Thanksgiving is coming up, and with it comes the excitement of preparing a delicious Thanksgiving meal. But don’t worry—with this Thanksgiving planner, all you have to do is make your plan and everything will be organized and less stressful! This planner includes everything you need to plan your perfect Thanksgiving meal and more: Advanced Preparation Timeline, Menu Planner, Guest List Planner, Shopping List, Cooking Schedule, Hour-by-Hour Planner for Thanksgiving Day, Give Thanks Tracker, and Black Friday Shopping Plans.
Be sure to check out all our Easy Party Planning Ideas.
Table of Contents
Thanksgiving Planner Printables
The printable Thanksgiving planner includes space to write your plans for Thanksgiving Day as well as all the prep work leading up to Thanksgiving..
The meal planner includes space to note fruit and vegetables, a shopping list, and instructions on hosting a Thanksgiving dinner.
Print out my printable Thanksgiving meal planner to help you stay organized!
Thanksgiving Planner
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Thanksgiving Menu Planner
1. Download the Thanksgiving meal planner from this website
2. Print the Thanksgiving meal planner and fill in the dates of the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday.
3. Invite Guests and Determine What Dishes they will be Bringing
4. Complete Your Meal Plan
5. Add any ingredients to the shopping list
6. If a dish requires any special equipment or flavors not found in typical grocery stores, write those down as well.
7. When finished filling out the menu planner, print it out and take it with you to your favorite grocery store to start preparing your Thanksgiving feast!
What is the perfect timeline for preparing your Thanksgiving meal?
Step 1: One month before Thanksgiving, start planning your menu and invite guests.
It’s a good idea to start shopping for Thanksgiving dinnerware one month in advance. Start planning your Thanksgiving meal by taking stock of your tablecloths, dinnerware, serving trays and more.
You also should brainstorm menu ideas and decide what you want to serve. Make your life easier by letting guests bring some of the side dishes or desserts!
Step 2: Two weeks before Thanksgiving, start making your grocery list.
1. Figure out what will be included on your Thanksgiving dinner list and who is bringing each item.
2. Plan your menu two weeks in advance and make sure to include all of the ingredients needed.
3. Gather and print the recipes for all of the dishes you are making.
4. Write a shopping list for one dish at a time.
5. Use the Menu Planner to plan your Thanksgiving meal.
6. Purchase decorations if you want them, they will be harder to find as the holiday approaches.
7. Get specific with your shopping list – don’t forget things like coffee creamer, ice, salt, pepper, and butter.
8 . Decor items to consider: tablecloths, centerpieces, candles, mantle decor, wreath, and porch decorations
9 . Stock up on dry goods: toilet paper, paper towels, napkins, kleenex , dish soap, hand soap, paper plates and cups, and disposable silverware.
10 . Purchase kitchenware if necessary: knives/paring knives/utensils (for example), pots/pans/skillets (for example), and appliances like a blender or food processor).
Step 3: One week before Thanksgiving, start prepping food.
Clean out the fridge, freezer, and pantry to make room for Thanksgiving groceries. Check for expired or missing ingredients. Purchase a turkey ahead of time so that it doesn’t run out and thaw properly. Increase the weight of your turkey if you want leftovers or are a big eater.
Two weeks prior to Thanksgiving, it is time to put up fall decorations. It is necessary to allow 24 hours of thawing time for every 4 pounds of turkey. Make a list of tasks needed for Thanksgiving dinner two weeks before the holiday. Try out new recipes to help ease your nerves about cooking for company. Make-ahead dishes can be a great way to save time on Thanksgiving day by preparing them in advance and freezing them for later use.
Step 4: Three days before Thanksgiving, buy groceries and thaw turkey
Make sure to buy all the pershible items now so you don’t have to fight the crowds and start thawing that turkey. Deepe
Step 5: The day before Thanksgiving, double check groceries and set the table.
The day before Thanksgiving, clean the kitchen, double check the groceries, finish any meal prep and set the table. Also get your patters and serving diishes out and ready,
Step 6: Thanksgiving day, enjoy your meal!
Check your hour by hour planner so everything stays on track and dinner is ready just on time!
With all your prep work, you should hopefully, be able to enjoy the day. Be sure to get help and not try to do it all yourself
How should you plan your time on Thanksgiving Day?
1. Write down your priorities for the day, things you need to do, and your hourly schedule.
2. Write any notes you need in the “notes” section.
5. Make the Thanksgiving meal.
6. Write down the cooking time for your turkey on the Thanksgiving Day planner sheet.
7. Figure out how long it will take to roast the turkey by weight and stuffed/unstuffed . Add about 15 minutes of resting time .
8 . Write down the roasting time for your turkey on the Thanksgiving Day planner sheet .
Black Friday Shopping
Lots on Black Friday online sales actually start Thanksgiving day or earlier. We put together a list of coupon codes across many different stores. All the hard work is done for you and you can just search for the sales by store. It is is all in alphabetical order, by store.
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