10 Ways to Make Thanksgiving More Meaningful
For me, the main reason for traveling is to create an opportunity to make memories with our family and friends. Gathering with family and friends at home or while traveling for Thanksgiving or other holidays is a perfect time to enjoy being together and making memories. Sometimes a little bit of planning can help make things a bit more meaningful and special. I’m sharing 10 ways you can make your next holiday gathering more meaningful.
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10 Ways to Make Your Thanksgiving More Meaningful
Interview Grandparents
This could become a fun annual tradition when you are all together for the holidays. You could write down responses or use your phone to video the interview.
Here are a few fun questions you could ask:
What is a favorite Thanksgiving memory from your childhood?
What is a favorite place you have visited?
What fictional place would you like to visit?
What event in history will you always remember?
What’s one of your favorite family traditions?
Interview the kids
Interviewing kids with the same list of questions each year is a fun way to document how things evolve as they grow older. Record the answers on a scrapbook page, in a journal, or video the interview.
Here are a few questions you could ask:
What’s your favorite color?
What is your favorite thing to do in your free time?
Who are your closest friends?
What’s your favorite food?
What is your favorite thing to learn about in school?
Share your favorite thanksgiving memories
As you gather around the dinner table, go around the room and ask everyone to share one favorite memory from a past Thanksgiving. You could inform people that you will be asking about this if you think they will want time to prep. This is a fun way to reminisce and bond!
highlight past thanksgiving in photos
Pictures are one of my favorite ways to trigger memories and decorate for parties. Go to your online photo storage and do a search for “Thanksgiving.” Photos from all of the past Thanksgiving days will pop up! It’s a quick and easy way to do a Thanksgiving walk down memory lane.
Now that you have the photos, what can you do with them?
Create a photo banner. Upload a few photos to your favorite local photo printer and have them printed. I like using Walgreens’ 1-hour photo. Clip the photos to a hanging piece of ribbon and enjoy this easy photo decor.
Print photos and set them on a table. If you don’t want to make a banner, set printed photos out on a coffee table and allow guests to look through them.
If you don’t want to print photos, use the photos as a slideshow. Mirror your phone or computer on your TV and share photos of past Thanksgivings.
Do a Group Gratitude Display
Have all of the guests add to a display where they write things they are grateful for this year. You could use a big piece of butcher paper or get fancy and cut a tree and leaves from paper. Have everyone write their gratitude items on the leaves.
Take a photo of the display when it’s finished. You can save the photo and throw the display away when you clean up for the season.
Do a Family walk or 5K
Getting outside and moving together is a great way to bond, make memories, plus burn off a few calories. You could join an organized event or just head out in your neighborhood.
Share Gratitude for each other
Go around the dining table and have each person share something they are grateful for about the person to their right. Continue around the circle while everyone has a chance to share.
Play Board Games
Ask everyone to bring a favorite board game to Thanksgiving dinner. Set them out and encourage people to place the games before or after dinner.
Animal, Vegatable, Memorable
Have everyone share something from the three categories: animal, vegetable, and memorable.
Animal: Share a favorite person or 4-legged friend who is your favorite right now.
Vegetable: Share your favorite vegetable (or favorite food!) that you love eating.
Memorable: What is one favorite memory from this year?
Conversation Starters
If you are looking for a way to spice up conversations, give some conversation starters a try. They are prompts that are meant to spark fun conversations. Just do a web search and you will find many options. You can check out this list from Parade or this list from Conversation Starters World.