Sorry if you are seeing this a second time.  The wrong version went out earlier!!  Arrggggggghhhh, it can happen to any us.

——————

I found this hilarious article: “Thanksgiving Day Crafts.” Can you imagine: getting out a hammer, nails and hand saw on one of the greatest football days in the entire year? Or, clearing the dining room table for some fun with the glue gun, beads and feathers? Crafts on Thanksgiving are a crazy idea!

But, why not have some fun this Thanksgiving?

Here are some of the great things we have seen done over the years:

• Plan the “big” meal around the football schedule. Rather than be irritated that you call “dinner” and everyone in front of the TV groans or if you have just seen the start of the second half and you hear “dinner,” why not do some planning? Regardless of whether you will be enjoying a sit down dinner at home or eating at a restaurant, plan the meal around the games (or parades) people want to watch. One year, during our biggest game of the year, we were pulled away to go out to dinner. And, even though we had recorded the game and asked everyone not to tell us what happened, someone shared the final score. Not cool!
• I loved the year that we made “party hats” for a family dinner. (This is a no planning, no mess “craft.”) Using newspaper and markers, the youngest nieces and nephews made three corner hats for each of us. The kids had a great time and it kept them busy. But, what was really, really fun was that the family members actually wore the hats throughout the dinner. It was GREAT!! We all looked silly; the kids absolutely loved it; and it made a family dinner more fun than anyone expected it to be. What a great time!
• Just before Poppa’s birthday, we found “pirate” birthday party items for 75% off. A dinner theme had been found! One of my nieces helped me make eye patches out of felt and yarn. A dinner party was held with the Mullins clan all wearing eye patches. It was a scream! For next to no cost, we had so much fun. (Well, at least I did!)
• Friends of ours go camping every Thanksgiving weekend. The gals who don’t enjoy camping stay at home and bring a Thanksgiving feast out to the campsite; some items are homemade and others are not.

Why do just a little planning in this year and add lots of fun?

• Get out the newspaper and make some hats. I mean, every dinner is just more fun when you are wearing a hat!!
• Grab the football and toss it around between the meal and dessert; work off a couple of calories.
• Go for a walk and see what the neighbors are up to. Walk over to the neighborhood grade school and take a minute to compare how the playground equipment is different from when you were a child.
• Share with the kids a story about a Thanksgiving when you were young.
• Pull out the board game that you haven’t played in years and play fair.
• Grab the “old” photo albums and make up captions. (No fair getting offended!)
• Put the Christmas tree up and enjoy memories of years past.
• Start a bonfire, wrap up in blankets and use those lawn chairs one more time this year.
• Deconflict football and food!

Thanksgiving can be so much more fun when we plan just a few easy activities. Make it more than a day of food and football. No matter what activity you plan, remember that it only takes a moment to create a memory that will last a life time.  Have fun!!

“Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.” (Psalm 100:4)