Pre-soccer, Sofa Fun, Thanksgiving Cards, Dancing, and Marshmallow Turkeys

Here are ideas for your activity times today.

Story Time: This week, head to the library and get some books on Thanksgiving.

Music Time: See what kind of music makes your kid dance. Turn on the radio and cruise through the stations, stopping on the different kinds of music. When your little one starts dancing to one, leave it there and dance with them. You might be surprised by what gets your kid grooving. (I did this experiment with the music stations on cable. It turns out my two year old loves jazz!)

Indoor Time: Sofa fun. Pull the cushions off your family room couch and pile them up on the floor. Let the kids climb on them, fall on them, build with them. You can also build them up on the sofa to create a fort. Stand one up on end and lay another across the top to the back of the sofa. (Don't have removable cushions? Gather up all the pillows in your house and make a big pillow pile for the kids to play in)

Outdoor Time: Pre-soccer. Get a ball and kick it around with your kids. Set up a "goal" such as a tree or bush and take turns kicking the ball to the goal.


Art Time: Make Thanksgiving cards to send to family or friends. Cut a piece of construction paper in half, then fold in half. Glue on a holiday picture. (hint: make a copy in black and white from one of the kid books you checked out from the library) Write your greetings inside and let your kids color the picture on the front of the card.

Craft Time: Marshmallow Turkey
1. Cut a toothpick in half. Use the toothpick to hold together two large marshmallows - the tail piece and the body piece. Use the other half to attach a large marshmallow for the head to the body.
2. Skewer two gumdrops on a toothpick and cut off the end of the toothpick so it isn't too long to poke into the marshmallow. Make 3 sections with 2 gumdrops. Make two sections with only one gumdrop. (cut a toothpick in half and use one gumdrop on each half) Poke all the gumdrop tail feathers into the tail piece marshmallow.
3. Cut off a little piece of gumdrop, cut in half, and stick onto the face for eyes. Cut a gumdrop in half, then cut one half in half again. These two pieces get stuck on the head as the beak. Another gumdrop cut in half becomes feet. We didn't do wings, but you could certainly slice up some more gumdrops to create wings.
There you have it. Not the prettiest Turkey, but definitely the most fun for your kids to make!

Did you have a memorable moment while doing one of these activities with your kids? Please share it with us!