How Many Days Until Thanksgiving

Our family has a tradition of gathering around the table and taking turns saying what we’re thankful for before our Thanksgiving meal. As meaningful as that is, I really wanted to teach my children how to take that lip-service a step further and put those words into action! So when I found these family Thanksgiving countdowns that do BOTH, I knew I had to share them with all of you! Not to mention, they are physical reminders of how many days we have until Thanksgiving. My kids LOVED following them along each day! I’m sure you’re ready to see how each countdown is unique. So lets check these out! First up is…

Deeds of Gratitude Thanksgiving Countdown

Deeds of Gratitude is a beautiful set of decorative leaves strung on to twine that displays your celebration of the gratitude season. It’s also a Thanksgiving activity for your family that inspires positive action for all the blessings in your life! Above all, it helps you count how many days until Thanksgiving! AKA it’s SUPER kid friendly!

There’s so much to love about this Thanksgiving countdown! I especially love the colorful leaves, how you can reuse them year after year, and of course the simplistic design!

Deeds of Gratitude Thanksgiving Countdown Set

This adorable and functional activity and countdown comes with:

18 wooden leaf patterns finished with a colorful and durable surface. 1 white chalk marker to write your blessings and acts on the leaves. {The chalk marker can be wiped clean from the leaves for reuse year after year.} A ball of twine to use in a variety of ways to display the leaves.

How the Days Till Thanksgiving Countdown Works

Consider starting this activity around the beginning of November if you’re looking to conclude on or around Thanksgiving Day. If you have another plans, find a time frame of about 18 days that works for your family. Each day or so, come together as a family and write something you are grateful for on one side of a leaf (using the provided white chalk marker.) Next, choose an action or service project that will demonstrate your gratitude for that blessing. Write it on the opposite side of the leaf. After you complete the action or service, hang the leaf on display. {You can string them as a garland, arrange them inside a clothespin frame, or hang them on a “gratitude tree.”} Countdown until Thanksgiving with your completed leaves!

As you do this activity, you’ll be discussing all the big and small things you are grateful for as a family. Then, together you’ll brainstorm ways in which you can show gratitude for those blessings. For example, you can show gratitude for food by helping to prepare a meal or sharing a treat with a neighbor. Another idea is to encourage eating dinner without complaint, volunteering at a soup kitchen, or donating to a food bank. No act of gratitude is too big or small. So get the kids involved sharing their thoughts and ideas and pick one to do together as a family!

Countdown to Thanksgiving and Decoration

One of the things I love MOST about this meaningful family activity is that it also doubles as darling fall decor! You can hang the blank leaves on your mantel as early as the leaves outside start to turn yellow. At that point, we recommend waiting until after Halloween to start the actual activity as you countdown to Thanksgiving.

I just love how simple, fun, and meaningful it is! It’s such a great way to create memories and teach your children valuable life lessons at the same time. {What mom doesn’t love that?!} And because the chalk marker wipes clean, it’s a Thanksgiving tradition AND countdown you can do with your family year after year. After showing you all these amazing features of this Thanksgiving countdown, I know you’re going to want to get your hands on it! You can grab your Deeds of Gratitude Thanksgiving Activity and Countdown HERE! However, if DIY is more your style, you’re going to LOVE this DIY Thanksgiving Countdown Banner even more!

While eating a delicious meal and being surrounded by family is SO important to me, I also LOVE adorable holiday decor. This next Thanksgiving countdown banner is just that! PLUS it truly serves a dual purpose by providing daily acts of kindness ideas for your family to do in each little “pocket” of the banner. This banner was intended to help you countdown the days till Thanksgiving. It includes 26 different acts of kindness, so its perfect for using all month long! Courtney, of All Things Bright And Beautiful, helped me make this a reality by doing ALL the incredible design work! Don’t you just love the ‘woodlands’ feel she put together?

Putting the banner together is SUPER easy, but it does take some time. After you download your DIY Thanksgiving banner below, set aside some time to prep it. Here are a few tips that should make it easier for you!

Print your banner off on card stock through a professional printing company. We recommend Office Max, Staples, or Fed Ex Print & Copy. This will save your personal printer ink and help your banner last MUCH longer. Use a paper cutter instead of scissors to make all the cuts {there’s LOTS of cutting!} Gather some additional craft supplies to make your banner. You will need a glue stick, hole punch, scissors for detail cutting, and twine {or anything else you want to use to string your banner from} Follow the instructions below for EACH banner pocket to make sure they come out perfect!

Each page of this DIY Thanksgiving banner contains a pocket printable along with an act of kindness card. The kindness cards conveniently go inside each letter “pocket.” In order for your pockets to assemble correctly, you will want to make sure there are 3 tabs surrounding the design side of the pocket {in the case below, it’s the letter R}. You will want to carefully cut these tabs out with scissors to make sure they fold flat. Each tab then gets folded under and glued to the back {the white half of the pocket}.

Then, cut the notch out of the top {using your scissors again}. Finally, using a hole punch, punch two holes in the upper BACK of the pocket about this far apart. {NOTE: the distance doesn’t have to be exact because once you fold the pocket the holes will not show. They are only there to string your banner up!} Check out another look of this when it’s all cut out and with a few pockets already strung.

Once you have all your pockets cut out, you can place each act of kindness card inside the correct pocket. Cut an appropriate length of string, string each letter up, and TA-DA! Your banner is complete! {See, that wasn’t bad at all, was it? ;)}

How to Use Your Days Till Thanksgiving Countdown

At the beginning of November {or whenever you start your countdown!} pull out an act of kindness card from your countdown and enjoy a fun and meaningful activity together as a family!

Some of the days also suggest ideas or added printables you can download from our site. To make finding those easier, follow these links on the given days!

9th Day: Make Turkey Treat Bags and give them to a loved one or friend using THIS Thanksgiving Prep date. 18th Day: Print off THESE Thanksgiving Photo Booth Props and have a family photoshoot! 22nd Day: Bake something pumpkin flavored as a family. THIS list of has a TON of pumpkin recipes!

Showing gratitude and expressing appreciation for our MANY blessings by serving others is what Thanksgiving is ALL about! We hope either (or both!) of these Thanksgiving countdown traditions add more fun and meaning to your holiday season! By the way, if you’re in need of even MORE ideas for making Thanksgiving meaningful, check out THIS incredible lists of Thanksgiving traditions. And when your feast is all over, consider using some ideas from THIS list to repurpose your leftovers! Happy Thanksgiving!

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