This time of the year is a time to be thankful for friends and family. Whether you are spending the holidays at home or traveling to see loved ones, may you have a safe and happy Thanksgiving filled with good food, laughter, love and memories for a lifetime. We all have our Thanksgiving Day traditions and I know my family and I try to make new traditions every year. So for your family day, I have compiled a list of things you can do as a family and even some ways you can give back if you are in the Denver area.
Volunteer together – There are so many ways to give back over the holidays around the city. You can help provide meals, deliver meals, prep meals, provide homes, purchase presents and much more. If you are interested take the family and check out one of these great organizations:
· Denver Rescue Mission
· Thanksgiving Dinner for Parker Task Force Clients
· Volunteers of America – baskets of joy
· Denver Catholic Worker Soup Kitchen
· Operation Turkey
· Safehouse Denver
· Project PAVE
· The Delores Project
· Rocky-mountain youth clinic
· TLC Meals on Wheels
Get outside – the weather is looking great for Thanksgiving Day around Denver with temps reaching in the 70s. Get outside and play a good old family game of football or maybe have the kids of the family help set up a scavenger hunt around the yard.
Go get a Christmas Tree – The weekend after Thanksgiving many people take the opportunity to start their Christmas decorating and that includes grabbing a tree. Find a great local tree farm or organization such as a local church or the boy-scouts selling trees and take the family to get the perfect one for your home.
Family game night – What better to bring the family together, or throw some serious competition into the mix, then having a game night with the whole group? There are so many great games to choose from these days that the whole family can play from Pictionary to Apples to Apples there are so many great games for family members or all ages.
Share family memories – Sometimes, the holidays are the only time people see members of their families during the year. Different generations gather and it is a great time to share fond memories people have with one another, open up picture albums and recall those who came before and cherish the new members.
Have a sing-along – Karaoke is not dead and what better way to break the ice with everyone then busting out some instruments and a holiday radio station and having a good old sing-along?
Prepare food together – There is always a lot of food prep that goes into Thanksgiving Day and it can take a team to make sure everything gets made. Designate family members to help with certain dishes and have a good time while cooking them all!
Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday!!