There’s nothing better than catching up with your family – especially if you don’t get to see them very often. Below, we’ve rounded up a guide to running a successful family gathering.
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Think about allergies
If you know that a member of your family suffers from an allergy or intolerance, prepare your menu in advance to accommodate their needs. You may decide to avoid using some ingredients like nuts and dairy entirely, or you could prepare a separate area for them to eat and make food that they’ll enjoy, without spoiling meal times for the rest of your guests. Design Sponge has put together an excellent guide to navigating food allergies and dietary restrictions at parties and gatherings, so check it out if this relates to your family.
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Make more food than you’ll need
The chances are that your guests will be hungry, so prepare enough food to keep everyone happy. Often, it’s easy to underestimate how much people will eat – and, when you’re having a good time with your family, who cares about calories!?
After all, it’s better to have prepared too much food than too little – and people can take home leftovers at the end of the night. Oh, and if you’re worried about food getting cold, then consider the food service equipment on offer at websites such as Corr Chilled – soup kettles and food warmers can be useful!
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Plan activities for the children
No good family gathering would be complete without children, but they’re likely to get bored unless you prepare some activities to keep them entertained. Consider setting up a children’s zone in one of your bedrooms or sitting rooms, or hire a bouncy castle or activity centre for your garden. Or, if it’s summer, bring out the swimming pool and ice creams!
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Prepare seating and entertainment areas
Now that the children are entertained, it’s time to think about the adults. Prepare a seating area for your guests – whether that’s indoors or outside – and consider what you’re going to do for entertainment. Perhaps you could play a game of charades or set up a karaoke? Both are fun, especially under the influence of alcohol, and allow you to involve the whole family.
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Clean your home the day before
You’ve already got a lot to prepare on the day of your family gathering, so clean your home the day before so that there’s one less thing to worry about. Get your children to tidy their bedrooms, clean bathrooms and seating areas, and then give everything the once over on the day of your event. If you’re having guests to stay, then prepare their bedrooms the night before, too. That way, there’ll be less stress, and you’ll be confident that your home is clean ready for when guests arrive.
A family gathering can be a great way to spend time with your loved ones, but it can also be stressful. Follow our five tips, and you’ll be well on your way to a stress-free event. Enjoy!
You have made some good, interesting points here, unfortunately I don’t look forward to family gatherings as I have a sister I would rather not see, you can choose your friends but not your family, sadly
Yes, you can’t choose your family but after all you can’t deny them. We should find the good in everything as much as it’s possible. I liked these tips. When everything is organised then we have more time to relax and enjoy with our friends or family.