I'm shifting the holiday traditions in ways that make the celebrations healthier. I thought I had the perfect, healthy plan for Thanksgiving, but I'd say it was a 50% healthy plan as there is still room to make the holidays healthier.
What worked
Adding outdoor adventures to the holiday schedule definitely makes the holidays healthier and lots of fun too. That's a keeper and I want to look for ways to increase attendance to make that a mainstay of our holiday gatherings. We also had many healthy foods that were a hit, foods I'll have again.
What didn't work
As in most recent years, the old time holiday sweets and foods with too many unhealthy ingredients were not a hit--most of those old time favorites are simply not popular anymore because the ingredients are simply not that healthy. I still included too many of those foods, and now I'm throwing them out. I hate wasting food, and I hate spending time making foods that people won't eat. Plus those foods simply don't make you feel good.
Similarly spending a lot of time trying to make new dishes that I hadn't tried out before bombed as usual--that golden rule of entertaining--don't try new recipes with guests is a good rule to stand by. I got adventurous with cooking for one gathering and let's just say it was edible, but that's about it.
So for the holidays ahead it will be healthy adventures, healthy foods and good cheer. Onward.