Providing Thanksgiving Entertainment Ideas for Kids

Don't you always feel like finding some place to sit down and relax after munching down all that Thanksgiving food? It's usually the couch or a comfy recliner for me. If you have kids though, relaxing may be out of the question unless you find something to occupy their eager little minds. Here are a few ideas to keep them busy so you can put your feet up for awhile.

1. Create a packet of printables. There are droves of sites that offer free Thanksgiving printables including games, pictures, word searches etc
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2. Pre-organize a Turkey Hunt. Hide a stuffed animal turkey or some other prize outside. Write some clue on index cards. As they figure out the answer to each clue it will lead them to the next one until they finally find the turkey.

3. Organize a scavenger hunt. Make a list of things for them to find. A pinecone, an acorn, an oak leaf etc. Team them up and off they go.

4. Have them write their very own Thanksgiving story. They can choose the plot, the characters and make the ending turn out however they want.

5. Get together some assorted crafting supplies and let them create their own unique crafts.

6. Pick up a couple of jigsaw puzzles appropriate for their age group.

7. Assorted board games are always a hit. Just be sure they are age appropriate and don't require adult supervision. Games like Jenga, Monopoly or Teen-Trivial Pursuit are good choices for the older kids.

8. Let them make scarecrows to decorate the yard with. Gather up some old clothes of different sizes textures and colors, give them a couple of rakes and set them loose.

9. Let them create a personalized Thanksgiving banner. If you have a roll of wallpaper lying around that works great. Cut off a long piece. Place it on the floor or the table. Give them a bunch of markers, pencils, stencil, stickers and whatever else you can find. They'll have loads of fun, and you can even roll it up and save it to hang up next Thanksgiving.

10. Pick up a few age appropriate movies for them to watch.

Keeping the kid entertained on Thanksgiving doesn't require a whole bunch of effort on your part. Stimulate their inquisitive, imaginative, thirsty minds with these fun activities and games. Then head for the couch and relax a little before the second round of eating begins. (There's always a second round!)