Here's a game for Thanksgiving. It's full of good food, good fun, and a good test for your brain power!

Sit in a circle or around a table. Pick somebody to go first. That person starts out by saying:

Then the first player mentions some kind of food - turkey or stuffing or cranberries - whatever sounds good.

The next player repeats everything player one said, then adds a second food item, for instance:

The third player repeats the phrase, adding a third item.

The fourth player adds a fourth kind of food - and so on.

See how long you can keep the list going. (One time, Rachel's family got up to 25 kinds of food!)

Don't be afraid to be silly - what if the pilgrims ate corn flakes, jello, mud-pies, and banana-hazenut swirl ice cream?!

Survival Tip! Babysitting again?

Ever watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade on TV? (Maybe you've seen it live if you live in New York)! If you find yourself taking care of totally bored little kids while dinner's cooking, organize a parade!

First, find an out of the way spot. Try outside if it's nice. Every parade needs a band... any simple instruments. Pots, pans, empty oatmeal boxes make good drums. Metal pot-lid cymbals crank out lots of noise. Got any kazoos? There's your trumpet section. Got some beans and a Pringles box with a lid? There's a shaker!

Floats? -- Decorate a wagon or other ride-on pull cart. If your dog likes ribbons on his collar, dress it up. Pull out those Halloween costumes one last time and dress yourselves up too!

Of course, Thanksgiving parades need balloons -- like the giant Snoopy and Garfield in the big parade. If you can get some party helium balloons, great! Otherwise the balloon wranglers can swat regular balloons skyward. See if they can keep them in the air as they march!

Put on your favorite music. Don't forget to invite grandma and grandpa and the rest of the family out to watch! Every parade needs an audience!

If you have a digital camera, or can borrow one, put together an on-the-spot record of Thanksgiving. Think of it as a documentary -- Dinner at the Franklin House. Carving the turkey. Setting the table. All the things that go into dinner together as a family.

Then print out the pix and put them up on the front of the fridge with a post-it note for captions. Leave a marker out, and let your family write fun captions on the pictures. They'll love it!

I love the forest. I love getting mail too. But if you're an American, then you'll get over 2 million tons of junk mail this year. That's a lot of trees lost. And most folks don't have time to open half of it! So here's something you can do over Thanksgiving to say "Thanks" and save some trees.

For every 100,000 girls who write and send this letter, we'll save 150,000 trees a year! The animals and trees living in our forests will sure be thankful for that!

1) Ask your parents if you can write a letter to keep your names and addresses from being sold to any more mailing list companies. This will reduce your junk mail by 50%. And you'll still get stuff you want! Like your favorite catalogues.

2) If they say "yes", ask your librarian for the address of the Direct Marketing Association in your country. If you live in the U.S.A., here's the address. Just address an envelope to the following:

Mail Preference Service
Direct Marketing Association
11 West 42nd St.
PO Box 3861
New York, NY 10163-3861

3) Now take a sheet of paper and write down the following:

Dear Sir or Madam:

Please remove our names from your list.

(Dad's Name)
(Mom's Name)
(Your brother's or sister's name)
(Your Name)

Sincerely,

(Your Name)
(Address)
(City, State and Zip Code)

Here's a fun twist on tag for girls who want to do something besides watch football on TV Thanksgiving Day.

Pick somebody to be the fox. She stands at one side of the yard while everybody else - the turkeys - stand at the other side. The Fox turns around, her back to the other players, and shouts out, "Turkeys on the run!"

That's the cue for the other players to run as fast as possible across the yard. (If you want to make turkey gobbles, just for fun, go ahead.) The fox turns around and tries to tag as many turkeys as she can as they run by. Every turkey she tags is considered "On-the-Table."

Once everyone has crossed the yard, the turkeys who were caught join the fox. They move to where the turkeys started, turn around and all yell together, "Turkeys on the run!" Last turn's turkeys-on-the-table help the fox catch more turkeys.

Keep going until only one girl hasn't been caught! She's declared the Top Turkey. (If you play another round, the Top Turkey becomes the fox and you start all over!)

Give it a try. Will you become Top Turkey or end up On-the-Table?!!

P.S. You can let the boys in the family play too. Including them is something they can be thankful for!

Take a minute to be thankful for you! You're someone special, girl! Think about all the things you do really well. It could be crafts or cooking. Are you the girl that takes time to hang with other girls who are less popular? Are you the girl who makes overworked dad or mom smile? Are you the girl who calls grandma once in a while just to talk? Are you the girl who pets the cat and walks the dog? Write down ten things you do that people should thank you for. Hang onto it for a rainy day!

