November. It’s here and suddenly the world is all about tinsel and Christmas carols and the best Amazon steal. Just like that, we’ve jumped over an entire month and settled into full-on, commercialized Santa mode.
And, I’m just as guilty as the next person.
Monday at work, my co-workers and I chatted about the subject of Thanksgiving and Thankfulness, and my eyes grew wide as a few statistics were shared about the health and wealth of the world majority in comparison to those of us who live in the United States.
Tuesday, as I listed with my husband to a podcast on abandonment and adoption, I teared up at the voice of a man who was discarded by his family at three years of age.
Wednesday I headed into my office and started looking at Operation Christmas Child videos in preparation for an event our church will be doing later in the month … and I couldn’t stop smiling and crying as I watched the little faces of those children who are the recipients of simple shoe-boxes filled with the equivalent of what my children get in their stockings for Christmas.
Yeah, this week has pretty much been a slap in the face.
It is so easy to get side-tracked by busy lives and wish lists and everyday frustrations — the result of which makes one (ahem … me) lose sight of how full and blessed my life is. And, because I don’t notice those blessings — because I don’t show or express gratitude — I’m not passing on a sense of appreciation for all that is good in my life. My children aren’t getting a legacy of gratitude from this Mama.
(sigh)
It’s time to make a change. I don’t want to bypass a month that is meant to hone our focus in on being thankful. I don’t want to get so wrapped up in schedules and work and Christmas budgets that I can’t see all the gifts God has already put in my life.
Health. Children. A home. Jobs. Food. Friends.
Blessings.
Recycled Craft: A Thankful Turkey for Project Gratitude
To help the Kidlets start looking for blessings, I had a moment of inspiration when I saw the empty plastic container sitting on the countertop. Once a bottle full of International Delight Pumpkin Spice Creamer (yes, the very one in THIS post), it was waiting to be rinsed and put into the recycling bin.
But, Mama saw a turkey. A tall, cartoony turkey with words scrawled across construction paper feathers in childish handwriting. A turkey that would help the kids display thirty days of acknowledging the blessings in their lives. One feather for each day of November.
And, thanks to a craft drawer that is always ready for a Kidlet project, I had everything to make, as the Kidlets call it, “The Family Turkey.”
Supplies:
- 1 large Creamer Bottle (empty, washed and dried)
- 30 Mini Clothespins
- Hot Glue Gun and Glue
- Googly Eyes
- Small Piece of Brown Foam or Construction Paper
- Small Piece of Red Felt
- 4-8 pieces of Construction Paper in fall colors
- Brown Spray Paint (optional)
- Rice, Flour, or similar to weigh down the bottle
Instructions:
- Unscrew the lid from the clean creamer bottle. If desired, spray-paint the lid with brown paint to cover and let dry. (International Delight lids are royal blue — it took about three coats to make the lid a solid brown)
- Choose a front and a back to the bottle/turkey. I used the smooth side as the front.
- Glue 30 mini-clothespins to the back in rows. I fanned the clothespins out so that the “feathers” would also fan out behind the Turkey.
- Using a funnel or rolled piece of paper, fill the empty bottle with rice, flour or the like … this will weigh the bottle down and keep it sturdy as the feathers are added each day.
- Once the lid is dry, attach it back to the bottle, making sure the front of the lid matches with the front of the bottle.
- Cut a triangle out of the brown foam-sheet or brown construction paper. Glue it to the top of the bottle, just below where the neck of the bottle meets the bottom of the lid.
- Cut out a “squiggly” piece of red felt to be the Turkey’s waddle. Glue it across the top of the beak, allowing it to cascade down (see picture).
- Glue the Googly Eyes onto the lid, just above the beak and waddle.
- If desired use a permanent marker (or vinyl letters) to add the words, ” Give Thanks” to the front of the bottle.
- Stack the sheets of Construction paper and trace feather shapes onto the top piece of paper. Cut out 30 feathers.
To Use:
Each day, allow the kids or the entire family to take one construction paper feather and write a thing for which they are thankful. Attach the feather to one of the clothespins. Continue throughout the month of November till the Turkey’s feathers are all on him/her.
Your Own Kind of Gratitude
Let me know if you make a Thankful Turkey of your own! If you don’t yet have a few empty creamer bottles laying around, join the International Delight community and get a coupon (plus recipes and other member-exclusive things like giveaways).
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of International Delight. The opinions and text are all mine.
