Whether your Thanksgiving Day is going to involve lots of friends and family; or just a few, these quick tips will help you maintain your cool and calm demeanor throughout this holiday season.

1. Take time to make a master list of recipes.

Instead of wrangling a stack of recipes I decided that this would be the year that I consolidate all of our family’s favorite Thanksgiving dishes into one document. Once typed and printed, the recipes fit onto only 3 pages.

2. Make a master shopping list and use it.

Most of you probably do this already, but a thorough list REALLY DOES help at the store. I decided to type a “Thanksgiving Shopping List” and keep it in my NOTES APP on my iPhone. I did this by reading through every recipe and typing each ingredient. Don’t forget to include the extras in your list, like rolls, whipped cream for all those pies, special beverages, etc… Now I all I need is my phone at the grocery store. This will help me power through my shopping trip knowing that I will have everything I need.

3. Tidy your refrigerator, freezer and pantry.

This step just makes lots of sense at this time of year. Clearing out expired items from each of these kitchen spaces will make room for all of your fresh produce, frozen and chilled items, as well as new pantry staples. Have your shopping list (#2, above) handy and as you find things you already have you can mark those off your list before you run to the store.

4. Make a Thanksgiving dinner serving “game plan”.

Are you doing a more formal dinner, or a casual buffet? Think about your traffic flow and make adjustments to your furniture accordingly.

Also – I love using the post-it note idea that Leticia wrote about in a past blog post called “Post-It Notes Ensure Entertaining Sanity”. This helps me map out which dishes and serving utensils I will need for serving on Thanksgiving Day.

We at S&O hope that this little list of tips helps you and your loved ones enjoy a wonderful dinner this year.

Happy Thanksgiving!