Thankful Jar

Next week starts the beginning of a month of being focusing on the things we are most thankful for. I love November, but you know what I don't like... sitting around the table and being put on the spot to tell what I am most thankful for. I am a cryer... yep I admit it. I think it is me getting old, but overtime I start to say what I am thankful for I cry. So to save everyone in my family the embarrassment of watching mom cry I decided to start a Thankful Jar.

I put our thankful jar out on our kitchen bar with a small stack of papers and a pen. Through the entire month of November the children and my husband and I write down things we are thankful for. Then at Thanksgiving Dinner we pass the jar around and read all the things everyone is thankful for. No one adds their names to the papers so no one knows who said what. I love this little tradition of ours. I love my family and love not making them feel weird watching mom try to get through her thankful list.

Autumn Wreath

I love the idea of a dried fruit wreath. I saw something in town a few weeks ago and immediately thought hey, I can do that!! Here is what I came up with:


This wreath was so easy to do and it only took about 20 minutes from start to finish. Brilliant plus the supplies cost me 1/4 of what it would have cost to buy it. Here is what I used.



Variety of Dried fruit, I bought oranges and apples at a craft supply store.
Baby Pine Cones
Cinnamon Sticks
Thick Ribbon
Floral Wire

Literally all you do is thread everything onto the floral wire.


Next just pull the two sides of the wire together to the shape you want.

Thats it, easy peasy lemon squeezy as the Brits say here :)

Thanksgiving Turkeys

Yesterday after school the kids were begging me to do two things. First make Tom and Jerry cupcakes and second to do some kind of craft. So we made the cakes and while they were cooking we did a Thanksgiving Craft. I seriously dont have any Thanksgiving decorations so I was excited to get some more stuff done. Here is what we made:



I had some squares cut from 2x4's for a craft I never got around to so we cut a turkey body and feathers out of Foam and just glued it all together.

Here are the supplies we used:



I think they turned out pretty cute. I have lots more ideas lets see if I can get around to making them in time for Thanksgiving :)

Pumpkin Bread

Today at church we had a "Munch and Mingle" I decided to make pumpkin bread. I mean it is nearly October. I think this time of year is all about the pumpkin. Everyone absolutely loved this recipe and was asking for it. So not only for members of my ward who look at this blog but for everyone else out there who would like a really GREAT Pumpkin bread recipe this is for you!

Pumpkin Bread


1 (15oz) can of Pumpkin
4 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2/3 c. water
3 c. Sugar
3 1/2 c. flour
2 tsp Baking Soda
2 tsp Cinnamon
2 tsp Nutmeg
1/2 tsp Ginger
1 tsp ground cloves

Preheat Over to 350F or 175C. Grease and flour three 7x3inch bread pans

In a large bowl mix together the Pumpkin, Eggs, Oil, Water and Sugar until well blended. Sift all the dry ingredients together and then mix with the wet ingredients. Por into pepared bread pans.

Bake for 50 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.


*Note ifyou cant get tins of pumpkin you can make this very simple and you can use pumpkin or butternut squash. Simple boil the flesh of either fruit and mash*

Thanksgiving M&M Turkey Place Markers

Love this idea!! You can also right the names of yours guests on the feet and use as place markers! Click here to get instructions.

Thanksgiving Wreath

So I have been looking for cute Thanksgiving Decorations to make for the house. Living in the UK you cant find anything so everything that I have has to be made. I thought this was adorable and so simple to make. This craft is so easy to make that a child could make it and it looks really cute too.

All you need is:

• Wooden Craft Ring


• Pumpkin and Leaf Foam cut outs. You can either do them yourself or a lot of craft stores will sell them already cut out.


• Glue Gun and Glue sticks

The instructions couldnt be more simple:

Glue the leaves and pumpkins to the Wooden Craft ring in any desired fashion. Thats it... Finished! So simple! This could easily be made in time to hang on the door for Thanksgiving

Pumpkin Centerpiece

I bought a foam pumpkin. Cut a hole in the top and filled with fall silk flowers from the dollar store. easy. cheap. and won't die in a few days ;)

M&M Turkeys

I know this is a bit late but I thought it was a way cute idea for Thanksgiving and maybe someone can use it for next year. I know I will. Anyway its just m&m's wrapped in tuling and tied with raffia. Then orange pipe cleaner for the head just stuck into the tuling to make him look like a turkey. Isnt he cute? And so easy.

