Pine-cone Turkey!

Turkey in the oven, roasting away!  The smell is everywhere on Thanksgiving Day!  Little one’s are waiting for their turkey dinner delight!  If you can keep them busy it will make for a peaceful Thanksgiving Night!  Let’s keep out little one’s busy this thanksgiving with a fun craft!  Sorry spouses but I’m going to put instructions to DVR the game for this one! 

Start by bundling the kids and spouses, set the DVR, hand them some bags and head them out the door to find pinecones!  Fill the bag even though you’re only going to need a few for this craft. (HINT: I will be talking about making scented pinecones next month, so you will use the rest of what is gathered then!)  While they are gone enjoy the cooking peace and set out the supplies.

You need:

Googly eyes (or paint for eyes)

Construction paper or card stock paper

Feathers or card stock paper cut into a feather oval shape

Glue

Hot glue

Pipe cleaner

Start by sliding in the pinecones to your oven for a few minutes to kill any bugs!  Not too long at this heat or they will burn and catch on fire.  Normally you go for 10-15 min at 200 for a reference.  Allow to cool while your little ones help stir something. 

Next, show them how to dip the feathers into the glue then push them into the pinecone ridges!  Cut a turkey head shape into the construction paper and have them glue on the eyes.  Then cut a slit on the end of the turkey neck and have them glue on their turkey head.  Take a pipe cleaner and cut about 1 ½ to 2 inches off twice.  Bend the pipe cleaner in half, have them twist the 1 ½ in parts on either end of the pipe cleaner and glue and press into a cone fold for the turkey feet. 

Lastly, if you with hot glue everything for security and set to dry!  Your kids can make them to sit on plates for assigned seats at the table by writing people’s names on the neck of the turkey or just for decoration around the house or the food on the table! 

 You are all set to eat now!  Simple, easy, and keeps kids busy while you cook!  Added bonus each guest can take one home as a special one of a kind Thanksgiving gift if you make them for place holders! 

To close, we all have things to be thankful for and you can write them on the neck as well!  It’s easy to say I’m thankful one day out of the year and forget what you said the year before creating memories adds to what you have to be thankful for and recording it in some way let’s you literally gather your thanks from year to year!  In the end you may find yourself with more thanks then you realized you ever had!

Abby