Thanksgiving Savings Tips

Thanksgiving should be a time to relax, to reflect, and to enjoy a nice dinner with your loved ones. If you don’t want to spend it stressing over the Thanksgiving budget, try these tips to save dollars on your holiday meal!

· Host a Potluck: Make Thanksgiving a potluck dinner. It will help share the cost, and its also a great opportunity to try new and interesting side dishes and desserts.

· Plan Ahead: Map out your grocery list with a budget early in November, take inventory of what you already have on your shelves, and shop the sales.

· Don’t Prepare Too Much Food: Leftovers are typical for Thanksgiving, but there is no reason to fix far more food than what everyone will eat. If you have an accurate head count for the holiday, you should have a pretty good idea of how much food to prepare.

· Go Green: Paper plates and plastic utensils may save some cleanup time but they are an unnecessary expense. Whomever doesn’t cook can do the dishes!

· Rethink Traditions: Do you really need a turkey and a ham? Who actually eats cranberry sauce? Three kinds of pie and cheesecake?

Share the meal prep. Plan ahead. Rethink traditions. This year enjoy the day with family and friends over dinner table conversations, your favorite football team, and your Uncle’s favorite jokes. Count your blessings and your pennies!