Despite what your stomach's highly anticipating, Thanksgiving isn't all about delicious turkey, mashed potatoes, and apple pie. While a festive dinner is a major part of the holiday, Thanksgiving is truly about spending quality time with the ones you love and are most thankful for. Since Thanksgiving feasts amid the coronavirus pandemic should be enjoyed on Zoom and/or only with the members of your immediate household. If you want to be as safe as possible, you can still get excited about the virtual Thanksgiving ideas you can plan that'll make your holiday something to gobble about.
While living in a COVID-19 reality, it's imperative to always be aware of and take the necessary safety precautions, especially during the holidays, when large get-togethers are more common. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggests opting for a virtual Thanksgiving and/or physically celebrating with only those you've been quarantining with. These options present the lowest risk of contracting or spreading the coronavirus. That means your holiday celebrations will probably look quite different, as your entire extended family will not be gathering around the same dinner table. But, the spirit of Thanksgiving can still remain strong, even if the festivities are virtual.
So, we've come up with fun ways for all of your loved ones to celebrate and enjoy Thanksgiving together, virtually, from the safety of their own homes. For example, while everyone's waiting for their turkeys to roast, consider playing a round or two of music bingo. It can focus on holiday songs or nostalgia-filled faves. There are also cooking games everyone can play since this holiday revolves around the kitchen.
Whatever virtual Thanksgiving ideas you end up putting together, you and your loved ones may enjoy them so much that they become new traditions you'll want to continue for years to come.
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A virtual scavenger hunt is always a fun way to pass the time. Each player needs a cornucopia basket ($8, partycity.com). In the allotted time given, have each household search around their homes for items to put in their baskets. The catch is, the items must be alphabetical. (Example: an apple, brush, cotton ball, etc.).
At the end of a given time frame, each household can show off their stuffed cornucopias on Zoom. Everyone receives a point for each item they find, but bonus points can also be awarded for creativity.
Thanksgiving is a time for catching up, so turn your catch-up session into some fun. Assign each person a common word or phrase that may get said during virtual dinner. Every time someone says that word or phrase, they must take a sip of their chosen beverage. The catch is, they must do it subtly, because the winner is whoever can figure out everyone else's word or phrase correctly.
Are you too tired from preparing Thanksgiving dinner to plan anything else? Well, have someone else do it for you. Book a Main Event experience like The Brainy Bunch ($33 per guest), which will have you answering back-to-back trivia questions to move forward on a virtual board game. All the work will be done for you, so all everyone needs to do is think hard and answer the questions.
This is like a combo of a murder mystery party and the game Celebrity. Have everyone dress up as different famous figures. They can be fictional or real-life, but no one else can know who they are.
During dinner, each person will act like their chosen celebrity, and at the end of the night, the group gets to guess who everyone is impersonating. Whichever guest correctly guesses the most dinner guests wins a prize.
Since all of the families will be in their own kitchens this year, plan a cooking challenge for each household. With the theme of coming together, pick out two ingredients you might not think of putting together at first. Then, have each family make a frankenfood out of them. Each family can post their finished dishes to the 'Gram and see who gets the most likes.
Gossiping and spilling the tea with your family is a big part of Thanksgiving. You're probably expecting to be asked the question, "So, what's been going on with you?" about a million times. To make it more fun, have each family put together a slideshow or show-and-tell of their year in review. Everyone should include some silly photos and videos of their 2020 highlights.
Charcuterie boards aren't just about cheese anymore. People are making candy charcuterie boards and even hot chocolate charcuterie boards for the holiday season. With this in mind, challenge each one of the Zoom families to make the most unique and Insta-worthy charcuterie boards. Share pics and vote on which board is most worthy of being posted for all to see.
Don't just play bingo — make it music bingo instead. Make various bingo cards by putting different song titles in each one of the squares. Then, have a playlist with the chosen song titles ready to play in shuffle mode. When a song comes on that's on your board, you can cross it off. The first family to call out "bingo" wins.
If you think you’re showing symptoms of coronavirus, which include fever, shortness of breath, and cough, call your doctor before going to get tested. If you’re anxious about the virus’s spread in your community, visit the CDC for up-to-date information and resources, or seek out mental health support. You can find all Elite Daily's coverage of coronavirus here.
