How to celebrate Thanksgiving for less
Thanksgiving is right around the corner. Perhaps you have already started making plans with friends and family and have agreed to host the meal at your home this year. Before the day arrives, consider implementing the following tips, which can help you avoid breaking your budget for the big feast.
1. Make dinner a collaborative effort. Have each of your guests agree to bring one or two of the dishes needed for dinner. This not only saves you big money, but also reduces your workload – and stress – and allows visitors to feel like they’re contributing something to the meal.
2. Avoid overbuying. Unless you’re a chef at a dining facility, you may not have any clue about how much food to buy for your particular crowd. Click on the following link to estimate your needs: Thanksgiving shopping list calculator.
3. Start shopping now and use coupons. To avoid the higher seasonal prices that often accompany Thanksgiving-related items, start shopping early – like now – and keep an eye out for coupons and in-store deals. Remember that supermarket discounts change weekly, so if you start shopping now, you’ll have more opportunities to scout out great deals.
4. Cook from scratch. Cooking from scratch is almost always cheaper than buying ready-made products or mixes. You’ll spend a bit more time in the kitchen, but you can realistically expect to cut the cost of your meal in half this way.
5. Volunteer. If you want to really mix things up this year, why not consider volunteering for Thanksgiving? Soup kitchens and Meals On Wheels are always looking for people to help out on this holiday. Not only would you skip all the buying, cooking, decorating and cleanup, but you would be helping others and be reminded of how truly blessed your life is.
I’m linking this up to Home Stories A to Z.
Great suggestions! I come from a large family and we have always practiced #1. Grandma usually makes the turkey and gravy, everyone else is responsible to bring at least one side dish and a dessert.