Ah Thanksgiving. I remember back in the day when holidays were stress-free and I didn’t have to do anything except beg my parents to watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and fall asleep to the football games later in the day. There was no cooking, no cleaning, no parties or planning around different family events. And no work. Most definitely no work.
Now though? Turns out 28 can be a hard age to be when you live away from family, have a blog, and a ton of friends that you want to cook for. Here are my top 5 tips for making Thanksgiving fun and as stress-free as possible…oh, and a pretty awesome giveaway if I do say so myself at the end!
- PLAN AHEAD – This one is probably the most daunting task of all, especially when you’re a procrastinator like me. But sitting down and planning ahead of time is probably the thing that ends up keeping me the most sane. Whether it’s planning your meal or just the day in general, knowing what to expect is huge. For the meal I will plan this weekend what I’m making and create a list of the things I’ll need to get from the store. For the day I’ll probably still plan out this weekend what I’d like to do and see, what Nate would like to do and see, and then put it all together so that we both get the holiday of our dreams. Hey, paid days off are rare – you have to make the most of it!
- DO AHEAD – It goes hand in hand with #1, but this is specific to the food part. I don’t know about you, but the grocery store the day before a major holiday is NOT a fun place to be. I’m not going to ruin the time off that we have by spending it in fear of being run over by shopping carts and cars, being tackled by the lady trying to get the last box of cornbread mix, and just becoming part of the angry masses in general. Once you get the meal (or whatever you may be contributing to a meal) down this weekend, go out and get the stuff to make it. You’ll be SO glad you did when Wednesday night rolls around and you can watch the DVRed Elf for the hundredth time since Halloween. Just me?
- PICK WHAT’S IMPORTANT – For me it’s waking up to the Thanksgiving Day parades on TV, eating a special but light breakfast and putting out the Christmas decorations. It’s taking a long walk with my husband and our pups so that the dogs get tired and Nate and I can eat more. It’s actually taking the time to straighten my hair before seeing friends and it’s ALWAYS taking time to call my parents, my sister and my Grandma to see how their day is going and letting them know they are loved and I’m thankful for them. It sounds like a lot, but pick the things that you want to do and DO them. After all Thanksgiving memories are some of the best we ever have – make them worthwhile!
- EAT WHAT YOU LOVE – I think this can be a big “DUH” one, but the reality is that there are times I eat something because it’s on the buffet, not because I really want to eat it. For me that thing is mashed potatoes. I know, I know, I hear you all groaning – but I never had them at my Thanksgiving table growing up. And while I do love me some mashed potatoes, I’d rather have that extra helping of dressing, more green bean casserole or extra rolls and butter. Putting yourself into a food coma is hard work – make it easy on yourself by doing it with the things you love to eat!
- SPEND TIME WITH PEOPLE YOU LOVE – Honestly, that’s what this time is about. It’s about giving thanks and it’s about being with the people who make your heart happy. Whether it’s a phone call to your family, snuggling with your significant other, wrestling with your animal(s) or eating a feast with a ton of friends – make sure you spend time with the people you love. And the biggest part of this? Let them know that you cherish them. Life is too short to do otherwise!
So after all that – and hopefully you read through it all – what’s the giveaway? Butterball would like to make your Thanksgiving fabulous by providing a turkey for 2 readers. Whether you use it to provide the turkey for your holiday feast or use it donate to a shelter or otherwise is up to you! Just comment on this post with YOUR favorite Thanksgiving memory and/or tip! Open to US residents only – giveaway ends Friday November 18 at 11:00pm MST. Winner will be announced Saturday morning!
Love this post. I don’t celebrate Thanksgiving but these rules go for pretty much everything, don’t you think?
My favorite tip/tradition is to have cheesy games to play later in the afternoon after everyone has eaten ’til their heart’s content. Stuff like Bingo and Checkers or dumb word games. Lots of fun and good for the whole family!
Great post!
My favorite memory from Thanksgiving is just being with my whole family- all 2o+ of us- and having my Dad read a devotion while the kids just tell us they are thankful for Legos, Star wars and purple, pink and yellow!
Your tips are fantastic! Taking the dogs for a long walk to get them tired is definitely on my list of “To Do’s”! My favorite Thanksgiving memory is eating dinner at the kids table at my grandmom’s house and having the BEST time with my cousins!!
