Thanksgiving....For Everyone

Thanksgiving often involves parades, football and a grand meal but it's also known as a big family day ...whether that involves gathering one's relatives together or hosting a family of friends. 

Thanksgiving certainly is an intergenerational activity as everyone indulges in their favorite foods but it's also a great time to promote connection and create memories.

Here's a sampling of activities which can help create or boost interaction among the guests gathered at your Thanksgiving table, no matter how young or old they may be.

• Memory Cloth

Purchase a linen tablecloth and fabric pens. Encourage all guests to write out a message or   create a picture.  Once signed and dated, the cloth becomes a great conversation starter for years to come.

• Gratitude Circle

While some families rely on a traditional blessing for their Thanksgiving, there is also for some families the tradition of the Gratitude Circle which quite simply is a chance for everyone to state for what he or she is grateful.

• Skype Someone!

A computer screen may not replace a visit to a loved one’s home but it’s certainly a creative and fun way to connect.

• The Question Bowl

As everyone is enjoying dessert, place a large bowl in the center of the table which has been filled with slips of paper, each of which contains a question. Sample questions can include:

 If you could choose to be invisible or to be able to fly, which would you choose? What animal would you be and why? What do remember of your first day of school? What is the first movie you recall?  What would be your dream vacation?

• Capture the Moments

Leave a handful of disposable cameras around the house and encourage everyone to snap some photos!  Get the film processed and over the weekend, create a memory book.

• Play a game.

From Wii to puzzles to Pictionary, there is a game which can involve everyone in the family. If the age range and abilities of your guests are wide, then create teams of player to balance the playing field.

• Bring Out the Talking Spoon

Take a large spoon or ladle. Decorate with a ribbon or bow. Pass the spoon to each person at your Thanksgiving table and ask  everyone to respectfully listen while the person holding the spoon expresses a favorite Thanksgiving memory or gratitude for something which has happened over the past year.

 What traditions or ideas do you have? Do you have a "must do" family tradition or will you be introducing something new to your Thanksgiving holiday this year?

 Happy Thanksgiving!