Tips To Keep The Stress Out Of Thanksgiving Dinner
Why do people always get stressed at the holidays? Is it the rush to get everything done? Is it wanting everything to be "perfect"? Is it having to deal with family members that know how to push our buttons? Most likely it is a little of each. So how do we have a stress free Thanksgiving dinner? Here are a few simple tips to have a more enjoyable Thanksgiving dinner.
1. Plan ahead - While planning the Thanksgiving meal, do you plan who is going to help? Instead of doing it all yourself, recruit your family to help. Not only will the work go faster, it's more fun working together. Make a list of what needs done before everyone arrives. Give everyone something to do and assign things that are age appropriate to the children. Before you know it, the leftovers will be wrapped in foil and everyone will have had a great time.
2. Covered dish meal - If you are having a large group get together for Thanksgiving, divide the menu amongst all those attending. The host family can provide the main dish (turkey or ham) and the drinks. Each family brings a favorite side dish and dessert. If you want to make sure there is a variety, provide a menu and mark things off as people chose what they want to fix.
3. Simplify - Instead of having a huge feast, prepare a smaller meal. We all tend to overeat at Thanksgiving, so make an effort to make fewer dishes. Not only will the preparation be smaller, so will our waistlines. Another option is to prepare as much ahead of time as you can. Slow cookers can be used to make all kinds of foods, even desserts. Many things can also be made as "freezer meals" and stored for weeks before re-heating them. The less actual cooking you need to do on Thanksgiving, the lower your stress levels will be.
4. Family harmony - While you can't make everyone happy, there are ways to promote a peaceful, relaxing dinner. Use place cards to put the people who tend to bicker further away from each other during dinner. This will help alleviate some of the tensions.
5. Be thankful - Simply taking the time to be thankful for all your blessings can reduce your stress level. Before everyone arrives, take the time to list all that you're thankful for over the last year. Have everyone share their blessings before dinner. Having a better attitude will help everyone enjoy the day more.
Stress doesn't have to ruin the holidays. If you stop to smell the turkey, and plan ahead, you can have a wonderful Thanksgiving. Planning and organization, while not great fun, can help you enjoy things later once all the guests arrive.
More Articles
Family Time: Have A Neighborhood Hay Ride
Fun In The Sun 4th Of July Activities For Kids
Walking, The Perfect Exercise For Older Women
Kids After School Activities: Reading To Younger Siblings
Teen After School Activities – Volunteering
Father’s Day Ideas For Older Kids
Products And Downloads
Latest Updates From BBC News
Parents warned over school fraud
East Renfrewshire Council threatens to prosecute parents who fraudulently try and enrol their children in schools.
Doubts raised on measles target
Plans to wipe out measles by 2010 may be dashed after high levels of the disease are recorded in European countries.
Credit crunch warning for schools
The economic downturn could be about to hit funding for schools and children's services, a government committee warns.
Four held over robbery released
Four people arrested over an armed robbery in which a couple and their two young children were threatened, are released.
Hatem Shurrab, an aid worker in Gaza for the UK-based charity Islamic Relief Worldwide, keeps a diary of his work amid the conflict.
Criminal age rise to 14 ruled out
Scottish ministers are considering raising the age of criminal responsibility to 12 but reject a rise to 14.
Free school meals for Roma pupils
Immigrant children who are not entitled to free school meals are to get help from the government in Northern Ireland.
Ethiopia imposes aid agency curbs
Ethiopia's parliament passes a bill imposing restricting aid work, for example promoting the rights of children.
Baby P official in sacking appeal
The former head of children's services at the council at the centre of the Baby P case appeals against her dismissal.
Blade found in twins' toy present
A toy company starts an investigation after a blade is found in the packaging of a toy bought as a Christmas present for one-year-old twins.
More Articles And Free Videos
... Memorial Day spawned Veteran s Day, which is observed on November 11th. Subsequently, Congress declared Memorial Day as a national holiday and is celebrated during a solemn ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery. One of the most important events is the placing of the wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown ...
Fun And Educational Games For Toddlers
... movements. Over time, they will improve. Itsy Bitsy Spider and Row, Row, Row your Boat are also good songs for movement and rhythm. I can still remember nursery rhymes from my childhood. Why? Nursery rhymes are told over and over to kids. Even though your child can t read yet, use picture books to tell ...
Tips For Explaining Divorce To Children
... causes kids to act out in ways that they didn t before. To get attention, the child may become the class clown or the class jerk. They may disregard authority and become discipline problems. Teachers can be informed of the home situation in the event these things do occur. Tell your children that their ...
September Is Child Cancer Awareness Month
... men have slightly less than a 1 in 2 lifetime risk of developing cancer; for women, the risk is a little more than 1 in 3. With numbers like these, there probably isn t a family who hasn t been touched by cancer in some way. It is important that children know what cancer is and how they can lessen their ...
Communication With Your Spouse And How It Affects Your Children
... trepidation because the child will not know if what is said will make the parent angry, cause them to yell, or worse, turn a blind eye. If you and your spouse find that your communication has broken down, and the arguments have increased, it may be time for counseling. Moreover, someone needs to sit down ...