A Friendsgiving potluck has become more and more common over recent years. What is Friendsgiving you ask? It’s a chance for friends to get together and celebrate Thanksgiving with the friends that make up their chosen family. It allows for quality time together, sharing good food, and lots of laughs. With a Friendsgiving potluck you can have all the fun and enjoyment that’s an essential part of Friendsgiving while staying on budget.
Unlike Thanksgiving, which falls on the same date each year, Friendsgiving can be arranged around schedules and usually occurs in November or December. This scheduling flexibility allows for people who work rotating schedules or for people who also want to celebrate traditional Thanksgiving with family to celebrate both occasions. The first step to create an amazing Friendsgiving potluck is to find a date and time that works for the group and to find someone who is willing to host the event.
The second step is to coordinate the meal. I like to use SignUp Genius as the free tool to decide who is bringing which item. This way you can break it down by categories so you don’t end up with all desserts and no sides. It also allows people to write in what dish they plan to bring so that you don’t end up with duplicates. Some friend groups may have master chefs who make everything from scratch, but other groups can really benefit from the different categories so guests with less skill in the kitchen can still contribute in a meaningful way by contributing something like salad, chips, or even drinks. The best part about this step is that even if you have two Friendsgiving potlucks with different friends as long as you have different people participate the food will always be slightly different.
The final step is to enjoy the event. Laugh with friends, enjoy the delicious food, and share your gratitude for such an amazing group of people. Friends are truly the family that you choose. Regardless of whether you have an amazing family and Thanksgiving is great or if your Thanksgiving is a little more stress than fun, a Friendsgiving potluck is still a fun way to gather as friends, eat a delicious meal, and do it all without spending too much money. Pausing for a moment to appreciate the things you have and are grateful for can be an incredibly powerful reminder.
For Friendsgivings that include little kids, bonus points if you have activities such as drawing and coloring a turkey hand and writing something that lets them reflect on what they are grateful for. Not only does this give the kids something to do while the adults talk, it will also create a pretty wall display and will remind the adults to be grateful for the little things. Since Friendsgiving doesn’t have a set of traditions, you can create your own and include things your group enjoys whether it’s crafts, movies, board games, or something else entirely.
Friendsgiving potlucks are truly one of my favorite traditions of the season. It’s a perfect low stress event that blends fun, friends, and food. Have you enjoyed a Friendsgiving potluck? Share a picture and your favorite part in the comments below.
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