Simplify Your Holiday Gatherings

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Sam’s Club. The opinions and text are all mine.

Thanksgiving is upon us! Whether you are wrapping up work, traveling, shopping for groceries or prepping to host the big day my number one piece of advice for this holiday season is to simplify. We can get so wrapped up in creating the perfect holiday dinner we lose sight of the biggest joy…sharing the day with the ones we love.

Here are my favorite ways to simplify your holiday gatherings…

• Prepare your dishes the day (or two) before so you’re not overwhelmed on teh day of. Cheesecake will refrigerate or freeze nicely, even mashed potatoes can be prepped ahead of time and just popped in the oven.
• Utilize a slow cooker or two to save on oven space. Green bean casserole and even sweet potato casserole can be cooked in a crock pot! Plug them in away from the main action and let them do all the work!​

• Accept help! When people ask what they can bring practice saying “Oh that’s lovely and so appreciated! Could you bring the ___________? Most family dinners people are used to sharing the load and enjoy making something to bring as well.
• Buy ready-made items like rolls, desserts, pie crust, and sides. I popped into Sam’s Club again and loved their selection of “helper” ready-made items. Who has time to make yeast rolls for 30 people? They have such high quality items no one will miss the from-scratch pie crust. I picked up yeast rolls, a pumpkin pie, and a squash casserole–all were excellent! Just pop them into your own dishes and no one will be the wiser.

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• Delegate, delegate, delegate. Ask your brother to pour drinks, the kids to set the table and have someone else run out to pick up the whipped cream you forgot. You could also have some people assigned to the “prep” team and others to the “cleanup team” so the kitchen and dining room don’t get chaotic with too many people.
• Let go of perfect and embrace easy. This might mean skipping china and going for plates that can be washed in the dishwasher or maybe making a big pot of soup, salad, and bread instead of the big turkey feast. I remember one Christmas dinner when my Grandma ordered pizza! It was delicious, stress-free and we were all together, which was all that mattered!

Holiday entertaining can be stressful, but it doesn’t have to be! By planning ahead, using the affordable, gourmet selections from Sam’s Club, being willing to receive help, and letting go of perfect you can truly savor the holidays and simplify your holiday gatherings! For more tips on hosting an amazing dinner party check out FoodNetwork.com/party, your one-stop source for great tips, recipes and behind the-scenes videos with Sam’s Club® Members.

[tweetthis]Simplify Holiday Gatherings so you can relax and enjoy what is truly important…family. #thankful[/tweetthis]

Simplify this Thanksgiving (and Christmas!) so you can relax and truly soak in the holiday magic. We have so much to be thankful for!

Do you tend to keep it simple or go overboard at the holidays?

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