In the spirit of thanksgiving, you got a little bit mushy. Somehow, without meaning to exactly, you invited a date to your family's annual Thanksgiving dinner. And now you can't backtrack but you're having some fears about how it's all going to go. Here are some tips for navigating the dinner without destroying your budding relationship:



o Explain to your date how everyone in the family is likely to react to him/her. First, this will be a great preparation for dealing with those family quirks that we all have. And secondly, your perspective on the situation is probably exaggerated so your date will probably find the situation to pale in comparison.


o Tell your family in advance if there are any off-topic conversations. There are things we don't want new dates to know; try to avoid them.


o Plan your answer to the "how we met" conversation. If you met online, you might be uncomfortable sharing that information. Make your stories match if you aren't going to be telling the whole truth.


o Bring something to the table, literally. Even if the rest of the family is taking care of Thanksgiving, you should bring something nice to enjoy at the meal. This'll give everyone a chance to focus on your food and not your date when your first walk in.


o Be yourself. This can be hard since our family self and our romantic self aren't quite the same. Just relax and be who you are.


o Don't be apologetic. If you really like your date, you don't have to apologize to your family for bringing him/her. And even if your family's a little nutty, you don't have to apologize to your date for who they are. Adopt the attitude that, "hey, this is a part of my life, deal with it" and the people around you probably will.



It's Thanksgiving. We all have problems with our families and it's difficult bringing dates into the mix, but that's what the holidays are all about. Remember to laugh, have a good time and stop to think about why you're grateful that this is the family you got.