When we were growing up, we used to go around the table at Thanksgiving and say what we were thankful for about each other. Of course, my sisters and I probably had some snarky comments back then but now I realize how important it is to let others know how thankful we are that they’re in our lives!
I loved the “Eat what you love”! So true. Sometimes my family would serve the same dish year after year due to tradition, but year after year we ended up throwing away the leftovers two weeks later.
I’m excited to go home for this year’s Thanksgiving and help ease some of the stress from my mom 🙂 My favorite Thanksgiving was the year my husband (just boyfriend at the time) came home to Ohio from Arizona…it was his first visit back since moving out there. So thankful to not be dating long distance any more!
I think my favorite memory is from two years ago. The day before Thanksgiving, I had delivered twins for dear friends (as a surrogate), I’d had a rough delivery and spent the next few days in the hospital. I had to be away from my own children that day, so it sounds odd, I know, but there were two perfect new babies in the world, a set of new parents on cloud nine, I’d had a wonderful doctor and knew I had beautiful, healthy children of my own at home. So much to be thankful for!
My tip would be to share the load. Don’t overwork yourself with cooking everything. Enjoy the day and time with family.
My favorite tip, passed down thru generations, that I have now passed on to my DIL…buy gravy, cause it takes too much time and if it messes up…well…
I think it’s best to just take it all in! Sometimes I get so caught up in prepping my meal and making sure it’s perfect… creating these big elaborate dishes… that I miss out on just being with my family and enjoying a day away from work obligations!
My favorite thanksgiving memories are those I spent at my grandparents home while I was at college. I was too far away to go home to my parents house, but I sure loved the one on one time with my grandparents! I especially loved making home-made jam with my grandpa 🙂
My husband and I ran our first Turkey Trot last year and I hope we are making this a tradition — we’ve signed up for one this year too! I know this might seem like a lame memory, but it’s pretty special to me!
I’m still not in charge of Thanksgiving dinner (thankfully), so I guess my best tip is to be helpful to the hostess without being in the way. Can’t forget the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is on Thanksgiving morning, too!
Great tips! I especially love the one about taking the dogs for a walk so they are tired. We’ll be following your advice on that this year. 🙂
Great tips! My best tip is to just enjoy family and don’t sweat the small stuff. Planning ahead can really help with this!
Awesome tips and great giveaway! My best tip is to delegate and make sure that everyone that is coming is bringing a dish. . .
My favorite Thanksgiving tip is to accept help! Our family always does Thanksgiving potluck style (though we all say what we’re bringing ahead of time). Not only does this relieve the host, but it also ensures everyone’s favorite dish is on the table.
Great giveaway and suggestion of donating it! Love that idea! Best Tgiving memory? The first year Travis and I were married, we celebrated Tgiving alone, in Westminster, CO. I cooked a turkey and homemade dressing, dessert – all that stuff. We realized as we were eating that Tgiving isn’t all that fun when you aren’t around family. Luckily, we moved back to NC and haven’t missed a family dinner since.
Those tips are hard to top! One more tip is to allow people in the kitchen for a little appetizer (think easy like cheese, crackers, veggies, etc), but then make sure most of them make their way back out. Everyone wants to come see what’s up, but when they’re out of food, hopefully they’ll wander back out into other spaces. I don’t want a bunch of people in my hot kitchen when I’m doin’ my thang. (Mommies and Grandmommies only 🙂 )
My favorite Thanksgiving tip is to stress-less and enjoy your family and friends around you! Be thankful for what you do have not what you dont. Also, eat lots of pumpkin pie! My favorite Thanksgiving memory is the stuffing Throwdown two Thanksgiving’s ago. It was my dad and I versus my grandma, my aunt, and my uncles stuffing dishes. Hands down, my dad and I won but it was all in good fun and everyone’s dish was terrific! I would roast this turkey for a family that is less fortunate and don’t have the money to have a Thanksgiving or the friends or family to share it with!
Such a cute post!! I was just thinking about #4 as a good “rule” too! No need to feel bad for not trying every single thing at the table. This year has been especially tricky coming up with gluten free options, but so far it’s been fun!