If your family is anything like mine, holidays meals are a dependable tradition that have very little variation. Grandma always makes red jello with fruit cocktail and marshmallows. The holiday hostess duties rotate between my mom and Aunt Brenda each year. Several cans of olives are finished before dinner starts, Aunt Rhonda makes sugar-free desserts for my Grandpa who eats the pie anyways and my dad snores on the couch during the football game. Any of these sound familiar to you?
The beauty of Friendsgiving is that you get to makes those traditions with people you choose to be family with. That’s where good ol’ Google comes in handy when planning your Friendsgiving. Organizing a dinner party on the very important Turkey Day doesn’t seamlessly come together unless you’ve been conditioned for two decades to arrive no earlier than 2 pm with Deviled Eggs and Snicker’s Salad.
Google+ Events
As much as I love Google, I’m usually making fun of Google+ rather than encouraging its use. However, I was recently invited to a Google+ Event for a friend’s Bachelorette party and I really like it. It’s like a Facebook event except less of a hot mess because of the accompanied group chat and annoying notifications. The interface is super friendly and it let’s all of those timing, recipe and guest list questions get answered in one place. I would recommend using this for the organization part of Friendsgiving but one extra perk is that everyone can share their pictures in the Event. Again, very much like Facebook but if the Event is private you can avoid inducing the jealousy of your other friend groups when your delicious dinner pictures are posted privately. Learn how to make a Google+ Event here.
Google Drive
Formally and affectionately known as Google Docs, this is the tool for the ultra organized Friendsgiving group. To avoid scrolling through the “I’m so excited!” and “Carpool anyone?” comments on the Event page, use a Google document as the sign-up sheet for food items. Be sure to share the document in your Google+ event for easy access to the list.
Google Blog Search
Add a unique touch to your party by grabbing fun ideas from the many small and large blogs across the Internet. Check out the Google Blog Search for Friendsgiving search results only from, you guessed it, blogs. This Whole Foods blog post shares a couple of fun ideas in Dos and Don’ts for the Ultimate Friendsgiving Potluck.
Do you have fun ideas from your Friendsgiving dinners? Share them in the comments!
Happy Thanksgiving & Friendsgiving,
@laurylkitson