Last year our Thanksgiving dinner went off without a hitch. I’d like to say it was five years of practice that made it so, but I can’t take all the credit for how things came together. My whole family all worked together to make our Thanksgiving a feast that we could enjoy, but not keel over from. Below are some of the things we did that enabled me to enjoy the leftovers for days afterward without feeling Thanksgiving’d out.

We ate early

We skipped the appetizers and dug straight into the meal at around 4:30. This way we had ample time to digest before dessert. I can’t speak for my guests, but I know I didn’t feel nearly as stuffed as in past years. We were able to enjoy all of the food throughout the day. Our family was able to spend all day together without much worry on what everyone would eat.

We made more than we would need and packed it up right away

We had plenty of leftovers to feed our out of town guests with a minimum of hassle because we packed everything up in plastic containers right after we ate. Nothing went to waste and everything was preserved at its freshest.

We split the work

I drafted up a schedule of preparations the night before that gave each of us jobs to do. We didn’t plan it this way, but us young’uns did the cooking and the parents took care of the cleaning. Everything was back to normal before bedtime and I don’t think any of us were especially exhausted. It was comforting to know we wouldn’t have to wake up to a mess in the morning.

What are some of the ways your family handles the big day?