Inspired Autumn: Inspired to be Thankful
Autumn is perhaps my favorite time of year. I grew up in the mountains on the East Coast where the cool mornings would smell fresh and crisp. The leaves would all be dressed in their party best. It looked just like God had dumped a crayon box out over the hills and colored each tree with whichever color landed on it.
Living now in Campeche, Mexico, we don't get to enjoy the beauty of God's Fall artwork in the treetops, so we create some of our own.
The Thankful Tree
Sometime around mid-October we create a paper tree on the wall near our study area. It's pretty bare and ugly to begin with. We work at cutting out leaves of all shapes and sizes from colored paper. We keep them in a bag near the tree. Every day until Thanksgiving (the fourth Thursday in November) each of us write on a paper leaf something we are thankful for. We stick it to the tree until it begins to look something like this:
This has become such a family tradition that even visitors and friends often ask to place a leaf on the Thankful Tree.
When it's time to decorate for our Thanksgiving meal, the leaves come off the tree and become part of our table runner. It is another reminder of the reason for the holiday and a nice conversation piece during dinner. It is also a way for the kids to proudly display their work and feel they had an important part in the occasion.
Looking for leaf patterns to print for your tree? Click here.
Looking for more Autumn Inspiration? Check out our Pinterest Fall and Thanksgiving Board for fun ideas your family will love.
What a neat idea! I think something like this would even fit and work well in a hallway. (We don’t have a lot of space, even of the wall sort!) I love that you all do this each and every day, and the double use of the table runner. Looking forward to reading more from you this week via the #InspiredBN series! Be blessed!
What a neat family tradition! My extended family always gets together at Grandma’s house, and we are going to have to try this this year. 🙂
DaLynn, we put the tree up in our hallway. We don’t have much unused wall space either, but it works well there. Anne, it is a great tradition! You’ll have to come back later and tell me how it went if you do it this year!
We ‘build’ a Thanksgiving Tree every November. Even though my children are not so little, they still enjoy the tradition. Love your idea of scattering the leaves down the center of the Thanksgiving Table – makes a beautiful runner and inspires some wonderful dinner conversation. Thank you!