You probably know our little Thanksgiving tradition of filling a homemade “Thanks Jar” with gratitude notes throughout November. We meant to keep it going this year, but a book tour kept us away for most of the month and it slipped our minds. So this weekend we decided to sneak the tradition in at the buzzer — with a fresh twist using our new chalkboard.
The word art at the top of the board was a team effort. Sherry searched for pretty script examples and recreated the word “thanks,” adding curlicues and flourishes. I filled in color accents and added “Give” and “2012” in my rough “man font.” It turned out better than we expected.
I love doodling letters and experimenting with fonts, but using chalk was almost a confrontation for me. The sound, the scrape, the potential screech — it gives me the heebie-jeebies. It didn’t bother Sherry or Clara, so maybe it’s just my own weirdness. Still, working on this project felt like small therapy for my chalk-phobia. It wasn’t as bad as I feared, and now I can add “chalk use” to my list of survived things.
Soon after finishing the lettering we started writing down things we’re thankful for. With about $10 in Target magnets and some cut-up cardstock, our “Thanks Board” filled up quickly throughout the day.
Those cute round wooden magnets with painted stripes? A friend named Megan made them and gave them to us at a signing. She used small wood disks, tape, paint, and glued magnets to the back. We adore them — they’re our favorites.
We wrote our thankful notes on paper cards for two reasons: first, we plan to store them in our thanks jar along with notes from past years; second, it let me avoid writing on the chalkboard more than necessary. Baby steps.
We even involved Clara for the first time. Explaining “gratitude” to a 2.5-year-old was a challenge — we told her to think of people or things that make her happy — but she came up with some sweet answers. When she said, “Mommy and Daddy make me happy,” our hearts melted. Other picks included a balloon, the bookstore, and Bridget’s party — Bridget is the neighbor who rents a moon bounce and has become a local favorite.
Here’s a selection of the cards we wrote. To make Clara’s notes easy to spot, we let her color them with crayons. For example, I wrote that I’m thankful for Skype (very useful recently), while Clara’s card celebrated Bridget’s party with cheerful scribbles.
Clara got distracted before we finished, so she’s the one who’s thankful for Play-Doh cookie cutters — not me. We kept things light and fun, letting her add her own colorful touches to the cards.
A quick safety note: kids and magnets can be dangerous. We had a firm talk with Clara about not treating magnets like toys or food. She seemed to understand and later explained to Burger that he could “look but not touch” because they’re not edible. After taking the photos, we moved the smaller magnets out of her reach and used larger, non-swallowable ones at child level to be extra safe.
We’re glad we made time for this little tradition again. Writing down what we appreciate is satisfying, even when the list includes simple comforts like a good TV show to escape into. Yes — Dexter earned a spot on the board.
We left plenty of space at the bottom of the board for Ms. Chalks-A-Lot to add her own drawings.
She clearly did not inherit her father’s aversion to chalk.
We hope everyone celebrating Thanksgiving this week enjoys good food, safe travels, warm company, and many reasons to be grateful. And the same warm wishes go to those who aren’t observing the holiday.
Oh Burger, you slay me. Happy face-stuffing to one and all!
Looking for more Thanksgiving traditions? Here are a few ideas to explore:
- A free Thanksgiving printable to mail messages of gratitude to friends and family
- A DIY glass-etched Thanks Jar project
- Our daughter’s first year writing Thanks Jar messages
Update: we’ve rounded up favorite holiday decor finds, many under $15.