Family Time: Decorate the Yard for Fall

Unlike Christmas season when every home is decorated and you can easily drive by and gasp at the wonder of it all, Thanksgiving decorating is more subtle. In fact, decorations are created more for the back yard than the front. Nature takes care of most of the work with fall foliage. However, here are a few suggestions in which you can decorate not only the back yard, but add some spice to the front yard as well.

Have the entire family sit down and design a back yard representation of fall, and then have each member choose a task.

If you have a patio in the back yard, you can spruce it up with adobe flower pots filled with fall flowers. In fact, you can fill each pot with an assortment of plastic leaves in various colors if you’d like. In some of the major chain stores, they sell small scarecrows on a stick. This would be a great addition to the flower pots placed either in the back yard or on your front steps.

If you have a tree in your back yard, and it is beginning to reveal its colorful leaves of red and gold, you can select an area where you can place a full-sized scarecrow crafted by your kids or the entire family.

You may also wish to take the leaves that have fallen to the ground and string them together around the table and benches. Instead of hanging plants, you can make cornucopia pots and hang them as well. Of course, you can design your own pumpkin patch in your back yard too, utilizing all different pumpkin shapes and sizes.

For the front yard, wreaths of fresh leaves combined with corn, acorns, and berries will be a lovely addition to the front door. If you have a walkway leading up to your front steps, you can add a row of the aforementioned scarecrows on a stick. They are very inexpensive and would look amazing to your home’s visiting guests. Some homeowners have lined their walkway with pumpkins which is really beautiful, especially if they are lit at night.

Whatever you decide to do, stick with the patio furniture you have. Add fabric if necessary. The great part is you don’t have to decide what color to use since nature has graciously supplied you with the color scheme. All you have to do is enhance it.

Fun Family Thanksgiving Ideas

Thanksgiving is always a fun time of celebration and eating with your family. Here are some ways to make Thanksgiving even more fun for your family this year.

Thankful cards – Make a card for each family member that will be your guest for Thanksgiving this year. On each card, tell that person what you love most about them, and why you are thankful for them.

Recipe books – A few months before Thanksgiving, write a list of each family member. Beside their name, make a note of their best dish. Call each member and ask for a copy of that recipe, plus one or two of their own favorites that they’d like to share. When you have all the recipes ready, compile them into a booklet and print them, using your computer and printer. (You can also use professional services, if you wish, to make a longer-lasting recipe book.) After your guests all arrive for your Thanksgiving dinner, give them each a copy of your special recipe book.

Mini family scrapbooks – Gather family pictures, if you don’t have many pictures, take them to a local copier and have extra prints made. Purchase mini scrapbooks at a scrapbook supply store, along with stickers, markers and various scrapbook supplies. Create miniature family scrapbooks, using one picture per page. Write what you are thankful for, in relation to each family member, on their designated pages. On Thanksgiving Day, give a copy of your mini family scrapbooks to each family member as a memento.

Thanksgiving craft ideas for kids

Are you looking for some fun ways to keep your kids busy during the Thanksgiving holiday? Here are some fun Thanksgiving craft ideas for kids:

Turkey wreath – Buy a straw wreath and various Thanksgiving decorations, let your kids glue on the decorations to make a holiday wreath to hang on your front door.

Turkey cups – With the Thanksgiving family dinner coming soon, you’ll probably have a house full of kids, buy small kid-sized plastic cups and craft markers. Give each kid a cup and let them write their name on it and decorate it.

Turkey placemats – Give your kids colored construction paper and let them make turkeys. After they are finished, mount each turkey on a separate sheet of construction paper, then laminate it. Now they have their own special turkey placemat.

Pinecone turkey – Gather pinecones, then cut out colorful turkey feathers from colored construction paper. Use red felt to cut out the turkey’s comb. Glue your Thanksgiving turkey together, inserting the feathers in between the pine comb leaves.

Thanksgiving flower pots – Buy the smallest red clay pots you can find at your local gardening store (these are super cheap), a bag of potting soil, and packages of various flowers, vegetables, or herb seeds. Let your kids write the name of the seed on the outside of the pot with a magic marker. Next, have them pour potting soil in each pot and plant the seeds. When the seeds begin sprouting in a few weeks, let your kids take their Thanksgiving pots to the local nursing home and give them away as Thanksgiving gifts to the patients.