By Isabelle Ortiz | Staff Writer
The ongoing pandemic has been a thick wall keeping us from having fun. People are unable to go to concerts, restaurants, movies, festivals, parties. Many people this year might not celebrate Thanksgiving due to the subtle yet apparent fear of covid. However, there are plenty of COVID-friendly activities to do with family.
Before the pandemic, we could have Thanksgiving parties. Unfortunately, we now have to worry about visiting family members getting ill.
When people think of COVID-19 friendly activities, they think of watching movies and playing board games or maybe just calling family with Zoom, and while those are great ideas we can do better.
One fun thing to do is to make a family tree. Sit around the table and let the immediate family tell stories of their childhood. Parents get to share funny stories of when they were young. Getting to carry those stories and make that family tree is a great thanksgiving activity.
Another tree-making activity is a tree of thanks. Whether people want to make a tree or buy a plastic one is up to each family. Each member will put a tag on the tree expressing what they are grateful for. It’s a fun way to acknowledge how lucky we all are.
To start the activity, everyone writes three things on a paper tag. Once finished, the tags can be read aloud to share gratitude, then each tag is hung on the tree.
People may have leftover candy if they resisted eating it all already. To play the Skittles gratitude game, some leftover Skittles is all that is needed. All they have to do is make a chart and dump the pack of Skittles into a bowl, then write the Skittles colors down on a hand-made chart and next to them will be questions.
If the family plans to have people over but are still nervous about COVID-19, an outdoor movie night with pumpkin spice lattes, all snuggled in blankets is a perfect idea. Set up the projector, put on a movie, lay a tarp and the blankets down in the backyard as the family pours in so they can all sit and have some nice homemade pumpkin spice lattes.
Many people have a sweet tooth. S’mores are a delicious treat and can be used in different ways, such as a s’more pie, s’more cupcakes, and just some original s’mores. Get the skewers, fluffy marshmallows, and creamy chocolate, and make some smores!
Easter is a fun tradition of scavenging for candy-filled eggs but Thanksgiving can use this tradition as well. There are plenty of pumpkins to be found. Hide mini pumpkins throughout the house or backyard and let the search begin.
Whoever finds the most pumpkins can win candy or another type of prize.
With all of these ideas, celebrating Thanksgiving during the COVID-19 pandemic can be just as fun and fulfilling as celebrating the holiday any other year. All it takes is a few loved ones and a little creativity.