Happy Thanksgiving

HAPPY THANKSGIVING DAY!!!

 from Fran and Friends

What does thanksgiving mean to you? To me it means a special day spent with family and friends. A day to be extra thankful and show those I love what they mean to me. 

It means turkey and the trimmings, love, fun and just bliss. It also means unbuttoning our pants to make room for more...lol! Come on you know you have done it. What does it mean to you? 

Do you ever wonder where this holiday came from? Well...According to Wikipedia--"Thanksgiving Day is a holiday celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada. Thanksgiving is celebrated each year on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. In Canada, Thanksgiving falls on the same day as Columbus Day in the United States. Because of the longstanding traditions of the holiday, the celebration often extends to the weekend that falls closest to the day it is celebrated."

Wikipedia also suggests that---"its origins to a 1621 celebration at Plymouth in present-day Massachusetts. There is also evidence for an earlier celebration on the continent by Spanish explorers in Texas at San Elizario in 1598, as well as thanksgiving feasts in the Virginia Colony. The initial thanksgiving observance at Virginia in 1619 was prompted by the colonists' leaders on the anniversary of the settlement. The 1621 Plymouth feast and thanksgiving was prompted by a good harvest. In later years, the tradition was continued by civil leaders such as Governor Bradford who planned a thanksgiving celebration and fast in 1623. While initially, the Plymouth colony did not have enough food to feed half of the 102 colonists, the Wampanoag Native Americans helped the Pilgrims by providing seeds and teaching them to fish. The practice of holding an annual harvest festival like this did not become a regular affair in New England until the late 1660s.

"Many historians point out that the first thanksgiving celebration in the United States was held in Virginia, and not in Plymouth. Thanksgiving services were routine in what was to become the Commonwealth of Virginia as early as 1607.  A day of Thanksgiving was codified in the founding charter of Berkeley Hundred in Charles City County, Virginia in 1619."

Here is a wonderful audio link to a story for children from Scholastic. 

To all my friends and family---

HAPPY THANKSGIVING DAY!!!

Turkey Napkin Rings

With thanksgiving approaching quickly you will want to do these napkin rings rather quickly. (Sorry, I'm behind---I am recovering from hand surgery.)

Materials needed:

Float Wooden spoons (you can purchase at craft store.You will need 5 for each ring)

Craft paint (basic colors)

Paper Towel or toilet paper tube

Scissors

Newspaper

Wiggly eyes

Craft glue

Red felt 

Instructions:

Cover area with newspaper. Paint 6 of the wooden spoons in a variety of colors but make sure you paint 1 yellow for it's head.(this will be the tail of the turkey.) Now cut a 2" section of the roll and paint it brown. Glue pieces together and voila you have a thanksgiving day napkin ring. You can take it one step further and add name cards if you wish. Just type the names in a fancy font in word on your computer and print on card stock. Once you print the names out,cut in uniform rectangles and glue to front of the turkey.

Credit: familyfun.go.com/thanksgiving/thanksgiving-craft-decorations/thanksgiving-napkin-rings/turkey-napkin-rings-661091/

Thanksgiving books:

Five Silly Turkeys

Reviewed on Amazon--"I bought this book on sale and planned to save it for Thanksgiving. My five month old son loved it so it is one we read a lot now. This board book has five "feathers" that make that crinkle sound babies love. I didn't give it five stars because ideally it would have a better coating around the feathers to protect it a little more from all the chewing it is forced to endure." For more info

Thanks for Thanksgiving

Reviewed on Amazon--From floating leaves to the family we love, THANKS FOR THANKSGIVING illustrates the grateful attitude in action through a child's eyes as he observes his family preparing for the big turkey Feast and plays through the many ordinary, special moments with his family members in the traditions that impart meaning to this all-important American holiday. Elegantly simple rhymes appear on every page meshed with marvelous watercolors that capture each theme. These are pictures worth more than a thousand words about turkey and pie, school and music, play dates with siblings, friends and pets, winter activities & bedtime routine with daddy and mommy, and finally passing that moonlit night to welcome together grandparents and relatives for a round table full of food - a delicious celebration of family life and a visual appreciation for Thanksgiving." For more info

Turkey Day is almost here...

