Autumn Decorating with Young Children

We’ve had quite the harvest this year! My husband loves to garden, and we had bumper crops of tomatoes, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, and an Italian squash called tromboncino. More than enough to share! We displayed the tromboncino in a red wagon in front of the house along with a volunteer pumpkin and bright green Osage oranges.

Decorating with food, plants, and natural items is a great way to celebrate autumn with young children. The earth is full of so many wonderful things! Here are a few tips for involving young children.

First, gather your items. Snapping a few photos will help you remember the joy the harvest offers and the everyday pleasures you experienced with your children.

For free: Bring a basket, pail, or bag on a walk in your yard, your neighborhood, or a park. Children can pick up pinecones, dried flowers, and colorful leaves. I have fond memories of making tea sets out of acorns, but I was older. Watch young children carefully. Don’t gather any items small enough for them to choke on. Children should not put anything they pick up into their mouths. Check items for bugs before bringing your treasures inside. After your outing, you might have enough items to decorate with, or you might want to make some purchases.

To purchase: Have you been fortunate enough to visit a pumpkin patch or apple orchard? If not, consider purchasing them at a hardware store, nursery, or grocery store along with other autumn decorating items, such as chrysanthemums, ornamental corn, gourds, hay bales, corn stalks, and wheat wreaths. Children can help, for example, by choosing which color mums you buy.

Next, decide where to place your items. Look for the best locations outside and inside to display them.

Arrange your indoor items.

Children can help arrange pinecones, gourds, leaves, and/or apples in bowls or baskets. A table, mantle, buffet, counter, and/or shelf are great places to display these natural decorations. A fall placemat or table runner under the bowl or basket adds color and helps protect the surface. You can use a vase for dried flowers or something more rustic like a mason jar. With small children, an unbreakable vase or container is more practical.

Arrange your outdoor items.

When I was growing up, I loved the simple decoration we hung on the front door, a few ears of ornamental corn. A wheat wreath is another natural choice. Hay bales, mums, and corn stalks set by the front door welcome family and friends. A deck or balcony are other outdoor options for displays. Hay bales help create multi-level displays and add stability. Use a wagon, basket, or other container, if needed.

Finally, look around at the bountiful harvest, all the blessings God has provided, and give thanks.

Amy Houts is the author of 100+ books for children. She writes for both faith-based and general market publishers. Amy’s faith-based books include bath books, Noah’s Ark and The Creation (Sunbeam/Bushel & Peck Books), God’s Earth is Something to Fight For (Sunbeam/Bushel & Peck Books), and God’s Protection Covers Me (Beaming Books). Amy’s educational books include 60 retold tales for the series, Compass Children’s Classics. Her 10 nonfiction science early readers were published by Highlights. To find out more, see: https://amyhouts.com and Linktr.ee/amyhouts.