If you always do the same thing for your Thanksgiving celebration year after year, perhaps this year it’s time to do something different, and really make the holiday a special one. Whether you’ve got something particular to be thankful for or not in 2022, having a special day with friends and family is important. With that in mind, here are some ideas to make Thanksgiving special.
Display The Year In Photos
Gather your favorite family, friend, and adventure photos from the past year and put them on display in the hall for when people arrive on Thanksgiving. You can have more than one photo made into a large poster. If you do this every year, you can add one more photo each time.
Or, you could quickly make a family tree on the wall with photos and masking tape, which is easy to take off. When people arrive, see if they can spot themselves in your display; you’ll certainly have made a wonderful talking point to begin your celebrations with.
Start A Holiday Scrapbook
Put your holiday menu and who helped make each dish, set the table, etc., on two pages next to each other in your scrapbook. Take pictures of the people who made the food, the table, and the people who are eating at the holiday dinner. Write down the date, the names of everyone there, and how old the kids are. If you are using a recipe that has been in your family for a long time, write it down in the album. You can even add the unique Thanksgiving table décor stencils you used to make things look good. Over the years, you can see how things change and evolve.
Invite Someone Who Has Nowhere To Go
If you know of someone who has nowhere else to go for Thanksgiving, whether it’s a coworker or a friend of a friend, invite them to your house to share this special meal. It can make a big difference for the person you invite, and dinners are usually more fun when there are more people around the table.
Donate Or Volunteer
Before the holiday, think about how lucky you are and see if you can afford to give a few bags of food to a local food bank or soup kitchen. You should call ahead to find out what they really need.
You could also choose to help out at a soup kitchen on Thanksgiving by serving food or washing dishes. If this sounds like something you’d like to do, why not try it this year? It could become your new tradition.
Share Special Recipes
If your family has a favorite dish that you always make, write the recipe and the story behind it on cards this year to give to your guests. They might then use that recipe in their own Thanksgiving meals when they are hosting the event, and they could pass it on to others. In this way, your special family recipes get a new lease on life and can be spread far and wide for many people to enjoy. That’s much better than keeping it all to yourself.