Very Cute Thanksgiving Crafts

Two more days to go!! I saw these on bhg.com and thought I'd pass them on (click the name for of the item for more details):

Many Blessings Box

Pumpkin Candle Centerpiece

Pilgrim Place Cards

Corn and Candle Centerpeice

Thanksgiving Tree

I got this from a blog I read, and thought it was so such a nice idea! It's for a Thanksgiving Tree. Here it is copied over from http://conversationswithacupcake.blogspot.com/:

To kick off this season of gratitude,
I hot glue-gunned this
Thankful Tree
with cuttings from our lilac tree
and a few vintage buttons.
(ain't it cute?)
*
As a family, we're writing down our blessings,rolling them up, and tying them to the tree. Come thanksgiving day, we'll gather together and read them one by one.
*
I'm grateful I get to look forward to that.
I think I'll go write it down right now.

Pumpkin Roll Recipe

Every year around this time I am asked a million times to make my Pumpkin Roll. So I thought that I would post the recipe on here. I love this it is such a festive dessert. So Yummy!!

Ingredients:

• 3 Eggs
• 1 cup Sugar
• 2/3 cup Pumpkin
• 1 teaspoon Lemon juice
• 3/4 cup All-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon Baking powder
• 2 teaspoons Cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon Ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon Nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt
• .
• Filling:
• 8 ounces Cream cheese -- softened
• 4 tablespoons Butter -- or margarine
• 1 cup Powdered sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla

Preparation:

in large bowl, combine eggs and sugar, beating well. Add pumpkin and lemon juice, mixing until blended.

In separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, spices and salt. Add to egg mixture, mixing well. Spread batter into greased and waxed-paper lined 10-by-15-inch jelly-roll pan.

Bake at 350 ° for 15 minutes. Remove from oven. Cool for 15 minutes. Place cake on clean tea towel sprinkled liberally with powdered sugar. Cool 10 minutes longer. From 10- inch side, roll cake up in towel. Set aside.

While cake is cooling in towel, prepare filling. Beat together cream cheese and butter; stir in powdered sugar and vanilla and blend until smooth.
Unroll cake. Evenly spread filling over cake. Roll up cake (without the towel). Wrap in plastic wrap. Cover and chill at least 1 hour. Slice before serving. Keep leftover slices refrigerated. This pumpkin roll freezes well.

Sometimes when making this pumpkin roll I will sprinkle walmuts or pecans on top of it before baking the cake. It is really nice with the nuts.

Make Your Own White Chili: Frugal Thanksgiving Leftovers Meal Ideas

Make Your Own White Chili: Frugal Thanksgiving Leftovers Meal Ideas: "White Chili : Thanksgiving Leftovers


This Delicious recipe turns leftover turkey into a delightful,
fragrant dish.


3 cups chicken broth
2 -19 oz cans white kidney beans
1 onion -- chopped
2 garlic cloves -- minced
4 ounces chopped green chiles (canned)
2 teaspoons oregano
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
salt and pepper -- to taste
4 cups cooked turkey

Rinse and drain the beans. Combine all ingredients in a large pot
and simmer gently about 1 hour. Serve in bowls topped with
grated jack cheese"

Thanksgiving Turkeys from Pine Cones

Thanksgiving Decorations are difficult to find. Especially if you are an American Living in England. I try to do what I can to make my house as festive as possible and to teach my children all of our American Traditions. Which is why for the past few weeks I have been looking around trying to find simple and cute crafts for the children to do. I like to do something crafty with them most days after school. I find that it allows their creative side to come out rather than turn the brain to mush by putting them in front of the TV for hours until bed time. Anyway yesterday I found these little Turkeys you can make out of Pine Cones. How cute are they? So today I am off to the store to buy Pine Cones ( I have felt and Pipe cleaners) and once these little turkeys are done they will make a cute decoration for my mantle piece. They look really simple and pretty self explanitory as to how to make them.

Thanksgiving Table Cloth

Every year I ask my children on Thanksgiving day what they are most Thankful for. This is my daughters 4th Thanksgiving and do you think I can remember what she said last year or the year before? Nope. So this year I have decided to do something new. I bought a White Bed Sheet and have laid it across the dining room table. I have also put some fabric markers where my daughter can reach them. Now that she is writing words herself I have told her that every time she thinks of something she is thankful for I want her to write it on the "Tablecloth". I am them going to keep this Tablecloth as a momento for Thanksgiving in 2008. I am going to do this for now on with the hopes that as they get older I can look back on the things they were thankful for at each age. Plus I will have something with their drawings and writing on for that year as well. I hope that someone else finds this idea useful and fun. My little girl loves it and my son (18 months) loves to just doodle!