Come, girls and family, gather together.
Let's sing thanks for harvest and home.
The memories we bring, the hopes we share,
This is our harvest, this makes a home.
The faces at table, the stars bending over,
Let's sing thanks for harvest and home.
For life and breath, for time yet to grow,
Our lives are our harvest, our family our home.

Hey, girls! Here's something you can do over Thanksgiving to say "Thanks" and change the world. Recycle your junk mail! Put the newsprint in with your newspapers to recycle. If it's white or colored paper, make a bag for them too. Most recycling centers accept both white and colored paper. Recycle the envelopes too. But pull the plastic windows out if there's plastic windows inside.

The pilgrims came to America with so much hope. Some looked for fortune and adventure. Others looked for freedom.

What do you hope for? Get a few friends and family together. Ask everyone what they hope for. What are their dreams? To dance? To change the world? To feed the homeless or save the animals of the world? Write their answers down.

Then, get a bunch of old magazines together. Life, People, National Geographic, Seventeen, Popular Mechanics, Scientific America -- whatever you can find.

Then cut out pictures that represent everyone's hopes and dreams. Get glue and make a collage on a piece of cardboard. Put it on the refrigerator or on the mantle. Add to it as you find new things to hope for.

Going to the beach for Thanksgiving? That's great! Bring a trash bag. When you're done playing, get your friends together for a trash pickup. Be sure to bring a pair of scizzors with you. That way you can snip the circles of six-pack rings so fish and birds won't get trapped inside them. Then throw them away. The Ocean will certainly be thankful you were there to help out!

Thanksgiving is a great time to practice being a reporter. Get a tape recorder and some blank tape. Now take grandma and grandpa, or your aunts and uncles, cousins and friends to a quiet corner. Ask them what they're thankful for! Ask what Thanksgiving was like when they were kids. Ask them what's the funniest thing that's happened to them so far! Ask what's the greatest challenge they've overcome? The most heroic thing they've done? Who are their heroines? Have they ever run across prejudice or injustice? What did they do about it?

Now you've got something wonderful to share with your friends and children someday - your family stories!

I love dolphins and whales! So I'm asking my parents to buy albacore and bonita instead of cans of regular tuna. You can also check for cans that say "Dolphin Safe" on the side! It tastes exactly the same. But dolphins don't get trapped in albacore and bonita nets. So save a dolphin's life today. Just change what you buy!

Here's an old favorite to do with little kids. Make bookmarks out of popsicle sticks. All you need are popsicle sticks, glue and old magazines and scissors. Cut out lots of pictures of animals, or people, or cool stuff like from Nintendo ads. Let your charges glue the pictures onto the sticks, curling the edges around. It's a fun, fast craft for the holidays.

I love cool, clear water. It's even better than soda sometimes. So I went with my dad to our local hardware store. We bought a small brick for every toilet in our house. I put the brick in the water tank. Mom made sure it was in a spot that didn't get in the way of the float. Now we save water everytime we flush! My parents save money. And I save water. Cool!

I love whales! I love helium balloons, too. They are beautiful! I used to let my balloons sail up into the air because it was fun. Then I found out that balloons kill whales and turtles and other animals hundreds of miles away. The whales gobble them up when they fall to the ocean surface. So now when my friends are partying or my school or city plans an event with lots of balloons, I tell them who gets hurt when balloons go flying! The whales get hurt. So if your city or church wants to celebrate by throwing something beautiful into the air, ask them to rent doves. Or give their balloons away to the kids. You'll save lots of wildlife.

Winter is tough on birds. It's hard for them to find food and water. You can say "thanks" for birds by putting a pie tin of birdseed out on the balcony of your apartment. Or put it in your backyard. Be sure to put a big tin of water too. If you're in a place where it freezes, lots of birds can't find water and they die. Ask your parents to get a heated birdbath for your yard. You'll save hundreds of feathered friends -- and see lots of different kinds of birds.

Want more information? Write the National Wildlife Federation. Ask for their Backyard Wildlife Habitat Program Booklet. 1412, 16th Street N.W., Washington, D.C. USA 20036-2266. You can check out their web site at http://www.nwf.org/.

Our world farmers produce all kinds of wonderful fruit, vegetables and grains. And we have all kinds of farmers - organic farmers too! Why don't you say thanks by eating an extra piece of fruit this week? Or have a vegetarian meal -- like a yummy soup. Or try veggie burgers at the store. It's a way of saying "thanks" to farmers and save the earth too!

