In-Laws and the Holidays.

With Thanksgiving only a day away, I thought it may be a good idea to talk about ways to entertain your soon-to-be family without stressing out. Your fiance's family is coming into town to get to know you better before the wedding day. Your palms start to get clammy, your heart rate picks up and you immediately start thinking, "What am I going to wear!?" Don't worry, you can survive the holidays and possibly have some fun doing it. Here are a few ideas to help you comfortably get to know your boyfriend's parents without loosing your mind!

Ask your man ahead of time what his father's favorite drink is. If he loves his hops, have the beer of his choice chilled and stocked in the fridge. Be sure to pick up a few bottles of different local brews that the two of you love. You know have a common interest and a good topic to chat about it. If he likes the pilsner made by Widmer, you now have a fun place to take them to!

Whether you decide to cook dinner or head out to a local restaurant, it's important to keep the conversation going. Ask how their trip was, have they seen any good movies lately or read a good book? Share what you and your fiance have been doing but try not to get to involved with talking about the wedding plans. This could go well or not. His mom may start telling both of you what kind of flowers you should get or that you have to do a first dance. Be prepared for this one, both of you have to stick together and know when to change the subject!

We're fortunate to live in a city and state that has so many wonderful places to visit. If it's a rainy day head downtown for an afternoon at the Art Museum. The current show features photographs from Oregon. Going for a drive along the gorge is always  beautiful or if things aren't going as well as you'd like, head to a movie so you get a break from chatting! 

You may feel like you are under the microscope while they are visiting, but remember to be yourself! They want to get to know you so don't be afraid to share some things they may not know. Whatever you do, don't start having more drinks to help loosen you up. Before you know it you'll be sharing details you don't even tell your best friends! It's best to not be remembered for having your boyfriend carry you back to the car. No, no; you want to be remembered for being friendly, gracious and sweet! 

Happy Thanksgiving!