Yes, the time has come to make the most out of a family tradition during times of Social Distancing. While millions of Americans have decided to travel, I felt the strong need to write this week’s blog entry to encourage those who did decide to stay and avoid unnecessary exposure and the potential spread of the virus.
While I deeply respect everyone’s opinion and feelings in regards to the pandemic, I do feel that the whole pandemic fatigue that everyone is suffering is also leading us to make poor decisions when we are just about to end this terrible nightmare with vaccines that are already being developed in record time. So if you are in the group of people that still is willing to avoid personal contact and keep this important date social, then this blog post is for you!
This can still be a thanksgiving to remember! And being Social doesn’t mean being next to each other, but rather sharing together quality time through the wonders of technology. I did some research on how to make this important day memorable for my family, and out of everything that I found on the web, I decided to share some activities and special considerations for you to give thanks and build memories with your loved ones on a thanksgiving that will be remembered for many years to come.
First things first, PREPARE:
A good Virtual gathering is not like in-person meetings that you can count on spontaneous interactions to lead the way. When it comes to online spaces, people tend to have a more reserved attitude by allowing others to tell them how and what they should do at specific moments. If you came up with the idea of a virtual gathering, then take the time to plan out the activities you, your family, and extended family or guests will interact on.
Watch a Movie, Bake a delicious but SIMPLE desert or…
Keep activities simple enough so that everyone can keep up regardless of their technical skills like simple baking/cooking recipes like (a personal favorite) Oreo Truffles, (Yes, the recipe to this amazing dessert is on the title 😊) Also, a Movie Watch Party (known as Teleparty) lets you and your guest synchronize a movie between you and your guests rather than just simultaneously pressing the ‘PLAY’ button. Teleparty includes a chat on the video window that allows everyone to have conversations while the movie is playing, but I would still recommend keeping the video conferencing app running (but muted) to keep visual contact. What about playing a game? There are more than enough online games like Monopoly or Scrabble that are designed to connect people using their mobile devices making this experience the most amazing and amazing for you and your guests.
Dinner Time: Make it different
Make this a one-of-a-kind experience for your family by setting things up a little different from what you were used to in previous years. Prepare a different room that you don’t usually use, set up the dining table with special decorations, or even just throw a duvet to the floor next to your fireplace or TV and have an atypical dinner time. Encourage your guests, family members, or friends to do the same, and then compliment each other on their original setups and decorations.
Appropriate Celebration length: 3 activities are just right, but you can do 4!
It’s already been proven with school activities that Virtual classes or events can be a little overwhelming and you don’t want you or your family to end up wanting to disconnect from the entire experience mid-way through. Take from a mom that teaches online programs every day: I know that we can all connect virtually, but we need to be careful to consider that online time is tiring, and even more, if we’re pushing the limits by having a 4 or 5-hour celebration, it’s always good to LIMIT each activity and have everyone know ahead of time what to expect in terms of activity activities and their duration. I’m preparing my thanksgiving with an opening activity (Oreo Truffles) then the actual dinner, and finally a Home Alone Teleparty. Optional: Heads up Game time.
So all, things considered, this is the scheduled that I shared with my family connecting remotely:
- Welcome and greet: 10 Minutes. Scheduled Time: 4 PM
- Opening Activity: Oreo Truffle dessert: 60 minutes. Scheduled Time: 5:10 PM
- Dinner time Activity, serve, eat, and carry on a conversation: 90 minutes. Scheduled Time: 6:40 PM
- Teleparty: Homealone Movie: 1:50 mins. Scheduled Time 8:40 PM
- Optional: Heads Up game: 30 minutes. Scheduled Time 9:10 PM
- Wrap up: 15 minutes. Scheduled Time 9:25 PM
Don’t forget the Video Conferencing Platform…
By now you and your kids should already be familiar with Zoom or any other video conferencing app, Make sure you use the right one considering time limitations (Zoom has a 40-minute restriction for free accounts when connecting more than 2 people o the same call) and ease of use. Grandparents are usually more familiar with classic video conferencing tools such as Skype, so don’t forget to check this on your planning. Also, have a Video Conference tool operator that feels comfortable handling the app and have that person in charge of manipulating the main device (tablet or TV screen) so that YOU, as the main person keeping track of the time and the activities can actually forget about the technical details and focus on everything else.
And Your Thoughts…
What plans do you have for Thanksgiving? Are you traveling to visit loved ones or friends? If so, what precautions are you taking? Or maybe you’re staying at home and are planning some cool activities to have your own virtual Thanksgiving, either way, please share your ideas with us below, and Happy Thanksgiving!!
Lina Correa
Mom & Bricks 4 Kidz Kendall Owner