Thanksgiving is not a big celebration in my family. Growing up, I can count the Thanksgiving feasts we have participated in on one hand. The most festive activity I would do would be baking a pumpkin or sweet potato pie. It was another day to enjoy being off from schol or work and spend time together. Most likely watching a movie or playing board games.

However, I do love Thanksgiving food, and I follow one too many food blogs on Instagram. Seeing all the Thanksgiving recipes and preparations for the holiday everyday was tempting. The recipes looked so delicious. The fact that I now had an apartment with a kitchenette, I thought it would be a fun idea to host my first Friendsgiving.

I never went back home for Thanksgiving, and every year was usually me studying or doing homework before going Black Friday shopping. This time I planned out my menu in advanced. I wrote down all the items I was planning to make since not planning stresses me out. I love cooking, so I was not afraid to experiment with new recipes, but this time my taste tester would be my roommate. I was a bit nervous about roasting my first chicken (I was not ready to attempt a turkey) since I never made on myself. Ever. It ended up coming out tender and juicy.

Although I love to plan, I am very last minute with inviting people. I always spontaneously invite people over, but this time I was asking people their plans. You can never plan for who you will see on campus, and we ended up inviting three more people the day of Friendsgiving! More people does make it more fun and everyone we invited were glad to have something to do on the day of Thanksgiving. Furthermore, I made it a potluck so I wouldn't feel overwhelmed with providing all the food. Everyone is more than willing to help set up or clean as well.

One thing I did not plan for well was having board games or activities for everyone after we all ate our fill. Luckily, one of my friends brought over Uno and taught everyone a new card game. I never have time to play a board game during the semester, so renting or asking your guests to bring a game to play helps to break the ice.

Overall, if you are worried about the logistics for planning a Friendsgiving (or any party), splitting it up into parts and writing the steps down helps make it seem less overwhelming. Breaking up small tasks for each day made it easier to focus on enjoying myself with my friends and not feel stressed out when everyone is sitting in the living room and you realize you don't have enough utensils. Also, do not be afraid to ask your friends to help out. They want to spend time with you too.

Go forth and plan your parties.