Thanksgiving is a very famous tradition that brings a sense of togetherness among families, neighbors, friends and even tourists from different cultures.
The first celebration happened in the early 17th century, by the end of fall season and the theme was to celebrate the good harvest and other blessings along the year, while having a feast. As the seasons change to the beginning of winter, this is a time also of death and rebirth for new life and abundance to come.
Even though the main reason for the gathering hasn’t changed, from then till nowadays, some traditions were adapted and other customs were added to the celebration. Do you want to know what thanksgiving traditions we have that can make your ceremony even more fun? Keep reading!
Thanksgiving traditions in the US
The feast
The most popular symbol of thanksgiving is having a feast. After all, aren’t we happier and kinder when we share a meal?
The feast is a representation of the abundance that was received along the year, specially due to the harvest and is filled with traditional food. Popularly people eat Turkey with stuffings, gravy sauce, mashed potatoes and they usually have apple, pumpkin or pecan flavored pie for dessert.
The wishbone
Breaking the wishbone is a fun way to celebrate thanksgiving specially among children. Wishbones are a Y-shaped bone that can be easily found once the roasted turkey is mostly gone.
The tradition consists in two people holding each side of the bone and making wishes. Once they force it and break it, one person will have a bigger side. The one who gets the biggest half, is the one who will have their wishes granted.
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is an annual event that happens in New York City and has marching bands and balloons that float high reaching skyscrapers. The parade lasts around 3 hours, it has a lot of attractions and it’s free for anyone who wants to join the ceremony.
If you don’t live near NYC, that’s also a good excuse to travel with your family and join the most famous Thanksgiving tradition in the US.
The Thanksgiving Day Football
Is there a better way to burn calories from the thanksgiving dinner than playing football? This tradition also brings a sense of partnership, while engaging with other people in a competitive but fun game! Also it is a very good opportunity for kids to socialize. It is said that sports can unite people and this is a good way to gather everyone for a match!
Pass Down a Family Recipe—Or Make a New One
The thanksgiving feast is full of delicious dishes, and passing down a family recipe is a nice way to even have your own personal tradition inside the celebration. Usually it’s easy to find a special food that our ancestors used to eat and in case there is none, we can always use creativity and make new recipes and start a new tradition ourselves.
Also a fun and nice way to gather family and kids is to work on the food preparations together.
We listed some of the most famous thanksgiving traditions in the US, but there are many more you can add to your celebration and even create.
Keeping these traditions is an excellent opportunity to bring old history to life and teach the young ones about the importance of sowing the seeds of thanksgiving by thanking for the blessings, sharing and enjoying the love of people around us.
Are you ready to make a Thanksgiving feast for your family and children? Don’t forget to check some suggestions of healthy food for kids in our blogpost!
