Despite the best laid plans, many of us here at F.C. Tucker Emge REALTORS® are finding ourselves looking at a Thanksgiving that is very different than ever before. Even the small gatherings we had planned are getting cancelled left and right. Chances are, you are in the same boat. So, we thought we’d do some research and offer up some ideas for reimagining Thanksgiving this year. We know you could google these things yourself, but we have done it for you and put the results all in one place!
–Zoomsgiving: we are all getting Zoom weary, but using Zoom (or Facetime, Skype or Google hangouts) is a necessary tool this holiday. Zoom has actually announced that they are getting rid of the 45 minute limit per meeting for free accounts on Thanksgiving day, so set up a few sessions with beloved friends and family who you won’t be able to see in person this year. You could have cocktails with one group and dessert and coffee with another group! There are plenty of ways to freshen up the Zoom experience. Bustle has some great ideas from fun icebreakers to virtual games in this article.
Also, have you noticed the difference between good Zoom sessions and bad ones? We have. The folks over at Psychology Today have some insights, and suggest that one person per meeting be assigned as host to help moderate the session, and have a plan for how you are going to interact with the group. Zooming is not like sitting around the dining room table and a little planning can make the zooming so much more satisfying.
If you really are too Zoom-weary, then just make some regular phone calls to reconnect with people. Most phones these days have a speaker-phone setting so multiple people can participate on either side of the phone call.
–Take the break from tradition to completely reimagine the menu and cook with your family. This is your chance to try a different sweet potato recipe or have duck instead of turkey. Throw out the rule book and make this holiday your own! You can return to tradition next year and appreciate the old stand-bys in a whole new way.
– Don’t fret if that turkey you have seems too huge for the 4 people at your table. Turkey leftovers are GREAT. In fact, all Thanksgiving leftovers are the best part of Thanksgiving, and this year you don’t have to share them with anyone! The possibilities are endless when it comes to using up leftover turkey, and you can always throw it into a freezer bag and store it in your freezer for a few months. In case you need ideas for what to do with all that extra turkey meat, take a look at these delicious recipes, and don’t forget to cook down that carcass for some delicious broth to freeze for later!
-soup…use your imagination or convert you favorite chicken soup recipe
–turkey salad (for sandwiches)
–Decorate: lots of people normally decorate for Christmas over the Thanksgiving weekend, why not dial it up? Put up a few extra strings of lights. Or, get ahead and start your Christmas baking projects early.
–House Projects: We are REALTORS® afterall, so you knew we are going to suggest getting the family involved in some home maintenance. Take a look at our fall maintenance suggestions here.
–Turkey Trot 5ks are a Thanksgiving staple and many of them are happening virtually this year. Either register your family and do it together, or forget the registration entirely and go for some forced-family-fun by taking a 3 (or more!) mile walk (or run) together outside. There are lots of places you could go, from your own neighborhood, to one of the trails along nearby rivers, to many of the other beautiful areas of natural beauty that surround us in Southern Indiana.
–Relaxing on a couch in front of the television is part of most people’s holidays at some point. Whether you put your feet up after slaving away in the kitchen or instead of slaving away in the kitchen, there are plenty of offerings on television this year to keep everyone in your household interested:
- Macy’s day parade is going to be virtual this year, but it will be televised!
- NFL Football Games
- Movies to watch from various streaming services
–Letter writing session: Remember what it was like when you were little and you checked the mailbox with eager anticipation? And how magical it was when a letter arrived just for you? Share that joy with someone else over the long weekend. Grab a piece of paper (any paper will do), an envelope (or make one like this!), pick up some stamps (remember those?) from the post office, and jot down a few thoughts and memories, or pose questions to someone near and dear in your heart that you haven’t seen in a while. Getting real, handwritten personal notes in the mail is a rare treat these days, but still surprises and delights all recipients. You don’t have to write a lot to make a difference in someone’s day. This is also a great activity to involve teens and children.
–Reading. We know that most of you can’t wait to catch up on reading the many blog entries over at FCTE.COM, but when you are done with that, you might have some additional reading interests. Whether you curl up in a chair by yourself and indulge in a juicy mystery, or share a book with your family, the long weekend offers plenty of time and space for reacquainting ourselves with books. Depending on your children’s ages and interests, maybe you want to have some family reading time together, digging into what gratitude means, or uncovering some unknown histories of the Native Americans
Head out to your local neighborhood library this weekend to have a few books on hand to keep everyone interested.
–Game Playing: From a full-fledged, old-fashioned round of Monopoly to a new fangled game of Settlers of Catan, you can have an entire game playing tournament over Thanksgiving. Or dig out that deck of cards and teach yourselves a new game. With movie theaters closed, when else do you have time to play multiple games with your family? If you want to try something REALLY modern check out Jackbox Games to play virtually with other family members who aren’t physically in your home. The New York Times ran a really great article back in April that explains how it works, and we hear that it is a TON of fun. With Jackbox, someone has to purchase a package, but then you can share links to the game room with whomever you want. There are plenty of different types of games to choose from.
–Drive-bys: Remember earlier this year when we had the official “stay-at-home” order? Plenty of people created drive-by birthday and graduation celebrations to stay compliant. Let’s re-embrace the novelty of drive-by celebrations this Thanksgiving. Load up the car with your immediate family and take a driving tour of in-town relatives and friends. Either surprise them with a horn-honking, arm-waving pop-by, or plan the party parade and coordinate with others to make the rounds together. Either way, drive-bys are a safe and diverting way to get out of the house and share your love and smiles.
In general, the long Thanksgiving weekend is an excuse to decompress from all the stress that has been building up over the last few months and take care of our mental health, not just by cultivating gratitude, but by mindfully doing things differently than usual when we are caught up in the rat race of navigating this pandemic world. On NPR’s All Things Considered on Wednesday, November 18, two mental health professionals answered listener’s questions on this very thing. Take a listen!
If you are planning to still celebrate with people outside your immediate household over the holiday weekend, please take extra precautions and remember to:
- Wear your masks the entire time
- Be outdoors as much as possible.
- Space out more than usual
- When indoors, open windows for increased ventilation and fresh air
- Experts like Dr. Kris Box recommends that you bring your own food and utensils to gatherings that involve people from multiple households. You can find more of Dr. Box’s excellent suggestions here:
We want everyone to enjoy Thanksgiving, but more importantly, we want everyone to stay safe and work together to bring the numbers back down in our communities. Then, we will have even MORE to be grateful for.
