On Thanksgiving, we reflect back on what we have and what we are thankful for. Three years ago, our family started the Thanksgiving tradition of the Thankful pumpkin. The thankful pumpkin instills gratitude, family, and togetherness. Make this be the year you start this amazing tradition with your family.
Thankful pumpkin
We start our thankful pumpkin, a Thanksgiving family tradition, on November 1st and continue through Thanksgiving Day.
Every morning at breakfast or dinner, depending on our schedule, we pass our thankful pumpkin around the table, name something we are thankful for, and write it on the pumpkin.
By the end of the month, our pumpkin is full of words or phrases from each family member.
On Thanksgiving Day, we take turns reading the pumpkin and discussing everything we are thankful for.
My children look forward to our Thankful pumpkin every day. They are so excited to write on the pumpkin.
Picking your thankful pumpkin
My children love to use a real pumpkin for our thankful pumpkin. While pumpkin picking by Halloween,We pick a medium-sized pumpkin to use as our thankful pumpkin.
I keep this pumpkin inside as part of my fall decor. The day after Halloween, I move it to the middle of our kitchen table.
Last year at Walmart, I found a thankful pumpkin decoration that I pushed into the pumpkin.
I washed and kept it, and it worked great again this year.
You can also use a fake carving pumpkin. You can find them at Michael’s, Wal-Mart, or Amazon. The nice thing about using a fake pumpkin is that you can keep it year after year; it’s a nice keepsake. In fact, I may use a fake one next year.
Where to keep your pumpkin
We keep our thankful pumpkin at the kitchen table. I think it looks nice as a table centerpiece.
It also forces us to sit at the table as a family at least once daily.
My children love this family tradition so much that even on our busiest days, they remind me to sit and eat at the table to write on our pumpkin.
Instilling gratitude
Studies have shown that children who are taught gratitude grow up to be happier adults and more satisfied in their lives. I’m a big believer in this. I teach my children to be thankful for everything they have and not to take anything for granted, especially their health. I tell my children that they have so much to be thankful for they have a home, food to eat and are in good health everything else is extra.
Thanksgiving blessings
Thanksgiving is all about being grateful for what we have. Cherish every moment with loved ones, take the adventure, have experiences, and create memories every day. The thankful pumpkin family tradition reminds us of that every day. Start yours today.
