I choose writing over crafting and decorating almost every time. Except for when my grandkids request a crafternoon or remind me that __________________________ (fill in the upcoming holiday here) is coming and we need to decorate.
Then off I go to Hobby Lobby or Michael’s in search of craft projects that are 1) simple, 2) related to the upcoming holiday, and 3) don’t use glitter. Before each shopping trip I ask Hiram to get down the box(es) of decorations related to the holiday, if such a box exists. That’s a big if.*
My pre-Thanksgiving 2025 foray to Hobby Lobby hit the motherlode, which consisted of 2 crafts that met all three of my requirements. I brought home the loot, dropped it off with Hiram and the grands, and left on a final errand. By the time I got back the pumpkin project––which everyone agreed was hardly a craft at all as it consisted slotting together each pumpkin’s 2 pieces without cutting or gluing them––and were finishing the last of 6 turkey puppets. The first 4 puppets the kids made came out like this:
At that point their interest waned, they tossed out the instructions and made these:••
Then they turned the remaining feathers into this:***
Today, after spending 6 days recovering from the energy I had expended to avoid doing the actual crafts, I decorated the living and dining rooms for Thanksgiving with the fruits of their labors. Now I’m going to bed to rest. It will take from now until the Sunday after Thanksgiving for me to build up enough energy to shop for Christmas crafts and decorate the tree, not to mention determining why my grandchildren enjoy doing both.
Sometimes I wonder if their DNA contains any of mine.
*As of this writing, we have 1 small box containing Halloween and Thanksgiving decorations, many boxes of Christmas decorations, and no others. Like the title of this post states, decorating is not my thing.
••I just realized that the puppet on the right is upside down. That’s what comes of using feet for eyes, kids!
***Is it just me or does it look like a weird cyclops flower to you as well?
