This year give your guests the gift of autumn by hosting your Thanksgiving outdoors. In the North State, we have the pleasure of living where an autumn day means sunshine among hues ablaze with yellow, orange, and red in the many trees and forests that surround us.

Bring the Indoors Outside

Take your Thanksgiving outdoors by placing your dining table in the corner of your yard, under a pergola, gazebo, or even a beautiful tree in your yard as a natural cover for your gathering. By using your backyard as a muse, let the autumn colors inspire you by using the rich shades of the season to decorate your table and prepare foods that celebrate the outdoors by incorporating cranberry red, orange sweet potato, and other autumn colors. Serve rustic whole grain breads and turkey stuffed with grandma’s old time stuffing. Or go online and find the basic recipes for pumpkin and sweet potato pie. Acorn squash, buttered and filled with wild mushroom is a nice addition. No Thanksgiving outdoors would be complete without an assortment of wine; you should have both red and white wine for your guests. A standard bottle of wine serves six people. Check out some of the great vineyards right here in Redding for some great tips! Remember, this is not dinner at the Waldorf.

Capture the Rustic Vibe

Miss matched plates and colorful napkins make for a family-style, rustic-kind of vibe. A tree branch with these same autumn colors from your yard, and maybe a pine cone or two as a center piece, will help to deliver that woodsy decor. An array of lights and lanterns will add ambiance to your setting. Mason jars lighted with battery powered tea candles and wire hangers hung among the trees will give the look of fireflies dancing around your gathering. Make your own napkin rings by using toilet paper cores and burlap fabric or raw twine and add the outdoor material of your choice by hot gluing it in place. Your guests will be thankful if you are thoughtful enough to make sure they are cozy with a wood fire pit nearby to take the chill off as the day rolls on. Finish off your table with several plush throws placed in select chairs, or if you have a wooden ladder, you can place a throw on each rung for those guests that linger on into the brisk evening. This will be a Thanksgiving your guests will remember.

Image Source: StockSnap.io

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