Beth Christy’s Pre-Thanksgiving Tips

With Thanksgiving only a week away, your stress level may be rising a bit, especially if you're the one hosting family and friends.  But it doesn't have to be that way. There are a few easy things you can do this week, to make next week a lot less stressful, and who knows, you might actually enjoy sitting around the table with all of your relatives.

Before you head out to the store to do your Thanksgiving grocery shopping, have you checked your pantry or cupboards first? This simple step could save you some money. You may find that you already bought the Turkey-sized cooking bag over the summer when they were on sale, that you have enough boxes of stuffing mix for at least 3 turkeys, and how many cans of cranberry sauce do you need for one holiday get together. Plus, it's a good idea to double check the expiration dates on all those boxes and cans in your pantry, to make sure you can actually use those items this year.

If you want to make that fancy dessert or amazing side dish for the first time this year, go ahead and do it, just don't wait until Thanksgiving morning to make it for the first time. Do a practice run this week. you'll feel a lot better come Thanksgiving morning and your family may even help do extra chores just to get a taste. If it doesn't turn out how you wanted, no problem, you still have time to fix what went wrong, or scrap the whole idea and get your tried and true recipe book out.

Let's talk chores. You and I both know that you probably are the best at dusting, vacuuming, and plumping the couch cushions and pillows just right. But let me ask you this question, how quickly do you want to lose your mind as you try to do everything yourself. Get your family involved, it doesn't have to be perfect, it just needs to be presentable. Besides, if any of your relatives actually pull out a white glove to check for dust, I say there's one less name on the Christmas gift list.

The holidays can mean a lot of stress for many different reasons, don't get stuck on the small stuff. Delegate some chores, double check your grocery list, and give those new dishes a try and you'll start the holidays with some small victories.

Happy Thanksgiving!