Turkey Hats and Thanksgiving

Yesterday was our bi-weekly family learning co-op. Unfortunately two families were coping with illness, including the family who was set to host and co-lead with me. So at the last minute I was hosting and leading solo! After spending the morning out at an appointment, I rushed to pick up Daniel from the sitter and arrived home to evaluate the situation. Luckily, my husband was working from home and I recruited him to help me for a half hour. We moved into our home when my son was 1 1/2, so while the house is generally kid friendly it is not babyproof. We did a quick pick up of the obviously offending and tempting items - pets water bowls, art supplies - and did a quick sweep of the floors and got the dishes done.

For our fun craft, we constructed Turkey Hats. In advance of the kids arriving I made patterns for each piece and prepped supplies. This worked out well. If I were to do this again with this age group (3 year olds) I would actually cut out the pieces and creat "craft bags" for each child with the pieces ready to assemble. They were not engaged with tracing the patterns and weren't skilled enough with scissors to do the cutting on their own. They were generally antsy and looking forward to the pasting and assembling part. The glitter glue was a big hit, however I would wait next time until we were ready to used it rather than putting it on the table with the general supplies at the beginning. The kids were all anxious to use it through the time we were cutting out the pieces, resulting in some mild discontent and impatience. I substituted googly eyes for the pom poms. The hats were a big hit. The kids loved the assembly part and looked so cute wearing them!

Once the hats were done, taking about 1 hour to complete, we had brownies and apple juice and read three stories on the theme of Thanksgiving and feasts. Giving Thanks: A Native American Good Morning Message by Chief Jake Swamp and illustrated by Erwin Printup, Jr was wonderful. "To be a human being is an honor, and we offer thanksgiving for all the gifts of life." The illustrations, vivid landscapes, fueled imagination and wonder. It is a beautiful expression of gratitude and celebration of beauty and the environment. I highly recommend it. We got it from our local library.

Two hours flew by and 4pm came. Time for everyone to head home. Daniel was sad to see them go. This marked one of the first times he'd had friends over to visit. We usually go to visit others as we have a small common space - only 400 ft2 for a kitchen and living room! Also, our friends all have more than one child, so it is usually easier if we go to visit them. I was very proud with how well he was sharing his toys with the others and how he was eagerly introducing them to some of his favorites. His genune desire to share was very touching. He asked me to invite them back really soon.