There’s a quick shot I took on my old Blackberry last year of the Thanksgiving dinner that I made. I’ll take a better pic this year of the whole dinner and all the dishes and share later! I’ve been cooking Thanksgiving dinner for the past 2 years (yes, I cook…….I find lots of people get shocked when I share this, lol) I found picture this today and was inspired (given our current season) to share these tips with you all! They’re core event planning principles which should also help you through your Thanksgiving prep. Enjoy!1. Advance Planning is Key – I can’t stress this enough for event planning or cooking. Its impossible to buy and cook a good turkey all in one day. And lots of supermarkets offer free turkeys if you spend a certain amount at their store during November – usually a pretty reasonable minimum for a month’s supply of groceries. So plan ahead! Figure out where you’ll be getting that turkey, capitalize on any free turkey deals either for you or a local charity, and be sure to also plan ahead for your seasonings! Turkeys are HUGE birds, and need a little time to soak in all that goodness – I personally recommend leaving it in a brine in your fridge for at least 2 days – which means no last minute shopping 🙂2. Make It Pretty – The way that the food tastes of course is important, but the presentation is almost just as important. Buy lots of potatoes, carrots and celery to fill in the pan around your bird, and add a little garnish if you’re feeling fancy. You can get great serving pans at the dollar store, and again – plan early because they all get sold out by the time Thanksgiving week comes. Add a few candles holiday scented here and there, bring out the good china and wine glasses and set the table. Make it a cozy setting that no one wants to leave so you get all the quality time you need!

3. Honor/Create Traditions – In my house, we alternate carving the turkey, and when all of the “kids” grew up, my parents stopped carving the turkey – I think they enjoy watching the “kids” do it, so my brothers and I just alternate. In our house, its a big deal to be the turkey carver that year! Its fun and something to be proud of – its one of those little things that just means a lot to us. We also go around and talk about what we’re thankful for, and pray over our meals. We take time to reflect over our year and what we’ve learned and how we’ve grown. Its just a great time to reflect on God’s goodness, and how blessed we are to have each other. I also always make a point to usher in the Christmas season with my favorite Christmas CD trio – Disney Christmas (don’t judge me! I been doing it since childhood, and its good music 🙂 ), Mariah Carey’s Christmas CD and Bebe and CeCe Winan’s Christmas CD. Doesn’t matter if its just the 5 of us, or if we have the whole Ogunfemi/Kalejaiye clan over. The traditions build the moment. Make sure you build yours, and memories that last this Thanksgiving!