THANKSGIVING

FOLLOW THE RECIPE

You want to throw a celebration that is memorable and amazing. Something that will have people leaving happy rather than making a voodoo doll of you. After all, you want to make it to Christmas, right?
Remember to follow the Four F’s: Family, Friends, Food, and Fun!

• Family and Friends. This might seem like a no brainer, but you want to start with who you want to invite.

• Be reasonable. How many people can your place comfortably hold? Do you have enough bathrooms to handle the post-dinner rush? If you’re an extrovert and can’t bear to leave anyone out, maaaybe consider renting out a hall with a kitchen. Or, you know, keep your invite list like your hair. Trimmed.


• Food. Since you’re hosting, you should cook the main dishes. The turkey. Maybe the mashed potatoes. Oh, and provide a pie, too. Pie is delicious! Coordinate with your guests about what dishes they should bring. Check with them to see what they like to make and then make sure there are no duplicates. Unless it’s pie. Pie can totally be duplicated. Make sure you have enough room at your table for everyone. If not, invest in a folding table and some folding chairs. Once you get these, you’ll be finding excuses to host parties all of the time. Also, ensure that you’ll have enough plates and silverware for everyone. We’re not savages after all. Don’t be afraid to get disposable silverware and plates to cut down on the after dinner clean up. Just make sure to get eco-friendly options. Yes, there are now biodegradable plates and cutlery. Isn’t it awesome living in the future?


• Fun! This is where you make sure your party doesn’t get stuck at the kid’s table of people’s memories. Go the extra mile. Put in the extra effort. Don’t. Be. Lame. Football. Like it or not, for more than half the country, Thanksgiving equals football. Unless you’re only inviting people from the No Football Lovers club, make sure to have a TV playing the day’s games. Football, Part 2. Let’s say you’re not the sedentary type. You can still enjoy America’s newest favorite pastime. Get a football and toss it around outside. This might be best before dinner is served, before everyone has slipped into their food coma. If you have enough interest, organize a quick game of touch football! This has the added benefit of burning off more calories so you can enjoy more pie!

• Featured Movies. So many movies either feature Thanksgiving or have Thanksgiving scenes in them. Choose from the following: Rocky, Miracle on 34th Street, Alice’s Restaurant, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, Dutch, Scent of Woman, Grumpy Old Men, Home for the Holidays, You’ve Got Mail, or Funny People. Photo Booth! This one might have you scratching your head. But trust us, Photo Booths are to parties like whipped cream is to pie. Sure, you could get by without it, but why settle for anything less than awesome?