Sorry folks I was incapacitated due to hand surgery.

There are so many beautiful leaves still falling from the trees. It would be a festive idea to pick these leaves and either tie or tape them to some yarn or string as a decoration for thanksgiving day.


If you can't find leaves then why not make your own and color them in the "colors of autumn".


Another fun thing to make are leaf placemats to sit on the table. Use a sturdy 11x14 cardboard,glue leaves to cardboard and cover with transparent contact paper or laminate. You can write each persons name on the mat before laminating.


Thanksgiving books--

Happy Thanksgiving 

Things to Make and Do for Thanksgiving (Things to Make and Do Book) 

Handprint Turkey

It's almost turkey time. Thanksgiving will be here on November 24th. Here is an easy craft for children.

Materials needed:

Paint or crayons
Sturdy paper plates
Construction paper
Colored feathers
Scissors
Wiggly eyes
Glue
Ribbon
Duck Tape
Hole puncher
Ribbon

TEMPLATE (I made a template for those who need one.)

Directions: (Requires adult supervision.)

1. First either use the template or trace your hand onto brown construction paper.
2. After tracing hand, slowly and carefully cut the hand out.
3. Now glue the hand to your paper plate.
4. Next decorate and make as pretty as you wish,use your imagination.
5. If you do not have feathers you can improvise with colored construction paper. Just cut out some feather shapes and glue onto plate. (They will go right where your fingers are on the cut out hand.)
6. Now trace and cut out the wattle. The wattle is red.
7. Once you cut out then glue under your turkey's chin.
8. Now trace two yellow legs for your turkey.
9. Once they are cut out glue onto your turkey.
10. Finish by glueing some big wiggly eyes onto your turkey.
11. Punch a hole into the paper plate and attach a ribbon so you can hang your turkey up for thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving Books--

The Littlest Pilgrim
Reviewed on Amazon--"This is a very sweet story with which many little kids (especially ones with big brothers and sisters!) can identify. The book is about Mini, a pilgrim who wants to help. But everyone is too busy or she's too little to help with any chores. What makes this book unique is the setting. She's wanting to help stack wood and mend dresses and bake bread... all of these activities can lead to great questions/discussions about early Americans. So cute!" For more information

The First Thanksgiving
Reviewed on Amazon--"I like this book, it has cute pictures, but the story doesn't really flow well especially with the flaps. There are a lot of flaps on some pages and 1 on others. Some have words under the flaps, some don't. It's just kind of awkward. The story is nice and so are the pictures, but the flaps kind of ruin it all." For more information

Corn Craft

This is an easy to make craft for the little ones.

TEMPLATE

• Print corn template and cut out the pieces.
• Now trace the pieces onto construction paper or card stock (which I preferr) and cut.
• Place the corn and husk onto cardboard to make strogner and glue in place.
• Cover the center corn piece with a layer of glue.
• Add beans to the glue. You can toss them onto the glue or place one at a time---either way will work just fine.

The finished product should look something like this.

Book realated to thanksgiving---

                                            

                                             Ten Fat Turkeys

Reviewed on Amazon---"This cute book counts down the 10 fat turkeys-great for the holidays. One by one, each turkey leaves the fence in a creative way. This book is good for the pre-schooler learning to count or learning the concept of subtraction. The illustrations are great! The turkeys looks as if they have their own personalities, and their facial expressions are adorable. Great buy!" For more information







Turkey Day is Coming

Here is a fun craft that is easy for the little ones Toilet Paper Roll Turkey.

And a coloring page ---Right click save as and then print or just click print target.

Books related to Thanksgiving--

What Is Thanksgiving?
Reviewed on Amazon---"A quick and easy reminder to toddlers what Thanksgiving is all about. Only caution is that is does have a religious theme so if you are not Christian, you may not like it. I personally loved it and found it a perfect way to explain the real meaning behind Thanksgiving (other than the food, the football, the parade). It rhymes and its short so good really for any age." For more info

Thanksgiving Is for Giving Thanks
Reviewed on Amazon--"This is a very cute Thanksgiving book. My boys (ages 3 & 6) do seem to enjoy it and do tell me what they are thankful for, after seeing some of the things in the book. It was a bit shorter than I expected though, but otherwise a nice book." For more info