This article explains how to think through your family reunion ideas, and provides some family reunion ideas you might want to take into consideration.
An annual family gathering is a great way for all of your cousins, brothers, sisters, uncles, parents, etc. to come together without the cost of flying everyone in from different countries. A family reunion can be an extremely fun event that everyone will enjoy. You might even consider it as one of the best family reunion ideas!
How can you start?
You could start off by having an open house where everyone just walks around freely at any time they please during the day. This is especially useful if you have lots of children running about wanting food every five seconds. Keep in mind that there are many people who would really enjoy cooking so you could also ask them to contribute some food.
Make sure you keep everyone entertained. This might be difficult if your family reunion is during the summertime when everyone wants to be at the pool or beach all day, but there are always things like tournaments, backyard games (like football, baseball, basketball, etc.), group singing contests, and much more.
For those who don't really want to do many activities you could provide simple meals for them too; sandwiches, nachos with sour cream and cheese or even spaghetti (this is useful because it can feed a lot of people without actually requiring that much preparation).
To make the event both informative and entertaining consider having someone do a presentation about what's new since the last time they all saw each other. How has everyone grown up? What are people now doing with their lives? You could also show pictures.
You should make sure to take plenty of photographs during the event. You could decorate your house or part of it with them, or simply use a projector onto a plain wall. This is an excellent way to capture some more memories (especially if you order copies afterward). Don't forget to display the family reunion ideas that you used on the tables; this will act as a reminder for next year!
Think about the budget and date
You should definitely consider the budget when making all of your plans. You don't want it to be an extravagant event that everyone misses out on because they simply cannot afford it (which is why you should make sure to provide food options for people with low budgets).
Consider your schedule too (especially if most of your family lives in different places around the world). You could all meet up during holidays like Christmas or Thanksgiving, but this might not fit everyone's schedule. It may even be good to have a few smaller gatherings every year instead of one big reunion that happens once or twice a decade. This can really build up anticipation and excitement!
Put the purpose to your reunion
It is a nice idea to have a reason for your family to be coming together. You could have some type of contest or event, award prizes and so on. This is good because it provides people with an incentive as well as a way to spend time together more productively as they compete for that prize.
Consider the physical location
If you live on a farm then you might want to have some fun activities involving animals or nature. If you don't, perhaps it would be best if everyone met at somebody's house where there is more room and comfort. That way everyone can just stay on-site instead of going from place to place all day long. Be creative!
Activities
As there may be a lot of children and teens, try organizing some activities for them. If there are a lot of people at least one person will be old enough to drive and could take the kids somewhere fun. You should also keep in mind that many teens tend to get into trouble if they're not kept busy so find something interesting and productive for them to do as well!
Thinking about the activities that can reunion the family is one important thing that you should do. Class reunions are some of the events that can bring back some wonderful memories to your past friends and yourself.
For example, you can invite everyone to the amusement park or hiking in the mountain. Those are perfect places to spend good times with your class. You can also choose a restaurant or movie as a reunion event, but you should consider your budget and everyone's schedule.
When preparing for the big day itself, always be on alert for any possible problems that may arise along with thinking of solutions in advance so that they aren't too hard to do when they actually happen. For example, if there is a thunderstorm then call off all outdoor activities and move them inside (or perhaps even cancel the whole reunion).
If you keep these few things in mind while planning, your family will surely have one exciting time!
Food for you
Of course, you will go to the restaurant or decided to eat at home. In any case, considering the menu is a very important part of the preparation. Think to prepare food that all family members like, regardless of their age. Food is necessary during the reunion celebration. Maybe you go to a fast-food or a casual restaurant to have a quick bite. However, if you want a place with a more homely atmosphere and taste, consider going for Italian cuisine. This type of food is tasty and easy to eat as finger food.
It may be street food or something more luxurious, but you should go for Italian. It is often provided with some appetizers and main course as well as a bottle of wine or mineral water (because alcoholic drinks are not suitable for children). You can also let the staff decide on the menu because they know what dishes are most popular at present.
If you choose to go for something more formal, then you can order how many courses and food that everyone would like. It may be best to provide three options: vegetarian, meat and fish (if there is someone who doesn't eat meat then this is perfect!).
