Leaf Placemats for Thanksgiving

Last week, we had some friends over for a playdate. We  had a blast making these fun Fall themed placemats. We decided to add some cute handprint turkeys to them to make them perfect for Thanksgiving. These were fun and easy to make. The kids loved going outside and searching for leaves to add to their placemat. 

 

 

To make these, you need 2 pieces of clear contact paper cut to the size of a placemat. I picked up rolls of contact paper from the Dollar Tree, I got 2 placemats (4 pieces) from each roll.  Take the paper backing off of 1 piece of contact paper and lay it sticky side up on your work space.

Place your leaves and handprint turkey wherever you like onto the sticky side of contact paper.
*I chose to cut out our handprint turkey, some didn't.

 

 

Once everything is in place, put the second sheet of contact paper on top of the first one. I found the easiest way to do this is to take the paper off as you go-- Remove the paper about an inch or two and stick that to the bottom sheet. Then, repeat with a few more inches. Continue to repeat until you are done.

 

 

Smooth the contact paper out to make sure it sticks and then trim the ends with scissors so that they are even. 

 

 

There you have it, a wonderful kid-made placemat for your child to use and show-off  on Thanksgiving!

My son is loving his, he cannot wait to show it to his Grandma & Poppie on Thanksgiving!

 

I plan on making these with the kids again next year, I think I may do them a little earlier so that we can highlight all of the beautiful colors of Fall. Here in PA, the leaves are mostly brown by the time November rolls around.

Pumpkin Pancakes

I made Pumpkin Pancakes for our Pumpkin Potluck the other night. I love adding fruits and vegetables to dishes that are not normally real nutritious, which is one of the reasons why I love this potluck. I love it for other reasons too-- I LOVE pumpkin and I love to experiment and try new recipes and concoctions.  I figured that pancakes are very kid friendly, so Pumpkin Pancakes would be a great way to introduce the kids to pumpkin. The pancakes were delicious and big hit with the kids (and the mom's). The pumpkin taste is just right, not overpowering or overwhelming.

I will be making these again Thanksgiving morning.

 

Pumpkin Pancakes

Ingredients

• 1 cup pumpkin puree (I use canned)
• 1 3/4 cups milk
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Instructions

In a large bowl, combine the milk, pumpkin, egg, and oil. In another bowl, mix together the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and spices. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Stir until combined, do not over mix.

 

Heat a lightly greased griddle or skillet over medium-high heat. Pour batter into small circles on the pan and allow each pancake to cook for 1-2 minutes per side, or until golden brown on each side. Serve the pancakes warm with maple syrup.

 

A Hay Playdate!!

We had so much fun with our friends and a bail of hay! We cut the bail open at let the kids have at it!

They had a blast throwing it at each other and rolling around in it!

 

HAY + FRIENDS = HOURS OF FUN!!

 

 

After we finished playing, we made our very own scarecrow out of the hay and an old  pair of pajamas. We set it up in front of our house and my little guy loves it! He is so proud of the scarecrow that he made and happy that he's not too scary!

 

This was a lot of fun! It is a great activity for Fall, Halloween, or even a farm unit!