Thanksgiving is a wonderful time of year to spend with family and show how thankful you are. There are so many traditions and celebrations throughout the country here are just a few for your reading pleasure.
“As wonderful as Thanksgiving can be, we all know it can be exhausting and overwhelming. That’s why it’s such a good idea to deliberately take a little time for yourself during the day to make sure you enjoy the holiday on your terms.”- thekitchn.com
“Many families take turns sharing what they are most thankful for during their Thanksgiving meal. But we challenge everyone to keep Thanksgiving gratitude alive all year.”. –thanksgiving.com
“Each year at Thanksgiving, the President of the United States receives a gift of a live turkey (along with an alternate in case something happens to the official turkey). At a White House ceremony, the president traditionally “pardons” the National Thanksgiving Turkey and the alternate turkeys, allowing them to live out the rest of their lives on a farm.” – kids.nationalgeographic.com
“For many, turkey and football go hand in hand, and Americans spend much of Thanksgiving Day watching and/or playing football. Dating back to the first intercollegiate football championship held on Thanksgiving Day in 1876, according to The Pro Football Hall of Fame, football games on Thanksgiving was once a tradition among colleges and high schools, but expanded once the NFL started scheduling games during the holiday. The first two Thanksgiving Day football games are hosted by the Detroit Lions and the Dallas Cowboys; and a third game with rotating host teams has been played every year since 2006.”. – thanksgiving.com
“If you’re not close to your loved ones during Thanksgiving, thankfully you can still be together — just virtually! Do a video call before dinner, or Facetime family members in for the giving-thanks portion of the evening. Make it an annual thing.”.- thekitchn.com
“Traditional foods are a large part of Thanksgiving celebrations. Many families include the entire family in the food preparation. Traditional foods include turkey, stuffing, gravy, sweet potatoes, cornbread, mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauce. Many people serve pie for dessert at the end of the meal. Popular pie flavors are pumpkin, pecan, sweet potato, and apple.” – kids.nationalgeographic.com
“The wishbone (or furcular bone) is often taken out of the turkey after the roasted poultry has been sliced, and tugged on by family members in effort to crack it in half. According to the tale of the wishbone, whomever breaks off the bigger piece of the wishbone will get one special wish granted. This tradition dates back to the Etruscans of 322 B.C., who believed that birds were sacred. The Romans brought the tradition with them when they conquered England and the English colonists carried the tradition on to America.” – thanksgiving.com
With the closing of thanksgiving many families take time to pull out the Christmas trees and start decorating for Christmas with the family. Having holiday traditions really helps to bring your family closer throughout the holidays and to have bonding moments. Happy Thanksgiving!