Thanksgiving is the day where you sit down with your family and think about all the things you’re thankful for in your lives. You also stuff yourselves to the brim with turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing and so much more.

But if you can’t make it home for Thanksgiving this year, there’s no reason you should be missing out on the holiday. There will most likely be a few of your friends or classmates still on campus as well, so take some initiative and host your own Thanksgiving in your apartment.

And if you’re still in need of an apartment to settle into before the holidays, sign a lease with The Lofts of Columbia. We have four convenient locations in the Columbia, Mo area and two of them are located in the heart of The District! Any of our locations will be a premium central location for all of your friends to meet up at for a Friendsgiving celebration. It has everything you’re looking for: in-unit laundry, a balcony in every apartment, spacious rooms, secure buildings and in-house maintenance. Interested in leasing an apartment with us? There are still spaces available, but they are going quickly, so give us a call to schedule a tour today!

Hosting a Thanksgiving dinner may sound a bit intimidating for most of you who have never hosted a big dinner party, so we put together a few tips to help you when you’re prepping a Thanksgiving event in your apartment this fall.

Decide what you’re making 

This might be the most daunting task of all. Thanksgiving dinners can be scary up front and it seems like it’ll take days to prepare. But it’s normal for a college student to have never cooked an entire Thanksgiving turkey before. 

This is probably one of the first Thanksgivings where your mom and grandma are not taking hold of the kitchen. And a great way to learn the basics is to simply google a recipe, and the Food Network is a great resource for traditional Thanksgiving meals. Or call/FaceTime a family member for help. Your family can be so helpful with it comes to cooking and baking. And it’s a great way to bond with your family since you can’t make it home for the holiday.

Also be sure not to make the entire dinner yourself. We recommend inviting a few friends over to help you make side dishes like mashed potatoes, stuffing and green bean casserole. Or just have them bring it over on time for dinner. Either way, it lightens the load so you can focus more on enjoying the holiday. 

Decorations  

Since you’ll be away from your home on Thanksgiving, you’ll want to make your apartment feel like home. You should decorate your apartment in the fall spirit, and if you don’t have much money to spend, DIY decorations might be the way to go.

Decor can include things like wall decor, centerpieces and placemats. This could also be something fun for you and your friends to do together and get all of you in high spirits about missing your family during Thanksgiving. 

Invite your friends 

It’s important to be surrounded with people you love on Thanksgiving. Although, you can not be with your family this year, you will be thankful for your friends and that you are not spending the holiday alone. And if you don’t have a ton of friends staying on campus for the holiday, try to invite some acquaintances, neighbors and people from classes you know might spend Thanksgiving alone too. 

Entertainment 

It can be a little boring while everyone waits for all of the food to be ready. Definitely put something  you know everyone would like on the TV like the classic Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade or a holiday movie to keep your guests entertained before and after dinner.

A crowd pleaser can also be setting out a few board games like Monopoly or playing cards. Especially if your guests don’t know each other well, it can be something that can break the ice.

Tidy up 

You’ll want to make sure your apartment is cleaned up for all of your friends to come over and see it. Stuff piles of clothes into your laundry hamper, throw the dishes into the dishwasher and give your apartment a quick vacuum. 

Also, make sure anything broken in your apartment is fixed before you have guests over. From a broken light switch to a leaking washing machine, our maintenance team at The Lofts of Columbia can tackle any issue with your apartment. We have a form on our website you can fill out that specifies the issue and allows you to choose when to have maintenance work on the problem. No surprise maintenance staff walk-ins here!  You can also select ‘emergency’ for things warranting serious, immediate repairs. Most non-emergency repairs are solved within 48 hours. 

Less is more 

Since you’re in college, you won’t have the time or the capacity to pull off an extravagant meal. So remember, that if you aren’t doing ten side dishes and 7 different kinds of pie, that is ok! The list of foods you’ll want at dinner can get out of control, so be sure to keep things in tact and limit dishes to just a few. 

Embrace the holiday 

Try not to stress about getting the food done on time, quickly tidying up your apartment or other things you have to get done. It is Thanksgiving after all. Try to remember what the holiday is all about and spend some good quality time with your friends and think of all of the reasons you are thankful this holiday season. Put the baking sheets down and make some long-lasting memories with your friends around the dinner table. 

Interested in making The Lofts of Columbia your home for the holidays? Our loft apartments in Columbia, Mo are an ideal place to live if you are a student or young professional. Our downtown locations are mere steps from the University of Missouri, Stephen’s College, and Columbia College. We are also close to the business, shopping, and art districts in Columbia, Mo. Most of our downtown tenants rarely need their vehicle to get to the essentials, as downtown Columbia is incredibly walkable. Our properties in Cherry Hill and The Manors have on-site parking to give you easy access to your vehicle! 

Living at the Lofts of Columbia means living a life of ease and luxury and who doesn’t want that? We are leasing loft apartments now, so don’t hesitate to give us a call . We can’t wait to meet you!