AIBU to say no to hosting 12 family members in October?

[NFLsHomeGirl]

... I have a tiny house. Could I put a tent or something outside to host everyone? It's going to be in October so has the potential to be chilly even in the day time. No one is staying as they live fairly local.
Has anyone else done this or AIBU to say no to hosting them all 12 of us? It's a family tradition but I have never done it so definitely my turn!

If space is really an issue then hire a local community room/hall (cheaper and easier than a marquee) and do a buffet. Buy honestly, for a few hours, Id be tempted to borrow a few chairs and let them pack in. Could be fun.

12 is manageable.
All you need is a seat for everyone, folding is fine. Use the table
to hold plates, cutlery, food.

Do mixed cold starters, eg. Pate.

One pot of something with a pot of rice and baby potatoes.

bowl of fancy ice cream for dessert with strawberries.

I have a small house and host Christmas dinner for my family every year. There’s usually between 10-12 of us. I just make sure the kitchen is fully cleared and organised before I start cooking and tidy/clean as I go along. Adults sit at the dining room table and kids at a picnic table in the living room.

It would be ideal to have everyone at the same table but I don’t think anybody else cares. They’re just grateful to be eating a Christmas feast that they haven’t had to cook!

Surely if they’re family they know the size of your home so they’re not going to be expecting a banquet table laid out for some posh sit down feast.

Do a buffet spread on the kitchen sides, have a pile of plates for everyone to help themselves and keep it casual.

When we have big gatherings at family houses the random fold away garden chairs come out and we’re all crammed in together.

It’s not about where you are it’s about who you’re with.

We regular have 13 of us at MIls tiny bungalow. We have a buffet and all eat on knees. It works for us!

I think I agree with the consensus, can you get away with buffet? I'd designate the most practical seats for older people and have everyone else sitting where they can. What's the weather expected to be like where you are? I've done some semi outdoor things in the UK and it's been doable with hot food, warm clothing, outdoor heat sources and blankets so long as it doesn't rain.

Tell them that you are hiring a tent for it and they might reconsider.

Do a buffet so people don’t all have to sit at a table.

That reminds me. I had a studio flat and hosted a party for 29. I think it was only party food though.

OP bite the bullet, do it with a big smile and know they'll never ask you again! Don't be hiring tents. Just squash them all into your house.

That's crazy. So they would rather be squashed together than be comfortable just to make you host?

Couldn't you offer to cook at someone else's house?

Gazebo in the garden with chairs and table for one element of the party to sit, kids/adults. Other half in the house. Or everyone eating from bowls on laps.
Big pot of chilli made in advance.
Nachos/tortillas/salsa/guacomole/sour cream.
All served buffet style from kitchen counter.

People are offering suggestions about buffets and food choices but is Canadian Thanksgiving a time when guests will expect certain food because it’s traditional?

So you should never ever host?! I can see why they are putting their foot down about it. A lot of people don’t like hosting but everyone needs to take their turn

Keep it substantial but simple, something like jacket potatoes with a couple of different toppings and some salad, or lasagne. You can serve that up in a kitchen however tiny, and people can squeeze into the living room and eat on laps.

My friend has fed 16 in her tiny, exquisite cottage. Admittedly some were children who you can squeeze in anywhere. Lunch, nice walk, back to hers for tea and cake. Fab. I wouldn't hire a gazebo, just embrace it. They already know how big your house is.

Hire a hall, or a room above a pub or something similar.

I had 24- which includes some young kids the other day.

Luckily not squashed in the same room.for the whole time.

But for food. Have you considered a cloth/ mat on the floor- with chairs/ seating around for people who would find it difficult to sit on the floor?

I regularly have 12 people sitting in my living room, I can sit 5 on the settees and the rest sit on dining and kitchen chairs that I bring in. I serve a buffet style meal in the kitchen and people go and help themselves then go back to sit down. I have a couple of folding garden type chairs as extras. Yes it’s rather crowded but fine for a discussion type meeting. In a more social setting, I find visitors sometimes stand up in the hall or kitchen for a chat.

Yes it’s crowded and ideally I’d prefer fewer people but once in a while it’s fine.

Just 12 in total or 12 plus the people who already live in your house? 12 doesn’t seem outrageous when you have 2 rooms. I would borrow/buy/hire a trestle table and ask people to bring extra chairs (and possibly plates etc) and sit at the table. 12 crammed on a 2-seater sofa eating of laps isn’t ideal.

12 for a meal fine!! 12 to sleep over…no

How many kids? They can sit at the table, adults on seats in living room. Just need enough seating.

Just do it inside Op. It will be cosy, but after all they have insisted, and 12 isn't impossible, even in a small room. We used to squeeze about 15 of us into tiny student accommodation rooms and had fun. Keep it cheerful and don't get too stressed over the details.

We have a large, fold up plastic table. It is set up as a buffet table for occasions like yours, and then gets folded away to make more space after lunch.

Canadian Thanksgiving?

It's doable inside. Borrow crockery and folding chairs. We did 10 in a one room bedsit, so I'm sure your living room will cope!

Don't get a tent. It'll be cold and miserable,

Do a buffet or put a large table in the living room to seat 12.

I don't think it's crazy to expect the OP to host once when it sounds like she has enjoyed eating at other peoples homes multiple times.

Cooking at someone else's house is an option but I think it'd be more hassle than it's worth. OP has a living room, 12 people isn't that many.