Getting in the Spirit: Thanksgiving is more than just pie!

Thanksgiving is one of those taken-for-granted holidays and as well as getting in the spirit for it. It falls right between Halloween and Christmas, which let's face it most kids love. It can be hard to get kids in the Thanksgiving spirit. Every year my kids learn about the first Thanksgiving. We read the book If You Were a Kid at the First Thanksgiving. And we discuss what it might have been like at that time. Then we discuss how we can make people in our lives now feel as thankful and included as everyone at the first Thanksgiving did.

This can be a difficult thing to consider, however, it has become a way to show my kids what it would mean to make someone else feel good. Last year we chose to invite a family from our school that was from another country and did not usually celebrate the day. We included them and taught them a little about the holiday. Our family and theirs all sat at the table and shared what we were most thankful for in our lives. We even shared our favorite dessert, pumpkin pie.

Our friends knew some of the traditions of pumpkin pie. They chose to bring something that would be new but still on theme. They brought a special chocolate pumpkin pie. It was delicious and will become one of our new traditions with our new friends.