Girlfriend, I love to dress! I love to shop! And I am so thankful for all the cool stuff we get to wear today. So I say thanks every year by cleaning out my closets and drawers. I get rid of all the old stuff I know I'm not going to wear. I donate it to our local Homeless Woman's Shelter. It's hard for them to find clothes for kids. So I get my bro's to clean their closets out too. It's a fun way to celebrate thanksgiving. And make room for the latest styles too!

Got a closetful of unused toys, books and games? Feeling crushed by clutter? Christmas and New Years are coming. That means new toys and games on their way. Want something cool to do?

Give your old stuff to a homeless kid.

Too old for that game or coloring book? Got old skates or a bike in the garage that's rusting? Take them down to the local homeless or battered women's shelter.

A lot of poor kids will say "thanks" for your kindness!

Call the local animal shelter. See what they need. Blankets? Food? Go down this week and pet a cat or dog. Volunteer one hour of your life. You'll be glad you did!

Take that leftover pie or or brownies or cookies. Put it on a nice paper plate. Add a flower. Now go check in on that older person down your street. Or the lady that's alone. Or the single mom. Go say hi. It's a nice way of saying "thanks" for where you live!

After service this week, take five minutes and help clean up. Put the books back. Get the gum off the seat. Pick up litter in the parking lot. It's a nice way of saying "thanks".

Smile. Be kind. If anyone tells you homeless people want to be homeless, they're wrong. It's no fun to have no place to shower or sleep. Imagine yourself with no place where you're welcome. If you don't have money to give, give a smile. A Happy Holiday or Good Morning can give someone else a real lift.

Got lots of turkey left over? Make a couple of extra sandwiches. Put them in a bag with some cookies and chips. Now when you go shopping during the holidays, you can give a homeless person something good to eat. And make a real difference in someone's life.

In Sierra Leone, there is a feast of thanksgiving that can happen anytime. It comes from Nigeria and it's called Awoojoh. It's a way of saying "thank you" for the good things that happen to you. Here's our families version of Awoojoh.

What you do -- gather your friends and family together. Now, we do what we call the meal of many hands. Make a simple meal together. It can be anything you like. Hamburgers, hot dogs, pizza, you name it. The important part is, you make it together and everybody does something. No one sits and watches tv. Everyone helps stir or cut or wash. In fact, the more hands on a spoon at a time, the better!

Now, while you're cooking, find out if there's any quarrels to settle. Say you're sorry if you've done your friend or family wrong. This is really important.

Then, at the beginning of the meal, light a candle. Whoever is giving thanks says something like this:

It takes many hands to give blessings. Look around. Human hands built this home. Bring it water. Keep us warm. Grow our food. Weave our clothes. Make our meals. Mother and father, grandfather and grandmother, hand in hand, back through time, thanks for the gift of life. For these blessings, and for (whatever special thing you want to say thanks for), I give thanks to God and to the many hands that brought this blessing to me.

Then, eat up. Laugh, tell jokes, have fun.

Hope you enjoy our special celebration!

If you don't know what to say, ask how Aunt Aggie (does nearly anything).

People love to share stories about their lives.

Never, ever walk through the mall alone. Always team up. Go with a friend. And if someone tries to separate you? Like the old - can one of you go check my car tires for me? Run and tell security. They'll give help if it's needed.

If all Aunt Aggie can say is "I did this" and "I did that" and you're SOOO bored, listen close. Maybe she'll say a word about something you have in common. Maybe she likes pets. Or movies. Or plays. Pick up on what she likes and try to say something about that. Maybe you can derail her.

Never, ever let your little brother or sister in front of your house unattended. Even if they're only babies. Child snatchers and molesters prey on kids as young as two weeks old.

Nothing in common? Try to look at the conversation from an angel's point of view. Hmmm. Human talking. So this is what it looks like to be boring. Talk about nothing but yourself. Nod and be polite. Hmmm. Remember, she'll be gone tomorrow.

If a stranger approaches you and won't go away immediately, scream and run into a store. Go to the nearest clerk. Practice screaming with a friend like you mean it. Making lots of noise and running are your best defense.

Okay. So, Aunt Aggie has spent the day glued to you like plastic wrap to a bowl. She won't take the hint that you need a BREAK! Here's your chance to try your very best betcha's or knock knocks or jokes. Grownups hate them. Or you can talk about the Internet. Or surfing the web. Or the latest fad at school. If she won't go away, at least talk about something YOU like for a change of pace! Last resort? Go help with the dishes. Or take out the garbage. Or go to the bathroom and hide out for awhile. Do whatever you can to keep your cool.

You have a turn talking. Then someone else gets a turn talking. (It's amazing how many grownups forget that WE get a turn too!) Stand up for yourself. If you get cut off all the time, say EXCUSE ME? I think it's my turn!