6 Easy Steps to Have a 'Frozen' Thanksgiving

If you ask me, waiting for December to start sending out invitations to your Frozen-themed winter party is too easy. I mean, Frozen is about a woman with ice magic and the sister who loved her enough to melt her frozen heart (pun intended), so there's nothing creative about having a Christmas party with a Frozen theme. Fitting Frozen into other holidays would be a little harder. There are Frozen wedding dresses available out there, but for some reason no one has ever thought to devote another holiday to one of the greatest Disney movies ever made. Well, that's what I'm here to help you with. How do you have a Frozen Thanksgiving, especially when the film's one year anniversary actually falls on the holiday?

Don't worry. This is a little more in-depth than just putting up snowflake decorations, serving everything on ice, and dressing like Elsa or Anna did in the film. In fact, you don't need to do any of that to have a Frozen-themed Thanksgiving. Frozen isn't just a series of events stretched out over a two hour movie; it's a state of mind. So, even though you're already dreading having to see your relatives on Thanksgiving, put on your best Anna smile, take the following tips and tricks from the movie, and get ready to have the most musical and inspirational Thanksgiving ever. (Frozen desserts are optional.)

Step One: Don't worry about anything but the turkey

As everyone who has ever tried preparing Thanksgiving dinner knows, the holiday begins way too early in the morning when you have to start cooking everything so that it's ready by the time it's actually dinnertime. Well, you're about to have to break them all out to make sure all your guests have something to eat on. Put on "Frozen Heart" from the movie soundtrack to perfectly exemplify all the work you're going to have to do to gut that turkey, get that stuffing just right, fit it in the oven, and start glazing the potatoes — all before you're even properly awake yet.

Frozen Tip: Don't even bother to brush your hair yet. It's not your sister's coronation; you don't need to look pretty to cook.

Step Two: Pretend to be excited to see your relatives

Let's be real. The "arrivals" to your Thanksgiving feast are friends and maybe a handful of family members you actually like, followed by a parade of relatives that you're glad you only have to see once a year and who you kind of wish would decide not to show up. You are Elsa during "First Time In Forever," standing in the window and looking at all those people in the courtyard full of raging anxiety. (In fact, listening to that song from the soundtrack might help to calm you down.) Although you might feel like an Elsa, try to channel Anna's joie de vivre to get you through the meet-and-greet that is reuniting with your relatives. Remember that it's only for today.

Frozen Tip: Pretend that everyone walking into your house is Beyoncé and greet them with corresponding enthusiasm. You want your family to think you like them. A lot.

Step Three: Don't dye the food ice blue

Spoiler alert: that amazing smell is probably not chocolate. The meal is the most important part of celebrating a Frozen Thanksgiving, but it's not like there are specific dishes that we can prepare that would count as being Frozen-inspired while still being traditionally Thanksgiving-y. I guess you could try dyeing all the food an ice blue color, but I'm pretty sure no one wants to eat a blue turkey. One way around this little problem is to prepare frozen treats for desert, whether it's fruity popsicles, blueberry sorbets, or some nice semifreddo.

Frozen Tip: Sneak some chocolate onto the table for dessert. It's the universal food of happiness, forging soul bonds between even the most estranged of relatives. Not to mention it's Anna and Elsa's favorite.

Step Four: Catch up with the family (Yes, everyone)

No matter where you fall on the socializing scale, you are embodying one of the sister princesses of Arendelle. If you're like me, you're an Elsa. You're quiet, shy, reserved, and really just want all of these people out of your house. If you could sneak away to your room and lock yourself in there until they leave, you would. If you're not like me, you're an Anna. You're bubbly, friendly, outgoing and really want these people to move into your house so you never have to be without them again. Or you could be Hans — perfectly good with people, but hating them silently on the inside.

Frozen Tip: Whoever you are, avoid being the Kristoff. Sure, you might hate people and prefer to spend the whole day hanging out with your pet, but it's Thanksgiving. Put your Anna face on.

Step Five: Don't stress about that mess

You've finally gotten everyone out of your house and you're ready to collapse back in bed, exhausted from cooking and pretending to like it when your Great Aunt Margery pinches your cheeks and slips you old mints from her handbag. Then you turn around and see all the dirty dishes piled onto the table and into the sink, the food that's now staining your carpets and couches, and the toys the children left strewn all over the place that you will inevitably be forced to FedEx back to them. This is the time to find the courage to let the storm rage on because the mess never bothered you anyway.

Frozen Tip: Seriously, let it go. The princesses of Arendelle might have had servants to do their cleaning for them, but you don't necessarily have to do it all in one night — and you can listen to "Let It Go" while you ignore it.

Step Six: Congratulate yourself on a job well done

Before you pass out on the couch, trying hard not to think about the mountains of cleaning you have to do the next day, your eyes pop open like white beacons in the dark. Thanksgiving might be over... but you'll have to do this all again next year. Will Frozen still be relevant in 2015? How many different frozen desserts can you possibly cook while still pretending it's still Thanksgiving-related? What if Great Aunt Margery upgrades from passing you old mints to passing you ugly scarves she crocheted? When does it end?

Frozen Tip: That's 365 days from now. You can panic about this in October 2015. In the meantime, you've done well, so settle in with the family members you do like and watch Frozen together.

Image: Disney; rejectcliffood/Tumblr; Rebloggy (5)