Wednesday, November 11, 2015

7 ways to remember the GIVING part of Thanksgiving

I love that we are extra thankful around this time of year, but sometimes we forget the "giving" part of Thanksgiving! Here are some ways we can give back to those who we are grateful for:

Neighborhood Thanksgiving Turkey
Did you get "boo-ed" around Halloween?  This is the same idea, only for Thanksgiving!  You can read all about it here at Over the Big Moon.

Adopt a Neighbor
As a family, pick a neighbor who you are especially grateful for this year. Secretly make it your family project for the month to do nice things for this neighbor. You can visit them, you can leave small goodies or gifts on their porch, write notes to them about how you are grateful for them, or you can bring in their garbage cans that week. Just try not to get caught!


100 Thank You's Challenge
I love this idea that Devany from Still Playing School posted on Tips from a Typical Mom!  It's so simple, it could work as a family or as individual kids.  Basically you just have your child set a goal for how many times they want to say thank you this month, then you keep track of it.  It's fun because your child can set a high number and still do it... and yet, they will still be impressed that they did it so much!

Grateful Paper Chain
Make a paper chain. Put a name of someone you are grateful for on each paper. Then each day, pick a name off of that chain. Do something nice for that person that day. It can be something as simple as calling them to say you appreciate them, putting a card in the mail for them or even baking a treat for them.

Host a Fall Harvest Potluck
My cute friend Wendy from Bed Head Mom did this and I love it!  Just host a potluck and invite all of the people in your life that you are extra thankful for that year.  It's an easy and fun way to say thank you!

Kindness Thankful Tree
We have all probably seen the thankful trees all over Pinterest. They are awesome! But if you want to take it to the next level and do an act of kindness with it. You can put one on every bedroom door in your home. Throughout the month, anyone can add a grateful leaf to that door, to show why they are thankful for that person.



You can also do this for a neighbor, only as a one time thing, instead of something throughout the month.  Just put a tree (or a turkey) on their door, with reasons why you are grateful for them on the leaves (or feathers).

Thank You Cards
If you know me, you know I am a sucker for thank you cards!  They are so easy but yet make such an impact on someone's day.  Make it a goal to send out 5 thank you cards this month with your kids.  It will be fun to see who they want to thank and how they decide to decorate the cards.


Whatever you do, be sure to reinforce your kid's act of kindness. One awesome way my friend Kim is doing that with her son is by putting up a hand print for each person he helps that month. This way he can see better what an impact he has on the community!


For more ideas on how to serve with your kids, sign up for the Mommy & Me Monthly Service Challenge below!  


1 comment:

  1. I love these ideas. I actually have loved giving Thankful gifts to neighbors over the years instead of Christmas gifts. It just makes more sense to me and disperses the fun and the funds;)

    ReplyDelete

I actually really love it when you comment! ;)

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