How to Host a Friendsgiving

While it feels like it was just Halloweekend, Thanksgiving is rapidly approaching, and with all the chaos of the fall semester, Friendsgiving may not even be on your radar. However, a Thanksgiving-inspired gathering may be the perfect excuse to reunite with your hometown friends and share gratitude for one another, along with all the daily blessings we have.

A great way to get the Friendsgiving preparations started is seeing who can provide what food! After all, what would Friendsgiving be without typical Thanksgiving food?

1. MAC-N-CHEESE is an annual favorite at my friends’ Thanksgiving celebration, as a large dish of it is easy to prepare for many people to share! Mac-n-cheese also doubles as an entree and a side which is helpful as most people only bring sides to Friendsgiving.
2. TURKEY/ BEEF/ CHICKEN KABOBS are also good ways to make sure the entree is provided for during your friends’ makeshift Thanksgiving dinner, as they are more portable than an entire turkey and easier to prepare—even as dignified college students, I doubt most of us know how to cook a full turkey, let alone have that type of time. 
3. MASHED POTATOES, GREEN BEANS, and ROASTED CARROTS are some of the most typical Thanksgiving sides, which are effortless to prepare! Many of my friends tend to steer clear of bringing traditional Thanksgiving food, since it typically takes hours to prepare; however, these sides capture the essence of Thanksgiving while avoiding the laborious process. 
4. MARSHMALLOW SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE is an all-time Friendsgiving classic because it is so fun to make, especially with friends before the actual Friendsgiving takes place. Although it sounds a little funky, it tastes like Thanksgiving—make sure to add cinnamon!
5. PIES of all types—pumpkin, pecan, apple, the list goes on and on—are the epitome of Thanksgiving and are also so enjoyable to make with friends. Instructions are typically listed on the back of the pumpkin filling or pie crusts for details on how to make the pie, which makes the process so much more effortless.

As the host, some Thanksgiving decor is expected, so here are some easy ways to Thanksgiving-ify your house!

1. BANNERS can vary from professional to homemade, from long paper rolls. They add so much color and give the whole room an air of Thanksgiving—be sure to accentuate the reds, oranges, yellows, and browns while incorporating typical Thanksgiving images varying between leaves, cornucopias, turkeys, pilgrims, and native americans.
2. CUTLERY SUPPLIES—from forks, knives, plates, napkins, tablecloths, and cups—should preferably be ordered in one of the traditional Thanksgiving colors because it furthers the Thanksgiving ambiance. This is also an easily shareable task for people to bring who may not be able to pitch in by bringing food. 
3. BOWS everywhere, from being tied to wine glasses, silverware, cups, or candles, can contribute to adding cute decor with little details around the house. One roll of Thanksgiving colored or patterned ribbon typically does the job! Additionally, large red, orange, yellow, or brown tablecloths can be tied into large bows and pinned to the wall, which also serves to add Thanksgiving-themed decor to a room!
4. TABLE CENTERPIECES can also Thanksgiving-ify a table, whether it be dried flowers, candles, leaves, red-orange bouquets, pinecones, or even a cornucopia if you can come by one. Creativity is key!

Finally, at the end of the day, Friendsgiving is meant to be a time where you show gratitude for your friendships, which is especially important if it is a Friendsgiving with hometown friends you do not see often. The following are activities you can do before or after your Friendsgiving feast to connect with your friends.

1. GRATITUDE BOARDS can be the simplest way to appreciate all we have to be grateful for, and can be as simple as a large piece of paper pinned to the wall saying “I’m thankful for…” and providing pens beside it. When the paper is filled, it helps to visualize all we have to be grateful for and is a good way to remember that year’s Friendsgiving far into the future.
2. POWERPOINT PRESENTATIONS of a recap of everyone’s semester thus far can be an insanely fun and chaotic way to get to know what your hometown friends have been doing up until Thanksgiving break! (Photo evidence really adds to this).
3. BOUQUET MAKING is also a cute little activity to do if the host is willing to provide many red, orange, yellow, or brown flowers, so everyone can add a variety of flowers to their mini-bouquets to take home. I especially love min-bouquet making because all of the flowers around add so many colors, and I typically dry the flowers after to use for other projects.
4. CANDLE-PAINTING and other Thanksgiving-themed crafts can also be fun little activities to do with your friends at friendsgiving, rather than only having a meal together. By melting other red, orange, yellow, or brown candles to use to paint larger, longer candles, you can create small patterns or images of leaves, hearts, bows, and much more along the candle to personalize it.

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