Thanksgiving Traditions - Okemos,MI

It might sound funny but we do a craft! After dinner, the guys usually want to watch football so we try to do something fun like make Christmas ornaments or put together a gingerbread house. It also makes it easier to have something to do when there is a group that don't know each other well ie. my parents and in-laws.

We also usually end up playing a board game like Apples to Apples - that can get pretty goofy!

Oh, and when there are more grandkids...not just my son, I'm hoping to make reading a story about the first Thanksgiving a tradition.

K.

I have two ideas for you, both of which our family does and really enjoys. First is we have a "blessing cup". This is a really pretty goblet-type glass that we decorate with a pretty ribbon and fill with sparkling grape juice (no one in our family drinks alcohol, and this also makes it kid-friendly). We pass the cup around the table at the beginning of dinner and everyone says what they are thankful for that year and takes a drink then passes it to the next person and so on. It's great to hear the different responses between the grandparents all the way down to the toddlers!

The other thing we do is at Christmas, but you could use it anytime your family is all together. We bought some nice white tablecloths and fabric pens/markers and every year everyone writes what they are thankful for on the tablecloth with the year, and then we add to it each year. This is great because each year when we bring it out we can look back on what has been written in the past and talk (and sometimes laugh!) about where we are now in our lives.

Whatever you do I hope it can be a tradition your family enjoys from year to year! I grew up in Texas and now am here - welcome to Michigan!

Hi Kellyan,
Well, one big thing you all can do, is when you're all around the table, before you're eating, or, when eating, each one say what thing or things he/she is thankful for. I hope it helps, and I bet it will and you'll love it!
H.

hello we have a tradition in our family that every year grandma brings a craft or 2 usually us ladies sometimes even the men help our children do somekind of christmas craft it can be a count down chain for christmas or a christmas ornament or whatever usually granny orders them out of oriental trading magazine but first the kids will do theres then us ladies will do ours and after that somebody usually brings a board game that nobody has played yet and we all try to figure that out and usually spend the rest of the evening playing board games or dice or cards wich ever and yes the guys play too and some of the older kids it makes for a very fun day in our family and we usually start the day at 2 and end later at nite 9 or 10 just depends

Kellyan,

I love the ideas you're getting and may have to borrow one or two! One thing that we started a couple of years ago is writing down what we're thankful for in a pretty notebook. It's nice to look back, and a good reminder of how some things that we worried about in the past worked out.

Enjoy your family!

We all bring a dish and help out. We go around the table while we eat and say what we're thankful for, helping the youngest children who often name a toy or pet. We take an annual picture of all the kids, and also of everyone present if there's someone who can take it who's not a relative. Also of each individual family. Some use this on their Christmas card.

our tradition is just to all play some kind of board game after we eat...it's very fun!!
you have to find a game that alot of people can play...or something with teams...
we have an absolute riot!

Hi Kellyan,
We always do I'm thnakfull for... Sometimes we do a funny one sometimes a serious one. Truthfully the funny ones are the best. Example One year my aunt had dinner at her house and she had a fresh turkey. When she cut into it it was still pink and she still served it. (yuck) So one of our things might be that I am thankfull that the turkey is all dried out. (instead of still raw) . Another thing you could do is start some kind of game that you all play. Whatever you do I am sure your family will enjoy just being together.

I wish I had some ideas for you but I don't. I host Thanksgiving dinner for both sides of our family every year but it seems to be all I can do to get dinner on the table...lol. I generally have anywhere from 15-25 people here. I think everyone is just happy to be together as a family that day though. I'll be watching your post for any ideas that I may be able to implement also.

T.