Let’s face it. Dealing with kooky Uncle Ed and whomever he brings to your table this year presents enough of a challenge during the holidays. You can do yourself a big favor by eliminating the stresses that you can control. Here are five tips for planning a low stress Thanksgiving that you can enjoy too.
- Set the table the day before Thanksgiving. This ensures that there are no last minute surprises like rust on your linens or spots on your wine glasses.
- Arrange your flowers two days before Thanksgiving. Chances are your arrangement will be fuller by Thursday, plus the mess is long gone.
- Lay out all of your serving dishes and cooking pans the day before Thanksgiving. Again, this ensures that there are no surprises (e.g. the last minute tear to the store for another 9″ x 14″ Pyrex…been there, done that).
- Prepare any dishes you can in advance. This is obvious, but it means you really have to plan ahead. Figure out your menu early and go from there.
- DELEGATE. What’s more important? That every dish is perfect…just the way you would make it? Or that everyone has participated, and you can actually create lovely memories with your family and friends because you’re not stressing over each and every detail. Besides, think about the genesis of Thanksgiving. It was about coming together and sharing a meal together – let others pitch in. PS – Our Gatherings Tool is a great way to help with the delegating.
Happy Thanksgiving.
Any tips for success in creating a low stress Thanksgiving that you’d like to share?
