How to Host a Great Thanksgiving Dinner

Hosting a great Thanksgiving dinner can be exciting. But it also can be stressful, particularly if the host worries she will not be able to coordinate a successful gathering. If you keep in mind a few guidelines, though, you'll be the hostess with the most-ess for Turkey Day and beyond.

Delegate anything you don't want to do

People sometimes struggle with planning this type of event because they're afraid to admit that they are not good at certain things. So the first rule of thumb is to ask for help where you need it. It does not make you less of a hostess. Everyone knows what a production a great Thanksgiving dinner is. In fact, many guests feel guilty that someone else is doing all the work and consequently feel better when they can bring a side dish, help in the kitchen or keep small children occupied. You also might decorations, bringing extra chairs or organizing background music.

Begin two or three weeks ahead

The next step in hosting a great Thanksgiving dinner is to plan ahead. Determine everything from the exact menu to where people will sit. If you don't plan ahead, you'll likely forget something and/or get stressed if you're scrambling to get things done at the last minute. Weeks in advance, you can:

• Start eating everything in your refrigerator and freezer so you'll have room for food prep and leftovers.
• Plan the menu. (Don't forget drinks for all ages!)
• Create a shopping list.
• Nail down cooking times. (Use the microwave in addition to the oven, which will be full, and plan out advance cooking.)
• Decide which serving dishes will contain which foods.
• Plan/craft decorations, and even go ahead and decorate.
• Dole out roles for guests (what they can bring or what you hope they'll do during the gathering).
• Decide what you'll wear and schedule time the day of the event for a shower and makeup shortly before guests arrive.

The final countdown

A week in advance, you can:

• Tackle the shopping and start preparing items in advance.
• If any dishes can be refrigerated or frozen and then reheated, make those this week. Remember that you have limited oven space (and temperatures) and (typically) only four burners on your stove. Prepare as much as you can ahead of time to save some serious time-management headaches-or at least prevent a hot turkey and cold mashed potatoes.
• Chop and refrigerate or set aside things like celery and nuts that you'd put in stuffing to get the prep work out of the way.
• Clean the house and tidy up your yard and entry area.
• Decorate if you haven't already. If certain family members or guests don't get along, make place cards and seat them apart from one another.
• Set aside the outfit you'll put on.

Despite the hectic pace of the weeks preceding Thanksgiving and the day itself, it can be a wonderful chance to gather with friends and family. The holiday is a time to celebrate what people have been given. So consider your hosting stint an honor instead of a crisis. Indeed, the most important tip for hosting a great Thanksgiving dinner is to relax and have fun. Guests tense up when their host is stressed, so, if you must, force yourself to say, "Que será, será" ("Whatever will be, will be") and dig in!