Thanksgiving Activities — Tandem

Tandem’s guide for the top 15 thanksgiving activities for your family this year:

1. Family Tree

This holiday season, construct a family tree with your loved ones around the dinner table. This is a great activity for the kids or even when you have your extended family over. Constructing a family tree is the perfect way to get the family talking about their past and extended love ones who have passed away. It is a wholesome activity that brings back memories and allows the older people in the family to reminisce, while the younger people in the family learn about their history.

2. Post Meal Walk

Thanksgiving dinner is more of a feast for most American families. We all know and love the feeling of being so full that you start to get sleepy and the thought of eating any more is nauseating. This is the perfect time to go on a family walk! Going on a family walk after Thanksgiving dinner is a great way to get the family out and about together with no technology, while also combatting the intense feeling that all the food gave everyone. You can talk with your family about things you don’t usually have time to do. Ask the kids about their friends and hobbies. Take a minute to chat with your family and talk about the things you are all thankful for.

3. Play Parade Bingo

Parade Bingo is a must for families who have different parades in the background during Thanksgiving. You can find different themes online and copy them cost-free on your bingo boards, or you can print them! Traditionally, Thanksgiving Bingo looks for things like a turkey, a snowman, or other festive things that will probably be featured in a parade. See who can get Bingo first, and reward them with the wishbone or to eat first!

4. Watch Macy’s Parade

Speaking of parades, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade is an absolute must if you like watching them or plan on playing parade bingo. It is known for being extravagant, long, and full of awesome floats. You are sure to find the best floats and have an awesome parade bingo with the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade.

5. Board Game

Playing board games seems like a thing of the past nowadays. In this new world of constant stimulation and technology, sometimes it’s hard to find time to sit down with your friends and family and just play an old-fashioned board game. You can go for a more festive board game like this game, or something less specific like Monopoly or Yahtzee.

6. Jump in the leaves (and take pictures of the kids!)

This Thanksgiving, you’re sure to be surrounded by falling leaves everywhere. For most homeowners, the fall leaves are a hassle that needs to be raked up almost weekly until snowfall. Instead of raking them up and going back inside, let the kids play in them. Jumping in the leaves is something we all loved as kids, and today’s generation should experience it too! Have the kids help rake up the leaves, and turn it into a game to see who can get the biggest pile. Then, let them jump into them! Combine the piles, and take pictures of your kids having a blast with something as simple as a pile of orange and red leaves. You are sure to love the memories, and they are too.

7. Have a family photoshoot

While you’re at it, the fall weather is the perfect time to have a holiday photo shoot with your family. Most families come together at large gatherings for Thanksgiving. Take advantage of seeing your extended family, and have a photoshoot! Get lots of pictures of the kids with their distant loved ones. You can try and see if they would be willing to go outside and take fall-themed photos. It’s the perfect time for a family photo considering everyone is already in the same place.

8. Play the gratitude game A-Z

The A-Z gratitude game is the perfect Thanksgiving dinner game. No matter what version of it you play, the most basic rules are to go around and say what you’re grateful for, starting with the letter “A”. Mom says “I am grateful for the apple pie that Grandma made”, Grandma says “I am grateful for the bees that keep my garden pollinated.” You keep going around the table until you get to Z! It is a fun and creative way to

9. Have a Mini Pumpkin Scavenger Hunt

It can be so fun to buy those little mini pumpkins and hide them. Have the kids, or even the whole family, go on a scavenger hunt for the pumpkins. Similar to the fun in an Easter egg hunt, hosting a fall festive scavenger hunt can be a really fun Thanksgiving activity for both kids and adults.

10. Do a Puzzle

Doing a puzzle doesn’t sound like fun to most on the surface, but it can be a great Thanksgiving activity for the family. It’s a great time for everyone to crowd around the table and work on finding the right colors and pieces that go together. It’s a great time to talk with everyone and spend quality time working together on a puzzle.

11. Play Corn Hole

Corn hole is one of the most popular American games that are at almost every gathering for most families. Corn hole is a fun activity that almost everyone knows how to play. It’s simple, and it is a great opportunity to talk and catch up with distant family members who are in town for the holidays.

12. Craziest Thanksgiving Sock Contest

Take a spin on the usual “ugliest Christmas sweater contest”, and do a “craziest Thanksgiving sock contest”. It’s a fun way to get creative and have everyone show up to Thanksgiving dinner with their version of the craziest Thanksgiving socks they could find.

13. Have a Thanksgiving Movie Marathon

Another awesome Thanksgiving activity is having a movie marathon. Some great family Thanksgiving movies to put on are A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, Free Birds, or Turkey Hollow.

14. Give Gifts with Extended Family

If you have extended family coming over for the holidays that you probably won’t see around Christmas time, Thanksgiving is the perfect time to give gifts to those who you know won’t be around on Christmas. If you celebrate Christmas, Thanksgiving is a great time for gift giving to those who still want to get their extended family a card or a gift, but want to do it in person instead of mail it.

15. Play “Who’s the Baby?” Game

This game is perfect for family gatherings, especially if you have extended family coming over for dinner. This game is played by having a baby picture of everyone, and everyone guessing who’s the baby in the picture. This game is so fun and always makes family members reminisce on “the good ole days”.