Inaugurating new traditions into the holiday that centers on food and family can be both fun and rewarding. The following five traditions can be used as a guide for you to discover what special customs your heart desires to add to your annual Thanksgiving holiday celebration. Keep your traditions focused on family and the rest will fall into place!
1. Get outdoors with your spouse and children
The end of November hosts crisp weather, perfect for encouraging more time spent outdoors. This year, take your family outside by going for a walk/hike, playing some ball or even enjoying your Thanksgiving meal in a picnic fashion. Stepping outside more this holiday season will only benefit your body and mind. Soak in the season of thanks with your loved ones by making everlasting memories in the company of fresh air.
2. Bake a new dessert recipe—challenge yourself
Talk about yum! Thanksgiving is the ideal holiday to explore baking a dessert recipe new to you. The options are immense—apple pies, coffee cakes, fudge brownies, caramel cheesecakes, pumpkin rolls and the mouthwatering list goes on. Research a new dessert recipe this year and give it a try! Getting out of your cooking comfort zone will make you a more experienced, more confident baker in the long run. Who knows, the new Thanksgiving dessert you choose this year could be such a huge hit that your family will request it for Christmas as well! For festive dessert recipe inspiration, please see my article “Thanksgiving pumpkin-flavored desserts for every baking level”. Happy baking!
3. Have everyone declare what they are most thankful for
Verbalizing with your family what you are grateful for in life is a wonderful way to solidify your thanks and to encourage everyone that participates to share theirs more often. It’s also nice to learn what the people you celebrate the holiday with, whether they be family or friends, find the most thanks in having. We are all thankful for at least one thing, so arrange a time to share, perhaps right after grace while everyone is sat around the table, and commend everyone for being open and expressing their heartfelt gratitude.
4. Call family members far away to let them know you are thinking of them
Everyone loves receiving a call from a distant-located family member, especially on a holiday. Letting your relatives know they are on your mind on such a special day by calling and telling them just that is unmatched to any other form of remote communication. Sending a greeting card or a gift, or typing a text message and pressing send don’t even come close in comparison to a real-time phone conversation when being together physically isn’t an option. This Thanksgiving, dial up those relatives you miss and wish them a joyous holiday. It will make you both feel warm and fuzzy inside.
5. Send some Thanksgiving goodies to the troops
Please remember our men and women overseas this holiday season. If you send anyone something via mail this holiday, let it be a soldier. You can’t imagine how special a couple dozen homemade cookies impact them when delicious home-cooked sweets are non-existent from their lives for months at a time. If shipping to an APO/FPO address, be sure to pick up a flat-rate shipping box from the Post Office (watch out for deadlines!). Sending a handwritten letter to a soldier overseas, whether you personally know them or just want to send one anonymously, is another thoughtful idea. It’s a kind gesture to tell them how important they are and how brave the commitment to their country is. Remind them that they have loving fans back home! Surprise one or a few soldiers this Thanksgiving with a special letter or package from the home front.
