth what they are thankful for. Then they have Thanksgiving dinner using that tablecloth. This idea sounds like a real children’s delight to me.
I thought these were wonderful ideas to help children participate in the true meaning of the Thanksgiving holiday and build family togetherness at the same time. .