Don`t forget about something delicious for kids! It can be pizza, steak or pasta. The most important part is that there are no disagreements with the food preferences of your family members. During the meal, you can go for some interesting conversations to break the ice with old friends or find something very funny for everyone to laugh about.
Of course, it may be difficult because sometimes people have different opinions! But if you are persuasive enough, surely you will succeed in making your whole family reunion fun and memorable.
Always have an alternative
Something may go wrong any time! The rain can start when your family decides to have a picnic, or there is a thunderstorm while you decided to surf the waves, or the site of your family reunion party is not suitable for everyone. That's why you should always have an alternative.
Failures are common when it comes to planning a family reunion, but you can prevent them if you think in advance about possible problems and how they can be solved. For example, what will happen if there is no electricity? Turn off all lights in an instant!
You should also keep candles or flashlights in stock in case of serious emergencies. If someone gets injured, make sure you have bandages and disinfectants! Think carefully through every detail so that everything goes according to plan. Always have some activities prepared just in case anyone gets bored at any time. Games are perfect for this because almost all people like them.
If you are really good at organizing family events, then nothing can stop you from creating a reunion that will be remembered for life by all your relatives! Organize the best family reunion ever!
What if something went wrong?
Your brother argued with relatives and now everyone is so irritated and upset. What will you do? Don't let anyone feel uncomfortable. If the problem is your brother's fault, tell him to apologize so that he can make things better.
If someone else offended one of your family members, then it is best to end this conversation. This person might react unexpectedly if you continue talking about it because some people don't like arguments at all.
Another solution would be to change the subject and talk about something more cheerful! Do not forget that sometimes it may be difficult for you, but think about others' feelings too, because every situation is different!
And most importantly - have fun with everyone. Sometimes it happens that relatives are not on speaking terms or hate each other very much. For example, your uncle and aunt always fight and the atmosphere is so depressing! If you want to know how to fix this, then write your thoughts in a comment below.
But what if they really can't stand each other?
Family members may not get along with each other for many different reasons. You may have an idea why such a situation happened. It may be because of jealousy or maybe someone caused some trouble before. Maybe they just don't like each other at all?
But you should not worry about it, because even if your family members do not get along, everyone will still try to make the best out of the situation (after all, there's no reason for them to ruin everybody else's time). At least that's what we hope will happen!
And remember - family members may get irritated by each other from time to time, but your relatives are still your family, and surely you know how close you are with them. When it gets really tough, don't forget about these facts. We hope that all of you have a bright future together because we believe in our readers' ability to build strong relationships with their families.
Take photos and remember this day forever
You should definitely take loads of photos to create some great memories that you will cherish forever. You can then show these photos to your children and grandchildren too!
It can be done by yourself, one of your relatives or you can hire a professional as well.
Maybe you don't like photos at all? It is important to think about somebody who does like them. If you decided to take pictures, make sure the camera's battery is full and it has enough memory. A perfect place for your family reunion photoshoot would be somewhere beautiful with a lot of natural light, such as a garden or a beach. That way, everybody will look amazing in those pictures!
After the photo session, you can create prints and enlargements that will decorate your house and remind everyone of this day that was so special for everyone! Your family members might appreciate those photos too because they can turn out really well if you decide to hire a professional photographer.
Take care about doggos
In case your family is full only of animals, then your event will be way more interesting than it would have been if you had only humans around!
We advise everyone to take care of the animals too. If the dog does not behave properly, then you should gently ask his owner to bring him or her back home. If this is your relative's pet, then maybe he or she can find a solution - just talk about it peacefully and politely. Remember that family events are all about love, so everyone has to keep calm and respect each other.
Those dogs may become a problem when they bark all day long without any reason. And remember that no one likes loud people who wish to ruin everybody else's time at a party. So, please take care of this matter if you do not want to offend somebody.
Cats and some more small animals are kinda okay, but it's better to be safe than sorry!
Have an assistant
There is no need to deal with everything alone. You need help and it's especially important to spend time with your family.
You can ask somebody from your relatives to help you prepare some delicious food, or maybe even try some fun activities? One of your cousins may be a great dancer and willing to teach everybody how to do the moonwalk! Anything is possible. All you need is an assistant and some imagination (oh, and also paper and pencil if you want to make a list).