Every Thanksgiving we make the same exact menu. It is great. We have our favorites of course and for years we would tweak our recipes and our list until it has finally reached the list it is today. We love celebrating Thanksgiving. It is all about giving thanks ( and eating food ) – no other expectations or additional requirements. It’s simple.
Some families experience stress during this holiday when they all gather together with a large extended family that may include fringe whacky relatives. There is also the stress experienced by the host and hostess who want to make this day perfect ( and often find more criticism and “helpful advice” than they really feel is necessary ).
Our solution to ease that stress is the posted menu. Years ago we posted the menu ( including recipes ) for our Thanksgiving dinner on our family blog. Then we sent the link to all of our invited guests and let them know they could provide their input up until Thanksgiving day but once we all gathered together our expectation was that the day was to be enjoyed right along with the food.
Establishing expectations and giving family members a chance to provide their input has made our Thanksgiving celebrations one of the happiest days of our year.