Essential
Thanksgiving Preparation & Entertaining Tips
By Lydia Quinn
It's that time of year, the leaves are
falling and there's a little chill in the air as summer takes its last
breath. Just around the corner, we'll gain an hour of sleep. Good thing
too, we'll need that sleep to prepare for the onslaught of holiday
guests we have coming over for Thanksgiving this year! To help you get
through this Thanksgiving holiday, here are some essential tips for
making sure things go smoothly and to make your holiday just a little
less frantic.
The Setting
It's so easy to decorate for
Thanksgiving. You can make a gorgeous centerpiece using items from
around your house. Use a basket filled with gourds, fallen leaves,
Indian corn, pinecones, corn husks, squash and mini pumpkins. You can
also use these things to decorate your home. A few well placed mini
pumpkins do wonders to set the mood for Thanksgiving.
The Table
Make sure you have clearly marked
placecards for each person, so they know where to sit. Also, be sure to
leave enough room on the table for all your serving dishes. It's a good
idea to have extra chairs handy for any surprise guests who show up.
Meal Preparation Tips
Preparing a complete Thanksgiving meal
can be quite a task, but with proper preparation ahead of time, you
should be able to pull it off without a hitch. First, write down your
menu and make a shopping list. Just in case, buy a little more of each
item, so you won't be stuck with having too little of something on
Thanksgiving day and all the stores are closed. Do your shopping a
couple days ahead of time to beat the inevitable last minute rush of
Thanksgiving Eve. Make sure you have plenty of room in your kitchen and
refrigerator and freezer to hold all the food you'll buy. You'll want to
begin preparation of your dishes on Thanksgiving Eve unless you want to
get up very early. Make sure you pay special attention to what needs to
be done to the turkey. Hopefully, it's not frozen, but if it is, you can
put it in the kitchen sink with lukewarm water and just keep changing
the water every hour or so to hasten the thawing. For other dishes,
prepare as much as you can ahead of time. You can usually make many side
dishes and desserts completely ahead of time.
Backup Meal Plans
Your turkey will probably turn out ok, or
at least edible, but if it doesn't, make sure to have an alternate
available. Some good choices would be a ham, pot roast, a salmon or
other fish.
Choices
It's a good idea to call each of your
guests well ahead of time to make sure you won't be getting any
surprises, like your brother's 15 year old has just turned vegetarian
and won't be able to eat the turkey. Make sure to have plenty of
something that a vegetarian would not have a problem with. I've found
vegetarians are often happy with some really tasty side dishes like
mashed potatoes, green beans, bread and a salad. Though, a Tofurky would
be a good choice to have if there are multiple vegetarians coming over.
Don't forget others with special food requirements, such as allergies,
diabetics, low sodium diets etc.
Outsourcing
Outsourcing isn't just for tech
companies! To make your day easier, consider outsourcing a portion of
the meal. Have a guest or two bring over a side dish or appetizer. Or
consider buying the dessert. A few pumpkin pies from your local bakery
topped with whipped cream would work just fine and I bet no one would
know the difference!
Entertainment
After the meal, some guests may go home,
while most others will opt to stay for a while. Football and basketball
games will be plentiful on TV, but what about those not into watching
sports? Have some board games on hand as well as party games that
involve many players.
Conversation
One of the main points of the holiday
season is to bring family and friends together to catch up and enjoy
each other's company. Make it easy to have conversations in your home.
Make sure you have some quiet areas and plenty of seating to make
conversation easy.
The Kids
If you're going to be having multiple
kids at your gathering, you need to be prepared for their needs. Make
sure the kids have a separate table or are seated next to adults that
will supervise them. After the meal, have games and activities
especially for them, or have family games that can involve children.
Prepare For Emergencies
No, not a natural disaster or even a
medical emergency, it's not nearly as bad as those but it certainly has
the potential to ruin your holiday. I'm talking about the dreaded toilet
back up. The last thing you want is to be stuck cleaning up that kind of
mess when you're supposed to be preparing food. Make sure you have a
plunger and some Drano or Liquid Plumber on hand in the bathroom that
the guests will use. When and if it happens, you'll be very glad you
prepared for it. Trust me! Follow these tips and you should be one step
closer to a safer, happier Thanksgiving holiday.
Lydia Quinn writes for PaperTrails.com,
offering fine, fun and funky papers and gifts including
invitations, stationery, pads, tags, cubes, stickers and
more for every occasion. Visit us at http://www.papertrails.com
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