Making a Thankful Tree a Thanksgiving Tradition

Thanksgiving is right around the corner! Have you ever made a Thankful Tree? We turned the tree in our front yard into the biggest Thankful Tree yet! 

What is a Thankful Tree?

A Thankful Tree is where you put what you are grateful for on a ribbon or tags and tie them onto a small tree usually indoors. It’s a great reminder how many things we have in our lives to be thankful for. And the perfect activity to do around Thanksgiving with the whole family. We took our Thankful Tree a little furture and asked our Instagram community to share what they are thankful for. Then we put everyone’s answers into the tree in our front yard for everyone to see. It was so much fun compiling everyone’s answers and hanging them in the tree! The tree looks magical and brings a little hope and gratetude to the neighborhood.

We have so much to be thankful for! First responders, essential workers, our health, sisters and brothers, moms and dads, a roof over our heads, our jobs, the ability to do distance learning, the list is endless. Sometimes we need a reminder that life is good. There are so many people struggling right now for many reasons, it always helps me to look for the positive in our world when I’m having a hard time. 

 

How to Make Your Own Thankful Tree *In a Real Tree

1. 1. 1. Make a list of all the things you and your family and friends are thankful for.
      2. Write them down on ribbons or wooden tags so they hold up in weather. *Make sure to make ribbons long enough to hang in the tree so people can see them. 
      3. Tie them to the tree branches.
      4. Optional: Add pompoms or yard to make it even more fun!  

 

How to Make an Indoor Version

We’ve been doing Thankful Trees every Thanksgiving for the past 4 years thanks to my sister-in-law. There are several ways to make one! My favorite is using twigs in a vase and colorful leaves from paper. 

1. Collect twigs or sticks from outside
2. Put them into a vase
3. Cut out colorful leaves from construction paper (Need a leaf printable? Print this one out here.
4. Write what you are thankful for on the paper leaves
5. Tie the leaves to the twigs 
6. You have a fun meaningful centerpiece for any table! 

This is a really special thing to do together with family on Thanksgiving! 

Happy Thanksgiving!