In less than one week everyone in the United States and quite a number around the world will be sitting down for the most important meal of the entire years. It is a meal that families together. It is a meal where we give thanks for making it through another years.

Currently, there are massive turkey drives to help people who may not have the money to buy a turkey along with all the trimmings. Then there are those smaller families that will opt for having ome restaurant fix their Thanksgiving meal. Then there are the more traditional families that will start late Wednesday night and work until the serving of the biggest meal of the year.

The American Farm Bureau reports that for the first time since 2004 the cost of the Thanksgiving meal will drop. They are base it on a meal for ten people, at cost of $42.91. Personally, I think this quite low. Below is their break down for the meal.

• 16-pound turkey, at $18.65
• Milk, at $2.86 per gallon,
• ½ pint of whipping cream, $1.55
• A dozen brown-n-serve rolls $2.08.
• A pound relish tray of carrots and celery, $.72. Prepared trays start about $5.00
• 12-oz. package of fresh cranberries, $2.41. Canned cranberries are selling for 90 cents per can an up.
• 14-oz. package of cubed bread stuffing, $2.65
• two 9-inch pie shells, $2.34; and a 30-oz. can of pumpkin pie mix, $2.45. If you buy the pie already made, it will run around $2.98 and up per pie.
• A combined group of miscellaneous items, including coffee and ingredients necessary to prepare the meal (onions, eggs, sugar, flour, evaporated milk and butter) also dropped in price, to $2.50. Here I disagree. I figured closer to $10.00

Then if you include extra like table cloth, traveling back and forth to the store, as well as  dish soap for clean up, you can spend closer to a $100 for a family. That makes $10 per person with a whole lot of work before and after. No wonder so many smaller families will opt to go out to eat, then come home and watch their favorite movie or football game.

We are planning to watch Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Go out to eat for about $10 per person, then come home and chill watching some DVDs.

Related posts:

1. Christmas Dinner 2009
2. Mom! What’s For Dinner?
3. Burger is a Burger???
4. Dinner Can Be Good, Fun, and Under $5
5. Chocolate Milk Anyone?

Tags: Dinner, Thanksgiving, Turkey Day