Woodbury Mom Creates 'Thankful Tree' to Help Families Practice Gratitude

Carole Lehn, of Woodbury, an entrepreneur and mother of four, can't take all the credit for her newest project. “The thankful tree idea is not something I came up with myself,” Lehn recently told the Pioneer Press.

“Hundreds or even thousands of thankful trees have been made.”

But Lehn wanted to make it easier for people to create their own tree at home, which she says inspires kids of all ages to think about what they're thankful for and to practice gratitude.

“Not everyone wants to make a tree or cut leaves out of construction paper,” Lehn said. “But there’s not much available commercially. I thought, ‘There’s got to be a market for this.’ That’s how I came up with the idea of marketing a thankful tree with Post-It notes in the shape of leaves.”

And thats how Lehn's idea for the Thankful Tree began. “I launched it in September — it’s really new,” Lehn says.

Using the help of Modernistic, a Stillwater print shop owned by one of Lehn's friends, Lehn printed a watercolor painting of a tree trunk and branches on plastic poster paper.

The Thankful Tree poster pack, available for purchase for $25, comes with leaf-shaped sticky notes and several different markers. Here's how the product is describe on the Thankful Tree website:

Life is busy, and there are so many demands on our time. Sometimes we see a great idea for creating a meaningful family tradition, but we just don’t get it done. For all those plans and half finished projects in your basement, The Thankful Tree is DIY that isn’t quite so Do It Yourself. It includes everything you need to help your loved ones express their thankfulness – a heavy duty plastic poster and removable tape to hang it up, 100 leaf-shaped sticky notes, and even a dry erase marker to personalize your poster. You won’t have to draw a tree or cut 100 leaves out of construction paper. You can spend your precious time where it really matters – making memories as you create a new tradition with your family. As you express your thankfulness and fill the tree with leaves, you will also be creating a unique piece of art you will be proud to display.

Read much more at the Pioneer Press

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