Thankful for Snakes?

I'm not gonna lie, I busted out laughing earlier this week when I was looking through pictures on my phone because I found this one from two years ago. I remembered how excited I was to plan this weekend craft project to put up some Thanksgiving-themed decor in our house and channel my inner elementary school teacher. I laid out the supplies Friday night so we'd be ready to go when the time came, and I just knew my son was going to love it as much as I did when I was a kid.

On Saturday morning, after cleaning up after breakfast, I sat at the kitchen table and patiently traced our hands on the fall-colored construction paper. Then my son helped me cut out all the hands, a decision which I later regretted because clearly we needed more practice with our cutting skills (see: hand on bottom right of pic). After a well-deserved break, I sat with him at the table to talk about what he was thankful for so I could write each precious answer on the hands we’d earlier cut out together.

And then, do you know the first thing that boy said he was thankful for? Snakes. SNAKES?!

Out of all the things he could name in this world to be thankful for and he chose snakes? The one animal I truly dislike and am deeply afraid of, but have worked really hard to embrace (including going into the snake hut at the zoo), only because he liked them? You have GOT to be kidding me!

Nope. He wasn't kidding. S-n-a-k-e-s.

I had to work very hard on my face before I responded because I was judging him hard. But when his second answer was "love," I cut him a break and let him keep going. And then what unfolded became a window into what was truly important to my five-year-old in that moment-- family, friends, neighbors, toys, snuggles, school, our home, nature, fun, electricity, books and God. How beautifully simple (even if it included snakes), and I was thankful I made craft time happen instead of giving up when I didn't like his first answer.

What are you thankful for today? If you were to make your own handprint Thanksgiving tree, what would you include on it?

Snakes are still not on my list, but I am thankful I had the chance to go play Thanksgiving BINGO at my son's school earlier today and that tomorrow I get to head towards the NC coast with my family for a week-long Thanksgiving break. (I am not thankful I have to start packing...)

I hope you and your family have a fun-filled, restorative, and snake-free Thanksgiving. 😉