How to Prep an Exhilarating Thanksgiving Game Night

Thanksgiving is around the corner and so is the holiday stress. All the cooking, dressing up, expensive parties causes unnecessary drama. This year, consider a simpler option – a fun and easy game night! All you need is to get together with a few loved ones, a few games, and some simple finger foods to have an amazing time.

Here’s a fun DIY pin the beak on the turkey game you can make for the kids!

Pin for later!

A game night is great for small family gatherings on Thanksgiving day or a Friendsgiving any time during the fall. Here are four simple steps to an awesome game night.

1 – Pump up the excitement with fun prizes.

You know it’s serious fun when guests walk in and see a table full of prizes. The excitement of winning feels so much better when you know you are getting a cool prize. Here we put together an array of prizes ranging from funny gag gifts to fancy wines. 

We used this gorgeous fall wrapping paper from Wrapaholic for this theme. Wrapaholic offers a wide range of good quality wrapping paper for any occasion. Thanksgiving was the perfect time to use this gorgeous fall-themed paper.

The patterns are fun and colorful. All we had to do was add a few elements from Michaels and Dollar Tree such as leaf garland for the finishing touches.

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When considering what prices to get, start with your local dollar store. It’s amazing what you can find at your local dollar store for prizes. There you can find prizes for all ages. Then you can go elsewhere to get a few higher-priced items. You can even help them prepare for the holidays like giving out Christmas or Hanukkah decorations. Here are some ideas for prizes :

Kids:

• Puzzles
• Bubbles
• Fun pens and pencils
• Whiteboards
• Glow in the dark toys
• Snacks
• Stuffed Animals
• Dress up items
• Play money
• Educational toys
• Arts and crafts
• Toothbrushes
• Playing cards or dominoes
• Books
• Bubble bath
• Sunglasses

Adults:

• Candles
• Books
• Home decor items
• Journals
• Picture frames
• Cups
• Plates
• Wine glasses
• Tumblers
• Holiday decor
• Wine

2 – Decorate to impress.

Not only did we use the beautiful Wrapaholic wrapping paper for the prizes but we also used it to decorate. We had so much fun getting creative with this! 

First, we made a Hello Fall banner using this set of wrapping paper. The only trick to this is getting cardstock that matches all the patterns.

Once you have that, you can measure the paper to the size you need.

layer the card stock and print the letters on the same cardstock. We love that this fall wrapping paper adds some non-traditional fall colors like a bright blue.

Simply cut one of the wrapping paper to use as a base for any serving tray.

Finally, we used it to make a fun welcome sign! All we did was wrap a picture frame and print out a welcome sign onto the same card stock

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3 – Offer plenty of games…..with a twist.

Take out every board game you own. Why? 2 reasons – you don’t know what game people are going to be in the mood for, but you also want to let guests roam free and play in different areas. You also need to consider the ages of the guests. Have some easy games for kids or more complex games for adults.

What do I mean about a twist? We have all played the classics but there are so many variations out there that add an entirely new element of surprise. So when you can, get those! 

Here are great board games for kids:

1. Connect Four Jumbo
2. Monopoly Gamer or Monopoly Unicorns & Llamas
3. Uno Attack Jurassic World
4. Jenga Giant
5. Trolls Operation

Here are great games for adults:

1. What Do You Meme
2. Monopoly Game of Thrones 
3. Game of Life: Quarter Life Crisis
4. Escape Room In a Box
5. Cards Against Humanity

4 – Easy Food & Drink

Finally, food and drink options should be easy to grab and move. Think finger foods you can make in bulk like heroes you put together and slice up. This is a great list of 100 super fast finger foods for crowds.

As for drinks, you want either pre-packaged drinks or to prepare them ahead of time. If you are having kids, get a large batch of organic juice boxes. For adults, make a pitcher of delicious sangria. A candy bar is also fun for game night.

And remember, it’s not about who wins. It’s about making memories!