Kids Night In Box: Give Thanks

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Thanksgiving is one of my favorite times of year.  I think sometimes we think of Thanksgiving as one day, but I like to try and celebrate it the same way we do Christmas–all month long.  In reference to the fact that Thanksgiving comes before Christmas, a friend said something the other day that stuck with me: “We give thanks first to prepare our hearts for giving.”  Teaching my kids to recognize and be thankful for what they have is an important and ongoing lesson my husband and I are trying to help our kids learn and this month’s Kids Night In Box was a great tool.

This post contains affiliate links which means if you click on a link and make a purchase, I will receive a small commission at no additional cost to you.  Thank you for your support!

This month’s Kids Night In Box was all about giving thanks.  We started off by reading Thanks from The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle.  It’s a really cute little book and I loved that the things mentioned in it weren’t your typical gratitude list, such as “Thanks for encouraging me to be a good friend, to sing my own song, and to always reach for the stars.”  Two of my kids favorite books growing up have been The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Brown Bear, Brown Bear so it makes me happy to add another Eric Carle book to our collection.

Next we did an activity called Gratitude Hands, where we talked about people in our lives that we’re thankful for.  It was sweet to hear my kids say they were thankful for each other, as well as the other people who are in their lives, such as teachers and friends.

The snack that came included in our Kids Night In Box was also an activity of sorts.  We melted some vanilla candy wafers and drizzled it over the top of pretzels and then sprinkled them with sprinkles.  After the wafers had set, we put the pretzels into a sandwich bag and used the included clothespin to cinch the middle of the bag up to make a butterfly.  My daughter wanted to take the bag of treats to her teacher so we made another batch for the kids to eat.

Last we had a little art project using crayons and watercolors.  The kids made different patterns inside of a leaf shape using the crayons and then painted with the watercolors on top which created a crayon resistant effect.   My kids love any project that allows them to color, draw or paint so this was right up their alley.

Something I love about the Kids Night In Boxes is that the entire box only takes about an hour to do.  It’s a perfect amount of time because it keeps their attention, plus it’s a great way to spend time with my kids learning something new, laughing together and making memories.

If you’d like to try your own Kids Night In Box for your own kids, grandkids or friends, you can sign up HERE!  (You can also see previous examples of Kids Night In Boxes we’ve received HERE.)  As an added bonus, you can get 15% off all subscriptions plans (up to $75 value) until December 24, 2018 using the code NIBWINTER.  This would make a great gift for kids or grandkids as you start doing your Christmas shopping!