Monday, November 15, 2010

Top 5 Activities for Planning your Thanksgiving

Since we're less than two weeks from Thanksgiving, I thought it would be fun over the next ten days to dedicate each blog post to a different area you can focus on to make your Thanksgiving holiday special.  We'll cover various topics and ideas including Menu, Decor, Music, etc.  But before getting to this fun stuff, we should begin with some tips on how to stay organized as you are preparing for this special day.  There is no doubt that hosting family and friends for Thanksgiving is a big task but it doesn't have to be a stressful one.  I learned from my mother years ago that with the right preparation and organization you can host a Thanksgiving that runs effortlessly and that is enjoyable for both you and your guests.  Here we'll cover the first 5 things you should be doing as you plan your Thanksgiving get together:

1. Guest List

This may seems like a silly thing to do when it comes to Thanksgiving but I find it very helpful just as a reminder of the exact number of people (believe me, it's frustrating to keep recounting the number in your head, just write it down and you have it for good).  Once you have the guest list, keep it with you as you can continue the planning to refer back to any notes or ideas you had for your party.  You can also begin pinpointing various food needs (allergies, vegetarians/vegan, etc.) and/or preferences.  I then use this guest list to create the budget and menu.

2. Budget

As in any party, your guest list will help you determine your budget.  I plan a budget before making the menu and after creating the guest list because it keeps your planning realistic.  The actual budget is obviously individually determined (I promise you, my Mom has spent way more during past Thanksgiving than Nate and I will for this Thanksgiving) but the important thing is to identify everything you need to purchase (including decor as well as food) and the range you want to stay when shopping for these items.  This is important because:

  • You can determine a menu that meets your budget expectations.
  • If you find the budget is too tight for the meal you want to make, you can delegate certain dishes to other guests (back to why creating that guest list is so important).  
  • When shopping for decor, I find myself getting pulled into so many different items and I can quickly spend an arm and leg just because I thought it "looked pretty".  By creating a budget, it forces me to be more creative with the decor and makes it must easier to say "no" when eyeing that gorgeous vase that has the perfect color scheme with my table.  Hold yourself accountable for what you were going to spend and find a way to create it within that dollar amount.
  • Also, if you find you do not have enough dinnerware, tablespace, glasses, platters, etc. you need to budget for these items or ask to borrow them from others.  An example of this is Nate and I are having 9 people over for Thanksgiving.  Our table can fit 8 maximum and therefore we are going to need to buy a side table to fit everyone.  I'm factoring this into our overall Thanksgiving budget and we may need to ask our Mom's to bring a couple side dishes to make up for this added expense.

3. Menu

Nate is the cook in our family and I'm not going to pretend for a second that I have anything to offer in terms of planning a Thanksgiving menu.  He'll be sharing his menu chooses in a couple days but in the meantime, it is important to determine what you are going to make well in advance of the holiday.  You have the guest list and the budget so both of these factors should be taken into consideration when planning your menu.  I find breaking the menu into sections also makes it easier to factor in everything you are going to make and if you are going to ask anyone else to bring a dish.  It also allows you to understand how you are going to want to time the day.  For Nate and I, we made a list of Appetizers, Sides, Entree, and Desserts that would be made for Thanksgiving.  You can see an example of this here:
As you can see, I'm an excel junkie and I love color coordinating things because it makes it so much more visually organized, but you can come up with your own system.  The most important take away is to identify what dishes you are going to make and who is going to make them.  This will keep everything much more organized for shopping, cookings and timing.

4. Shopping List

Once you plan the menu and have the recipes create a shopping list.  This will force you to look through your cabinets and determine what you need to buy vs. what you already have in your pantry (great way to save on costs!).  Creating a shopping list will also help you stay organized when your shopping at the supermarket and guarantee that you won't forget any important ingredients.  Finally, make sure you have quantities on your shopping list.  Some of the recipes you may be doubling and you want to make sure you have enough for the meal.  Also, if you have an iphone, download the GlobeConvert app (it's free).  It will make life so much easier when you are trying to figure out different measurements.  Here is what Nate and I did:

If I can't recommend anything else, I'd say try to do all your shopping before Tuesday!  There is nothing more chaotic or stressful trying to navigate through the crowds before Thanksgiving.

5.  Schedule Cooking and Decorating Time

The final tip to enjoying your day of hosting Thanksgiving is to do as mush as possible before Thanksgiving.  You may have noticed that when we made our menu, we identified which days we were cooking what meal.  The only thing we'll actually be making on Thursday is the Turkey and carrots (we didn't want the carrots to get all mushy by making them the day before).  Not only will this allow us to not have to run around cooking when our guests are here, but it will also keep the kitchen much cleaner, making for a much more enjoyable environment.

I also like to lay out the table at least a day in advance because it will help me determine the best way to set-up the chairs (note that we are having 9 people so there can be a few different ways we'll set things up) and edit any pieces if necessary.  This also guarantees that everything will be done before the first guest arrives instead of scrambling that morning.

After you have this initial schedule and overall plan to your Thanksgiving you'll want to determine what you're making, which Nate will be covering tomorrow!  Have a wonderful day and good luck.

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