Involving the Kids: Shopping and Cooking Together

My most memorable Thanksgiving came a few years ago when I decided to have a children’s Thanksgiving. Not having any children of my own, I called my brother who has seven and asked if they would like to have a Thanksgiving prepared by their children. The answer was a resounding yes, and his wife gave a big sigh of relief.

Making Pumpkin Pie the Night Before

I picked up all seven children a few days before Thanksgiving and took them shopping at the grocery store. Everyone helped select the groceries for a very basic, simple meal of turkey, dressing, rolls, cranberries, potatoes, peas and pumpkin pie.We baked the pies the night before Thanksgiving. I used a pre-made crust to make it easier for the children. As the older children read the recipe and put the ingredients into a large bowl, the younger children each had forks to stir with. This presented an interesting event of dropping forks into the pie mixture and a little spilling on the shirtsleeves and floor, but the fun was worth it all. I figured at 450 degrees there couldn’t be many germs left.

Turkey Prep: A Hands-On Experience for Kids

Thanksgiving morning we all gathered around the turkey I had washed and showed them how to tuck the wings under the body. Each child greased their hands, and boy did that turkey get a good rub down. I decided to do the dressing on the top of the stove so it wouldn’t take as long to cook the turkey.

Fun and Creative Thanksgiving Favors

After all that work, we went out on their patio to make a fun place-card favor. I got a bag of rock salt and gave each child a surgical glove. They filled the glove with rock salt and tied a knot in the glove to close it. Now the glove resembles a turkey.
The children used marker pens to draw the feathers on the four fingers and on the thumb they drew eyes and the red wattle. The children were so eager to make this the best time for everyone and having created a favor for the table made it even more delightful.

Preparing the Rest of the Meal and Setting the Table

While the turkey was cooking and with the favors completed, we proceeded to prepare the rest of the meal. Each child was assigned to help with a different part of the meal and setting the table properly. As we prepared the potatoes and gravy, I was cautious in having the children at the stove. This was important to see that they were supervised by me so there was no danger of burning themselves.

Never before has Thanksgiving been so fun for me, and the children’s mother never had such a relaxing Thanksgiving day for herself. It was truly a treat to watch her as she was served a meal prepared by her children. Try this idea in your family this year by involving the children. You could talk about the true meaning of Thanksgiving and how it all came about and how we can all be more appreciative of the bounties of life we enjoy. What a great learning experience this could be as well as a time when you build memories that will last for years.

As we sat around the table with those seven children, seeing how excited and proud they were of their accomplishment, I gave a prayer of gratitude for this wonderful experience we had together and for the blessing of having food on our table prepared by those special young people.