Gratitude Trees

One of my favorite bloggers & photographers is Erin Wallace over at www.bluebirdbaby.typepad.com. Her recent blog inspired me to "on the fly" pull together a fun crafty activity for the kid's first day off. Our fun craft were "Gratitude Trees."

First, we used watercolor & painted a few pages of watercolor paper. Blending colors & seeing who could make the brightest sheet was great. Next, we let the watercolor dry & then cut out leaves for the tree. I didnt use a template, just freehanded small leaves. Then, I ventured out & grabbed a few branches from the backyard & our trees were on their way to becoming our sweet little gratitude trees.

It was fun to see what the kids came up with for their leaves & we left a whole bowl full of empty leaves to add throughout the rest of the year. We used a hole punch & tied some of the leaves onto our trees & Jack liked to just hang his directly onto the branches. Some of the best leaves that made me smile,...i'm thankful for my long hair, my violin, clean water. ..

Now our gratitude trees are sitting pretty by the front door, greeting our friends & family. We are so proud of them & it was a fun, easy craft. Thanks Erin. Happy Thanksgiving.