Thanksgiving is such a fun time of year for adults and children alike, and if you plan on throwing a party for thanksgiving it is important to provide children with entertaining activities to take part in. Here are a few examples of festive and fun Thanksgiving activities for kids.

The Turkey Trot is a simple activity for young children. To do the turkey trot, find an open area to play in like your yard. Instruct the children to form their arms into wings and imitate turkeys. This is a silly activity that will have everyone giggling and the best part is it involves imagination. The kids can be fancy turkeys, scary turkeys, baby turkeys, or whatever they can imagine!

Free the Fowl is a festive version of Kick the Can. One player is chosen as “it” and a can or football is placed in an open space. “It” will count to a predetermined number while the other children hide and when “it” is finished counting, he or she will try to tag the others. If a player is tagged, he or she must freeze. Any unfrozen player can kick the can. If it’s kicked, the frozen players are freed. If all the players are frozen, “it” wins.

Wall Football is a variation of Pin the Tail on the Donkey. To prepare for this game, design a large field goal on a wall using paper and tape. Cut out football shapes using brown paper with a tape roll on the back and have kids write their name on their football. Spin blindfolded kids around three times and have them stick their football on the wall. Getting the ball inside the field goal boundary is worth three points. After several rounds, the child with the most points wins.

Teaspoon Pass will keep little hands busy. Place five shelled peanuts on a plate. The object of the game is for children to pass the nuts along using their spoons without dropping any nuts.

Hand Turkey – a time-tested favorite activity is tracing your hand and decorating it like a turkey! Children can use glue, yarn, glitter, markers, and crayons. Hanging the festive art on your walls will give the children a sense of pride.

If you’re occupied with cooking, no worries! Simply call TalkLocal to be connected with professionals. They’ll help you find a party planner who can give you a hand and make the day seamless, fun, and stress-free. Happy Thanksgiving!

For many people, Thanksgiving provides a time and venue for families to spend time with one another. If you have a large family, this can mean a lot of children running around or a lot of guests who want entertainment as well as food. Keeping some inexpensive playing cards on hand can give your guests something fun to do as they socialize with friends and family. Read on to learn more about some classic card games for Thanksgiving that you can use to make your holiday lively and entertaining for all your guests.

Go Fish

The game “Go Fish” has seemingly been around forever, and many kids and adults of all ages enjoy it. The game works for 2-6 players. Each player begins the game with 5 cards. The rest of the cards form the draw pile. Players take turns, and on each turn the player asks an opponent for a specific type of card, saying something like, “Bob, give me all your fives,” or “Lucy, give me all your diamonds.” If the player being asked has any of the types of cards requested, he or she must give them to the player who requests them. If he or she does not, the player says, “Go Fish.” The person who asked for the card now must take a card from the draw pile. The goal of play is to collect four of a kind—all the kings, all the twos, etc.–and discard them from one’s hand. The first player to run out of cards ends the game, and the person with the most sets of four wins.

Crazy Eights

This game works for 2-6 players as well, and many people like to add variations and twists on the basic game to make it more complicated or more fun. Each player begins with 5 cards, and the cards that are left form the draw pile. The dealer flips over the top card of the draw pile to create a discard pile. Play rotates in a clockwise direction with each player attempting to run out of cards by discarding them. To legally discard a card, it must match either the rank or suit of the card already on top of the discard pile. If, on your turn, you don’t have any cards to discard legally, you must take a card from the draw pile until you receive one you can discard. Eights are considered wild, and players can place an eight on the discard pile at any time. The person who plays the eight can simultaneously call for a change in suit. Only another eight or a card matching the suit change can be discarded on top of an eight.

If you’re looking for more party planning ideas, search TalkLocal to find a reputable party or event planner.

With Thanksgiving tomorrow, cooks everywhere are turning to their trusted cookbooks and perusing online sites for stuffing or dressing recipes, whichever you prefer. There is no shortage of recipes and we all have our favorites. Most stuffing recipes have some form of meat in them, like bacon or sausage or a meat broth. However, the thoughtful cook will be mindful of vegetarian friends by preparing a vegetarian stuffing recipe. Following are five amazing vegetarian stuffing recipes.

Chestnut Stuffing
Serves 16

Ingredients:

• 2 cups chestnuts
• 2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
• 1-1/2 cups margarine
• 2 loaves day-old bread cubed
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Slit surface of chestnuts with sharp knife. Cover with water in medium saucepan and boil 25 minutes or until tender. Drain, peel, and chop.
3. Melt margarine. Stir in chestnuts, onion, salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning. Sauté until tender, about 3 minutes. Transfer to baking dish. Add bread cubes and toss.
4. Beat eggs and milk, pour over bread mixture and toss again.
5. Bake 30 to 45 minutes until crisp and golden brown.

Herb Stuffing
Serves 12

Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 loaves cubed bread
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 medium carrots, finely chopped
• 2 medium celery stalks, finely chopped
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 1 cup fresh parsley leaves, coarsely chopped
• 3/4 teaspoon poultry seasoning
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2-1/2 cups vegetable broth

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Grease shallow baking dish.
3. Arrange bread on two, large ungreased cookie sheets; toast 15 minutes or until golden. Turn once during baking.
4. Sauté vegetables in oil until tender, stirring occasionally.
5. Stir in seasoning.
6. Reset temperature to 325 degrees.
7. Place bread in large bowl. Add broth and vegetable mixture. Toss until moistened.
8. Spoon into baking dish, cover with foil and bake 30 minutes.
9. Remove foil and bake 15 minutes or until golden.

Cranberry Stuffing
Serves 12

Ingredients: 

• 14 slices bread, cubed and lightly toasted
• 1-1/2 cups dried cranberries
• 2-1/2 cups apple juice
• 1 red onion, diced
• 2 celery stalks, diced
• 3 cloves minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons vegan margarine
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon sage
• 1 tablespoon parsley
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In large bowl toss bread, sautéed vegetables, cranberries, juice, and seasonings.
3. Spoon into greased baking dish.
4. Bake 20 to 25 minutes.

Cornbread, Leek, Pecan Stuffing
Serves 12

Ingredients:

• 2 cups pecans
• 16 cups coarsely broken cornbread
• 3 tablespoons vegan margarine
• 4 celery stalks, chopped
• 4 leeks chopped (white and pale-green parts)
• 1-1/2 tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped
• coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2-1/2 cups vegetable broth
• 4 eggs, lightly beaten

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Toast pecans for 7 minutes. Chop and combine with cornbread in large bowl.
3. Add sautéed vegetables, broth, herbs, and beaten eggs with cornbread mixture. Toss.
4. Transfer to baking dish. Bake 30 minutes until golden.

Mushroom Stuffing
Serves 8

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons vegan margarine
• 2 large onions, chopped
• 6 stalks celery cut in thin slices
• salt and pepper
• 1-1/2 lbs. assorted mushrooms, halved
• 1 can vegetable broth
• 1 cup fresh parsley, chopped
• 3 eggs, beaten

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Sauté vegetables, add mushrooms, cook covered 7 minutes. Cook uncovered 15 minutes. Add to large bowl.
3. Add bread, broth, seasonings, and beaten eggs.
4. Place in greased dish.
5. Bake 25 minutes, covered. Bake 20 more minutes uncovered.

So here’s hoping you have a great, inclusive, and happy Thanksgiving! If you need to contact professional party planners, or have questions, contact TalkLocal. It is quick and easy.