We love our holidays in the U.S. so much we are creating informal ones to give us more to celebrate! Friendsgiving is a day where friends come together to eat and enjoy each other’s company. From the combination of the words, you can tell it is a blend of ‘friends’ and ‘Thanksgiving.’ Usually, the participants will share a large meal near or on Thanksgiving day. Some people are serious about Friendsgiving celebrations: there are how-tos, sample menus, and even “rules” for Friendsgiving. However, the day can be as involved or as simple as you would like! Pick and choose from our Friendsgiving ideas below to host a fabulous Friendsgiving event this year.
Why Host a Friendsgiving Meal?
Many women over 50 may wish to spend time with their family on holidays. Sometimes, their children or other family members can live far away, though. It may be their year to spend with their spouse’s family. This makes it difficult to get together during the holidays. If this is the case, the holidays may be lonely. However, hosting Friendsgiving can benefit mature Americans in many ways, including:
- Gathering with friends that they may not have seen in years
- The chance to meet new people and make new friends in their community – invite “strays” in your office, neighborhood, or groups
- Learn new cooking skills and taste new meals
- Indulge in recapping old memories
- Those who may otherwise be alone for the holidays will get to spend time with people they actually like and start new traditions.
Friendsgiving Ideas for Hosting
Friendsgiving celebrations are a day to focus on friends! Especially for people who may be missing family, you will want to wow them so they won’t feel like they’re missing anything. You can unleash the recipe you have been working on and invite some of your friends to showcase their skills. Food is a vital part of any Thanksgiving, and so should be vital to Friendsgiving as well. Traditional foods such as turkey and mashed potatoes can be an option. But remember the essence and value of all of you being together, so spend time celebrating instead of cooking elaborate dishes. It is advisable that you go for easy recipes, have ready-made food, and ensure you spend most of your time sharing the moments precisely as these Friendsgiving ideas indicate. Or, invite everyone early and cook all the dishes together (while maybe drinking wine and playing some danceable/singable music.)
If the thought of cooking at all seems too stressful, many places offer catered feasts these days- from your local grocery stores to restaurants to the group next door that sells fried turkeys. Order in and laugh at how easy it all is.
Friendsgiving Activities to Entertain Guests
When planning this celebration, many activity ideas come to mind. Have some fun, research, and learn what will be appealing to the people you are inviting. You need ideas that will work with all your friends attending. Some of these unique ideas may include:
- Make the meal a potluck! Ask everyone to bring their favorite Thanksgiving dish and a story about why it is their favorite. This will be a sweet way to think of Thanksgiving pasts.
- Have a cookie-decorating contest. Provide plain Thanksgiving-themed sugar cookies and some decorations, and then vote on the best cookie.
- Volunteer for a few hours as a group. Serve food in a food kitchen, walk dogs at the local animal shelter, or volunteer at a children’s hospital. After an afternoon spent giving back, everyone will be hungry for a great meal.
- Make your own party favors. Provide some small gourds and craft supplies so people can create their own Friendsgiving masterpiece or set up a photo station and send people home with instant photos of the day.
- Plan a wine pairing and tasting to introduce guests to new types of wine and encourage conversation about their favorite combinations.
- Host after hours or a day later and serve the leftovers – If your friends are spending the big day with family, host it after and let people bring whatever’s left from that feast, including already-opened bottles of spirits. It’s the ultimate in casual fun.
Add an Extra Touch with Friendsgiving Decor!
You may want to be creative with the décor you set up for this day. For example, you can choose a unique color theme. Fall colors can be monotonous. You can break away by setting up a totally different theme color, like copper and green, or navy and trendy rose gold.
There is no standard Friendsgiving color, and you are free to try anything! You can also purchase potted plants, either synthetic or live, for a nice table centerpiece. You can also purchase additional items to add a special touch of celebration for this day, like candles, name cards, and fall-themed napkins. We’ve included some of our favorite options below!
All in all, Friendsgiving is an excellent holiday celebration option for people who may be away from their families but still want to participate. It is also a good way to stay in touch with friends who are special to you or meet people you’ve wanted to know better. These Friendsgiving ideas will help you host a successful meal that will keep friends coming back year after year!
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