Yes! It’s Thanksgiving again. You, like many cavemen before you, are wondering, “What should we do with all these kinfolk running around?” Of course there’s the tried-and-true backyard rugby game, but you might be searching for things for those who don’t want to get grass stains on their knees.

Search no longer. I have one dozen ideas for your festivities. Some of these ideas can be done together, on the same day, or some of them may spark your own creativie ideas.

1. Pose for a picture around the feast while wearing Halloween costumes.
2. Pose for a picture around the feast with everyone’s mouth open.
3. Ask the oldest person in the room to share some memories.
4. After the soda is gone, build an air pressure bottle rocket with the two liter plastic bottles and a bike pump.
5. Did you know you can get candy shaped like Legos? You can eat what you build. If you don’t have these in your house, you can build with toothpicks and marshmallows.
6. With an accomplice, start a text message thread with the whole family, only you and your accomplice use a different language.
7. Modified Monopoly—–Nuclear Monopoly: Select one of the deed cards ahead of time. Place it where no one can see it. The first time someone rolls 2 or 12, that property on the board “gets nuked”. Place the deed card in the middle of the board so everyone knows which space is affected. Anyone on the space at the time is out of the game. Anyone passing the space thereafter loses 100$.—–Chance Monopoly: Add a few zeros to the dollar amounts on the Chance cards.—–Vampire Monopoly: The first time someone goes to jail, they are a vampire. If they pass another player, that player is now a vampire too. The game ends if all players are turned into vampires, and the initial vampire player wins. All normal rules apply, so if a vampire player goes bankrupt before a non-vampire player, the non-vampire player wins. A “wooden stake” (use a toothpick to represent the stake) can be purchased from the bank for 500$ and used when the person with the stake passes the vampire player. The vampire player is then stuck on that spot until they roll doubles.
8. Modified Risk—–Nuclear Risk: Select a land ahead of time. After everyone gets 5 turns, the player with the fewest armies may choose to nuke the land, whether they occupy it or not. After 10 turns the player with the most armies may choose to nuke the land, whether they occupy it, or not.—–Population Explosion Risk: Select 3 territory cards ahead of time without looking at them. After everyone gets 5 turns, those 3 territories, and whoever occupies them (it may be different players), get 20 extra armies.
9. If you find yourself alone in the crowded room, you could add a few outlandish things to the to-do list on the fridge. See if anyone notices.
10. Bathrobe parade. Score points for the funkiest bathrobe. Lose points if you don’t have any clothes on under your robe.
11. Write the date and a groovy message in the dust on top of the piano.
12. Do you have nosy neighbors? Act out a turkey funeral in your yard. That’ll give them something to talk about.

Family is the number one on people’s lists of what they’re thankful for. Enjoy your time with your family.