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By the time November rolls around, the quarter system can really get to you feel fatigued, burnt out and tired of having too many midterms to count. But the great part about November is that it’s also Thanksgiving time! So what better way to take a nice break from school than to have a Friendsgiving with your SLO family before Thanksgiving break rolls around?
If you haven’t heard of Friendsgiving before, this could be your year to start this holiday tradition. Basically, you plan a potluck meal with your friends around Thanksgiving time, and you all eat until you can’t move, AKA my ideal kind of night.
Here are some tips to planning a great Friendsgiving to help you minimize stress and ensure you have a great time!
- Pick a time and place that works for everyone
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It’s not Friendsgiving if your friends aren’t there. And since we all know schedules can get pretty hectic at this point in the quarter, planning the time of your Friendsgiving in advance can help make sure that most of your friends are able to go.
You also need to make sure that whoever is hosting Friendsgiving has enough space to accommodate everyone. Trying to cram everyone into someone’s studio apartment, for example, won’t turn out so great on the night of your meal. If you can, try to ask people to contribute foldable chairs and tables if they have them so that everyone has a place to sit and eat.
- Keep track of who is bringing what
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Do you want a Friendsgiving where literally every person brings a pumpkin spice dessert? No, of course not! You want your Friendsgiving meal to have a little bit of everything: savory, sweet, salty, etc variety is the spice of life, after all.
Prevent a boring, bland Friendsgiving by organizing which friend is bringing which dish. Using a shareable Google Sheets link is simple and effective. Just be sure to set a limit as to how many desserts or side dishes there are, and let your friends know they shouldn’t be bringing the same type of food as someone else!
- Remember those with dietary restrictions
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Some of your friends might only eat food that is vegetarian, halal, vegan, kosher or gluten-free. Others might have allergies to certain food. Either way, it’s essential that these friends with dietary restrictions feel just as included in on Friendsgiving as everybody else.
After everyone has signed up for which dishes they’re bringing, give the list a quick skim. Is there more than just one option for your friends with dietary restrictions? If not, see if anyone would be willing to bring another option so your friends aren’t stuck just eating a single dish.
- Spruce up your dining area
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Friendsgiving is a holiday celebration, which means you don’t want all your friends coming over to eat dinner in the mess that’s been accumulating in your living room all quarter. (No judgment! We’ve all been there.)
Put in some effort to clean up the space where you and your friends will be eating and decorate it so that your Friendsgiving feels like a special occasion. It can be as simple as lighting a fall-scented candle. Or you can go all out with fall decorations, a nice tablecloth, and some fancy cloth napkins.
- Share what you’re thankful for
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Because Friendsgiving is based on Thanksgiving, it’s only fitting that you all give thanks.
You and your friends could go around in a circle and say what you’re appreciative of in your life right now. Or you could switch it up for Friendsgiving and have everyone write down what they are thankful for.
- Everyone helps with clean up
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If you’re the host/hostess of your Friendsgiving, it doesn’t mean that you have to be the sole person cleaning up the mess afterwards. In fact, everyone should be taking part in clean up after Friendsgiving is over!
Clean up definitely goes by a lot faster when there are more hands working together, and it means that whoever is hosting Friendsgiving feels appreciated for all their hard work as well.
Taking the time to plan ahead means that your Friendsgiving will be far less stressful. With organization and coordination, you can spend the night enjoying your friends’ company and all the delicious food. And at the end of the day, what more is there to be grateful for?