5 Ways To Have the Best Thanksgiving Yet

Thanksgiving is full of traditions; this year, we're challenging you to create a couple of new ones. As the years go on, you've likely added new guests or become a new guest yourself. Playing games is a great way to get to know new members of the family or to learn new things about the friends and family you think you know everything about! Trying new decorations can help reinvigorate your space and new activities are always appreciated to keep kids busy and entertained. Plus, we have some delicious ideas for leftovers that will make you actually want to eat them this year. Get ready to have the best Thanksgiving ever!

1. Create a Festive Centerpiece

Give your guests a gorgeous table to gather around. After displaying your nice plates, napkins, and tablecloth, a centerpiece helps tie your table together with a festive feel. Lifestyle blogger Cristin Cooper made a gorgeous, easy centerpiece with pumpkins and flowers. Essentially, she bought a couple of pumpkins, made a hole in the top big enough to put a cup inside, and filled the cup with a mix of eucalyptus, bright colored fall leaves, and roses. The result is a colorful, autumnal bouquet sitting charmingly inventive “vase.”

Bonus: In lieu of place cards, write guests names on little mini pumpkins that they can take home at the end of the meal!

2. Give Kids a Delicious Activity

Every year, kids across America trace their hand on a piece of paper and decorate it into a turkey to put on the fridge during Thanksgiving. We’re taking this beloved activity and adding something every kid loves: cookies. Make Food Network Chef Ree Drummond’s recipe for Hand Cookies the night before Thanksgiving.

During dessert the next day, give each child a cookie to decorate into a special turkey of their choice. Provide a variety of icing colors and decorations to inspire their creativity. For those with adults who’d like to join in the fun, make it a competition among the whole family with small prizes for the winners.

3. Play Games

Before there were television and cell phones, families would play games with each other. While we appreciate advances in technology, we miss the days when families got together to laugh, yell, and shout during game night. We encourage you to bring back this time-honored tradition this year—after the big football game of course. Here are some ideas to get you started:

• Board Games: Fighting over Park Place or asking if it was Colonel Mustard in the library with the candlestick is fun no matter how old you are. Choose a couple of board games and let your friends and family decide which one they want to play first!

• Thanksgiving Ice Breaker Game: Created by lifestyle blogger Ursula Carmona, printable leaves contain questions to break the ice among guests who may not know each other well or families that need to be distracted from talking about stressful topics. This game can also double as a table decoration!

• Charades: What’s better than charades? Charades that are Thanksgiving-themed. Put these ideas in a hat and let each person choose one to act out for their team. The team to guess the most words wins!

4. Make Plans for Leftovers

Many people enjoy their meal on Thanksgiving, but aren’t too keen on eating that same meal for multiple days afterward. We found a variety of recipes that will transform your Thanksgiving leftovers into something you’ll actually look forward to eating.

• Cheese Dip: The aftermath of a cheese board can look apocalyptic, with remnants of several types of cheeses that were nibbled, crumbled and cut with reckless abandon. Use your leftover cheese to make this Cheese Dip to enjoy while relaxing over the weekend.

• Turkey Pot Pie: Utilize your leftover turkey for one of the easiest and rewarding turkey dishes out there. If you have leftover vegetables, you can add them into your pie too!

• Turkey Vegetable Soup with Stuffing Dumplings: With the temperatures finally starting to drop, a hearty turkey soup with dumplings will make you feel cozy and warm. Add leftover rolls and you’re knocking out three types of leftovers with this recipe!

• Grilled Turkey, Brie, and Apple Butter Sandwich with Arugula: Three’s company when you bring together turkey, brie cheese, and apple. This simple sandwich takes just minutes to prepare and is packed with fall flavor.

5. Take Advantage of Black Friday Deals

‘Tis the season to save money! Shopping early allows you to take advantage of deals and increases the likelihood that you’ll get everything on your loved ones’ lists. No one wants to frantically look for the most popular gifts during the week of Christmas like Arnold Schwarzenegger in Jingle All the Way. 

Identify the places you want to shop and decide if you want to brave the crowds or shop online from the comfort of your couch—there are pros and cons to both! No longer a singular day, Black Friday deals are often available throughout the entire week of Thanksgiving. Plus, don’t forget about the additional deals online on Cyber Monday. If you play your cards right, you can save yourself a great deal of money and be done with your shopping before December has begun.

Looking to give your friends and family the gift of health this holiday? Stay tuned for special deals on your favorite U.S. Doctor’s Clinical products for Black Friday and Cyber Monday.