Movie Nights | Kaitlynn Faber
When I was little, but old enough to be left alone, all the adults would go out on Thanksgiving night while my cousins and I would stay home and watch “The Wizard of Oz.” We were really good kids, so ice cream for Thanksgiving dinner was as crazy as we would get, but I still hold those memories close to my heart. My mom manages a small movie theater in my hometown, and now that we are all older, we’ll have a private midnight showing of whatever movie we want Thanksgiving night, so the tradition is still alive, except we’re adults that get to go out now.
National Dog Show | Meredith McCalmon
Every Thanksgiving Day, my mom and I force my family to gather around the television and watch the National Dog Show. We each pick what dog we are cheering for early on in the competition, and root for them the whole time like we’re watching the Super Bowl. As an avid animal lover, this tradition beats any Thanksgiving food or activity to me.
NFL Football | Toby Hammes
Even though the Dallas Cowboys — outside of two former Wildcats — are an eyesore this season, they are still synonymous with Thanksgiving football. Following fantasy football with family across the NFL’s Thanksgiving slate has become a fun tradition. At least the Lions are finally worth watching for the first time since Calvin Johnson retired.
Pre-Thanksgiving dinner snacks | Grace Parks
Thanksgiving is all about the snacks in my family. My favorite thing to do Thanksgiving morning is make all sorts of delicious things to munch on while we wait for the turkey and watch football. There’s nothing like making dozens of deviled eggs — my family’s top-secret recipe of course — along with a crock-pot of little smokies and lots of chips and dips to pregame a Thanksgiving dinner!
Scattergories and Leftovers | Libby Zuck
Since we have our Thanksgiving meal around lunch time, often we have to revisit the bowl of mashed potatoes later on in the day. Every year my family and I play several heated rounds of Scattergories and snack as we please, often ending with the game being extended well into the night.
“A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving” | Lilly Crist
“A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving” is the perfect movie to watch on Thanksgiving evening with the family while eating leftovers from Thanksgiving lunch. Snoopy also happens to be one of my all-time favorite characters.
Cornhole Competitions | Kyra Case
If there’s one thing people know about my family, it’s that we’re absurdly competitive. Every year, we gather at my grandparents’ house, and my grandpa hauls out the sacred cornhole set. We all then compete to get the best person on our team and rotate based on who wants to play. I’m proud to hold the title of reigning cornhole champion — though I’d recommend not asking my family about it.
Traveling | Cole Bertelsen
The biggest draw of Thanksgiving is the opportunity to meet with extended family who have spread out across the country. My favorite part of the season is traveling up to our family’s farm in Illinois, which has become the de facto family reunion location. Every year for either Thanksgiving or Christmas, I make the long drive northeast to see loved ones before we stuff our faces with turkey and ham.