DIY – Thankful Tree for Thanksgiving

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I have a wonderful DIY Thanksgiving idea to share with you today, but an even better story to share with you all!  This Thanksgiving is going to be very special, and I can’t wait to tell you why!  But first and foremost, can we talk about this lovely tree that I made?  I call it the thankful tree, and it is so simple that pretty much anyone can make one of their own.  I am going to show you step by step how you can make one for your family, and I am going to tell you about the very special Thanksgiving we are all looking forward to this year.  Doesn’t it look lovely surrounded by all of the beautiful Fall foliage in our back yard?

Of course, the tree isn’t staying out on our back deck.  I made my husband carry it out there because I thought it would look so pretty with our changing tree in the background.  It will be placed on our dining room table for Thanksgiving.  We all know what Thanksgiving is all about, right?  We learned about it in school, and we celebrate it each year.  It is a time to spend with family and close friends, and a time to be thankful for all that we have.  And I certainly am so thankful for my three healthy children, a loving husband and wonderful family and friends.

I always host Thanksgiving dinner, but this year is going to be a little different at our house for Thanksgiving, because we are going to be hosting two guests who may not know what Thanksgiving is all about.  One of them is from Sweden and one is from Australia!  Exciting, yes?!?!  If you are new here, you may not know that two years ago, we hosted a foreign exchange student from Sweden, and we fell in love with her.  We loved sharing our holiday traditions, and she truly loved Thanksgiving and all that went with it.

Are you wondering where I am going with this?  Well, over the summer, our daughter Delaney visited her for three weeks.  And it just so happens that she met a Swedish boy who she really hit it off with.  As a matter of fact she would say she fell in love with, but that is a 19 year old speaking.  Ever since then there has not been a day that they have not spoken, and he just so happens to be attending college and playing soccer in New Jersey.  she just visited him for 4 days this past weekend and reportedly had the time of her life.  And since he doesn’t really have anywhere to go over Thanksgiving Break, we have invited him to spend it with us, and he is bringing along one of his roommates from Australia!  We can’t wait to meet this boy she is so smitten with.  Who am I to stand in the way of love, after all?  And of course, we are also super excited to meet a boy from Australia!

So I thought this Thankful tree would be just one way that we could show these international college students just what Thanksgiving is all about.  I am sure we will come up with some other fun ideas for them as well, but for today, let’s stick with this one.  Are you ready to find out exactly how you can make a Thankful Tree of your own?  It is a wonderful tradition that you can start with your family, and that kids will enjoy year after year.

Chalkboard spray paint

Jute twine

Hot glue gun (or a drill to make holes in the discs, I went the lazy route)

Chalk marker

A large vase to stick the branches in ( I already had mine)

Unfinished wooden craft discs (I used 3 inch ones)

Branches- I just so happened to find a pile of branches sitting there at our local park when I was picking up my son one day, and I took a few to use for my craft.

This is pretty elementary.  I bought the unfinished wooden discs at a local craft store.  I am  not going to lie, I wanted to buy small wood slices, but my local craft store didn’t have them.  So I settled for the discs, but would like this project even better with wood slices.  So I started by spray painting both sides of the discs with black chalkboard paint- two coats.  After the paint was dry, I seasoned both sides of the discs by using the side of a piece of chalk all over it and wiping it off with a paper towel.  Next I got busy hot gluing the jute twine to the discs.

If I were more energetic, I would have drilled small holes in them and tied the jute, but I took the lazy girls route and hot glued them.  I cut the jute the same length for each, and put a small dab of hot glue right at the top on both sides of the disc, and used a metal spoon to glue the jute to the disc (don’t burn yourself!).  So it kind of looks like I had drilled a hole, but not really.

Once the jute is attached and dried onto the discs, you can start writing things you are thankful for on each disc.  What I plan to do is place the discs in a small bowl or basket, and put the chalk marker with them, and let each family member write the things they are thankful for and hang theirs up on the tree.  Don’t forget, these are double sided, so you can write something different on each side.  And of course, our international guests will get to write on some too!

Let’s talk for just a few minutes about preparing for guests who will staying with you.  Obviously, I will have to get the house sparkling clean for our guests. The three most important places I will be focusing on is the bedroom where they will be sleeping, the bathroom they will be using, and the kitchen.  The number one place that I feel should be absolutely sparkling clean is their bathroom, would you agree?  No one wants to use a nasty bathroom, and I would be so embarrassed if it weren’t up to par, so I want to give them a clean place to shower and change.  Some of my favorite products to help me get my guest bathroom up to par are Windex® and Scrubbing Bubbles®.  Did you know that you can use Windex® on more than just glass and mirrors?  You can also use it on sealed granite, sealed marble, and stainless steel too!  Just spray it on and wipe it off- pretty simple!

I grew up using these products, and over the years I have tried different things, but I have always come back to these.  The Disinfectant Scrubbing Bubbles®-Bathroom Cleaner that you see pictured above cannot be beat when it comes to getting all of your bathroom surfaces sparkling clean.  Make sure to shake the can before and during use and spray the foam 6-8 inches from the surface.  Let it sit for a few minutes, and wipe everything down with a clean wet rag. The foaming action easily removes soap scum, hard water stains, and dirt, and it kills 99.9% of common viruses and bacteria*.

I use Scrubbing Bubbles® to clean every surface in my bathroom, and I always use the Scrubbing Bubbles®- Toilet Cleaning Gel in my toilet.  It is a gel disc that sits just under the rim adheres of the toilet bowl, just under the rim.  It gradually dissolves with each flush, allowing a controlled release of cleaning solution and fragrance. Each disc lasts up to seven days, for a 24/7 continuous clean. It keeps your bowl from having to be scrubbed out as often, which is a win win for this busy mother of three.

 

These products are my go to products for getting my bathroom ready for guests.  Do you have any great tips you would like to share for getting your home ready for guests?  If so, I would love for you to share away in the comments!  I love to shop at Walmart for all of my cleaning supplies, and you will find both Scrubbing Bubbles® and Windex® in the aisle where you find all of the bathroom cleaning supplies.  I always find everything I need to keep my house sparkling clean at Walmart!Walmart is offering $5 off of at their photo center if you purchase 3 qualifying SC Johnson products between 10/15/15 and 12/31/15, you can read more about that here.