Simple Thanksgiving Kids Table

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Kid Friendly Thanksgiving Tablescape

Kids friendly thanksgiving tablescape

Alert. Thanksgiving is TWO weeks away which means I’m already behind. Good news is that we’re planning a quiet family Thanksgiving so I don’t need to worry about planning a fancy menu or making room for house guests. But I still wanted to set a fun, kid friendly, festive table for the holiday!

setting a thanksgiving table for kids setting a thanksgiving table for kids

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enjoying a thanksgiving kids table

The first thing you’ll notice is that I set our everyday table in the kitchen. Which means that kitchen table has paint and pen and nail polish on it… You’ll also notice that I’m using colors that make me happy… greens and pinks. Not necessarily “Thanksgiving” colors, but they match the room and they didn’t cost a thing!

casual thanksgiving tablescape casual thanksgiving tablescape

OK. When it comes to setting a table where kids are involved, I try to keep in mind the following three things: breakables, fire, entertainment. The centerpiece is a thrifted pink basket with a lavender plant from Whole Foods and two faux plants from Ikea. I fill it out a bit more, I grabbed some green glass from my collection, and stuck in some faux succulents. I thought about snipping some fall leaves, but we’ve had rain for the last few days so everything’s a bit soggy.

simple centerpiece for kids thanksgiving table simple centerpiece for kids thanksgiving table

I love how candlelight looks on a table but… kids. So I swapped out candles and fire for those battery-powered string lights. They’re on a timer so I won’t forget to turn them off, and I love how they look wound around the green glass.

string lights as centerpiece lighting

Last but not least: entertainment. Books and electronic devices aren’t allowed at our table, but that doesn’t mean conversation will flow! At each of the kids’ places, I put a simple white vellum envelope with their picture printed out on my Instax printer.

instax picture as place card instax picture as place card

Inside the envelopes are crayons, and then I tucked a paint by number between the two plates for them to take out and color when they want.

crayons for kids entertainment at table crayons for kids entertainment at table

Other activities are at either end of the table. I drew a tic tac toe board on the outside of some small paper bags, picked up some chestnuts from the grocery store and painted Xs and Os on these. (Anything would work really: acorns, rocks, buttons…) My kids could play tic tac toe for hours, so this self-contained version made it so much easier for them!

entertainment for the kids table entertainment for the kids table

I also pulled some of those mini mason jars out of the cabinet and filled them with M&Ms (again… beans or non-candy items totally work too!). I counted the M&Ms first and wrote down the amount underneath a piece of paper that I inserted on the lid. The kids can try to guess how many M&Ms are in each jar!

guessing game for kids table activity guessing game for kids table activity

This table came together in under 20 minutes and I love that it is casual but festive. I wanted the kids to feel like it was a special occasion without worrying about things getting broken or destroyed.

setting a fun table for kids on thanksgiving setting a fun table for kids on thanksgiving

Make no mistake, the only thing about the Thanksgiving meal that the children will eat are the buttered rolls so I’m currently working on Thanksgiving nuggets or a Thanksgiving cheeseburger plan. But regardless of what I serve, I know that we will celebrate the holiday, sitting around the table, enjoying a family meal together.

Setting a fun informal thanksgiving tablescape Setting a fun informal thanksgiving tablescape Setting a fun informal thanksgiving tablescape

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thanksgiving kids table

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4 Comments

  1. Can’t wait to get going on these ideas! I have a feeling the “adults” will have more Fun than the kiddies?
    Thanks for putting all of this together!

  2. I love this.THE TABLE DECORATIONS ARE SWEET, LOVE THE FAUX HELEBORES AND SUCCULENTS. THE ACTIVITIES ARE FUN ALSO, MY KIDS ARE TEENS NOW, BUT I LOVE THESE IDEAS.