There’s nothing quite like the holidays to create boundary creep. You know what I'm talking about. Things that are mostly non-issues the rest of the year - how you spend your time, what you bring, where you go - suddenly get amplified. As a friend…consider this your annual reminder that you’re an adult now, and regardless of family dynamics, you’re allowed to have a say.
With that in mind, here are a few tips designed to lower your stress this holiday season, not pile on more tasks. Tip number two? We learned that one the hard way.
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⚡ The RSVP Spreadsheet Shortcut
👉 Let’s take one mental load off your plate (before you even start filling the real ones). If you're hosting local friends/family, ASK FOR PEOPLE TO BRING FOOD TOO.
💡 Use a free signup tool like SignupGenius or PerfectPotluck.com to coordinate dishes and guest tasks.
You create the categories - mains, sides, desserts, drinks, whatevs - and everyone signs up themselves. Suddenly you’re not fielding 47 “what should I bring?” texts during your 2 p.m. meeting.
📌 Solves for: family group chat chaos, food overlap, and accidental six-casserole situations.
🍽 The BYO Snack Survival Kit
👉 If your family is anything like mine (cough, in-laws, iloveyouanyway, cough), when they say “dinner’s at 4,” it will not, in fact, be at 4.
And by 7 p.m., your toddler will have entered an emotional death spiral over a bread roll or simply be deceased. ☠️
So let’s all remember: avoid the hangry apocalypse by packing your own snack survival kit: easy, low-mess and shelf-stable staples (pouches, cheese sticks, pretzels, fruit).
Bring it for your kids, your partner, or heck… yourself. Is it lame to bring toddler snacks to Thanksgiving? Maybe, but honestly- this one's worth any potential side-eye from know-it-all relatives.
Did you know? 🧃 JuiceBox is built by a tiny team of working parents just like you. We curate and write this stuff so you don’t have to but we’d LOVE for you to get in on the action.
💬 Got a time-saving tip or a chaos-fighting hack of your own? Hit reply and share it—we all need a village, and we’d love to hear from you.
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🧘♀️ The “We’re Not All Gourmet Chefs” Rule
👉 Permission slip for the week: not every dinner has to be impressive. Go all out for Thanksgiving if you want, but we're big fans of balancing all that work with a lazy-dinner week on either side.
Think frozen skillet meals (we just tried the Stouffer's Air Fryer Meals in the freezer section, not bad), store-bought rotisserie chicken, or pre-made casseroles you can reheat while tackling big prep days.
If you’re extra ambitious, prep and freeze a few Thanksgiving dishes these next 3 weekends (stuffing, mashed potatoes, casseroles). They’ll still taste homemade, but you'll save yourself a lot of the day-of chaos.
💡 Great list of freezer-friendly recipes ideas here: Pioneer Woman’s Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Recipes
K that’s all. You’re the best and we love you.
-CK “Loves Appetizers” Fuller (Editor) & the JB Crew 🫡
P.S. Next week: Thankful Season, Minus the Performance Anxiety. No gratitude journals, no crafts- just small, low-lift ways to make real connection (the kind your kids might actually remember, and you might actually enjoy).