Holiday Disasters That Make Thanksgiving Memorable
From burnt turkeys to slippery stairs, here’s why perfection isn’t the goal.
Thanksgiving stands out among the other major holidays on the calendar. It isn’t about costumes or candy, and there’s no pressure to buy presents for relatives or friends. Instead, the day usually comes down to cooking skills, patience, and the ability to keep calm when the house fills with hungry guests.
Most of us picture cozy scenes filled with the scent of turkey in the oven and slices of warm pie waiting on the table. Yet real life often has other plans, turning the holiday into a mix of small disasters and unexpected comedy.
From burnt dishes to kitchen mishaps and poorly timed accidents, Thanksgiving has a way of reminding us that perfection rarely makes an appearance. And honestly, that’s part of its charm. The stories we laugh about later often come from the moments we least expect, not from picture-perfect dinners.
To celebrate the holiday’s chaotic side, we gathered a collection of Thanksgiving moments that went far from smoothly. These photos show the kind of mishaps that can happen to anyone, no matter how carefully they plan.
Because in the end, Thanksgiving isn’t defined by flawless meals or perfect hosting, it’s about getting through the day together, laughing when things go wrong, and appreciating the memories that stick with us long after the dishes are done.
"My Sister Was Supposed To Bring A Dessert For Thanksgiving."
bettercallsaul3"Nailed It"
iamTatertot"My Solid White Husky/Shepherd Decided Thanksgiving Lunch Was The Perfect Opportunity To Be A Bad Boy."
SuperKook
"My Boyfriend Fell Down Our Stairs On Thanksgiving Day. Instead Of Fixing The Hole, We Got Creative."
Rwolinski
"I Accidently Branded Rachael Ray's Name On Myself With One Of Her Roasting Trays"
doyouhaveeyedrops
"It Only Lasted 10 Minutes, But Come On"
HardPass4
"Mom Was Making Thanksgiving Pie When Suddenly This Happened"
hbmomo
"My Wife Tried Cooking Thanksgiving Dinner For Us And Actually Burned The Cookbook"
unclemerle1775
"Happy Humpsgiving"
instagram.com
"Our Family Will Come For Thanksgiving, And My Mom Set Her Oven, Not Remembering That She Had Silicone Rack Guards In There"
ElvenQueen1
"I Win Thanksgiving"
busymommymedia
Pie Update: "The Paw Print Is Now A Small Sinkhole. The Piece Lives On, For Posterity"
tayhatmaker
"The Handle Of My Serving Spoon Snapped. Turns Out The Handle Was Full Of Sand, And It Ruined My Delicious Turkey Stuffing"
Silveeto
"My Brother's Face, From My Point Of View, The Entirety Of Our Thanksgiving Dinner. I Didn't Tell Him Until The End, When We Took The Picture"
echof0xtrot
"Every Year At Thanksgiving, I "Fix" My Aunt's Computer. I Have A Feeling She's Not Keeping Up With My Advice"
carveit3
"I Turned The Wrong Stove Burner On, And My Pumpkin Pie Made From Scratch Exploded"
TheGidget007
"Many People Helped Out With The Dishes On Thanksgiving Dinner. However, Today I Found My Chef's Knife Like This"
thegreatvolcanodiver
"My Sister Made A Turkey Cake. I Can't Decide If It Looks Like A Log Of Poo Or A Dong, But It Ain't A Turkey For Sure"
bigfootsbestfriend
"This Stack Of Plates We Bought For Thanksgiving Only Has The Top Plate Decorated, And The Rest Are Plain White"
ajcorrao
"Maybe Enough Gravy Can Fix That?"
alissiaalvarez2
"An Extended Family Member Broke The Toilet Seat While At A Gathering And Left Without Mentioning It To Anyone"
ZeroSleepSamus
"Happy Thanksgiving"
scrubulba123
"I Stayed Up Until 4 AM Baking My First Fully From Scratch Apple Pie For Thanksgiving. Stayed Up Until 4:30 AM Having A Breakdown Over Dropping It"
Lilcatbeans
"My Mom And Sister Are Gone For Thanksgiving, So We Had To Improvise"
spicyboi414
"I Bit Down On My Crown While Eating An Appetizer Right Before Thanksgiving Dinner"
0hsewcute
"Well, Guess Who Forgot To Take The Thermometer Out When I Checked On The Turkey"
neospacebandit
"My Mom's Thanksgiving Desert"
LoobieVR
"Presentation Is A Key This Thanksgiving"
TheKingGinger03
"On Thanksgiving, I Asked My Niece If she had Farted. She Got Pretty Upset, And Then Her Mother Caught This Picture Of Our Reactions."
malpheres
"Deep Frying A Turkey On A Windy Day"
paulieparker
"Happy Thanksgiving. This Brutality Is The Work Of My Mother. That Woman Can't Carve A Turkey To Save Her Life"
DonkeyToucher
"Happy Thanksgiving"
SpectacularJade
"This Is How My Thanksgiving Is Going So Far"
lifebyande
"My Friend's Thanksgiving Turkey"
alwaysangrythrowaway
"Happy Thanksgiving"
roni_ochoa
"My Late Mum Had This Served To Her On Thanksgiving During One Of Her Many Stays In The Hospital. They Called It A "Hot Turkey Sandwich"
Kleorah
"Last Night, We Put Our Turkey Carcass In Water In Our Crockpot Slow Cooker To Make Stock. Later In The Evening, The Glass Lid Spontaneously Shattered."
nogluten.noproblem
"I Brought Cherry Pie For Our Station Thanksgiving, But I'm Clumsy And Dropped It In The Parking Lot. Thought That Counts?"
carolinebrownwx
"Our Thanksgiving"
carliesyczylo_
"Grandfather Tried To Cook A Turkey In A Pizza Oven Today"
sanfranfreak
"Today I Learned That Slow Cooking A Ham Overnight Will Still Burn The Hell Out Of It"
Queenhotsnakes
"In Case You All Are Wondering Why I Didn't Post My Finished Pie"
chrissyteigen
"My Friend Just Sent Me This Picture Of A Pumpkin Pie She Made For Thanksgiving That Her 3-Year-Old Snuck Into"
artieartichoke
"We Had One Job. Who Likes Paprika?"
aligraybill
"This Is The Turkey I Will Be Having At My In-Law'. It Is Stuffed With Prunes, Wildly Overcooked, And Will Be Accompanied By Frozen Mashed Potatoes. Happy Thanksgiving"
TrevzorFTW
"Squadron Potluck Food Gets Better Every Year"
Bunnybunzzzz
"Happy Thanksgiving To The Ground."
lahhhren
"My Thanksgiving Fail"
gabbyvr.official
"Imagine You're Expecting Guests To Arrive For Thanksgiving Dinner In 10 Minutes Or So, And This Happens. What Do You Do?"
WonderW97800751
"Our Oven Broke Just Before Thanksgiving. I Just Got The Replacement From Our Landlord Today, But Now The Dishwasher Won't Open All The Way"
BotchJobb
"Well, This Isn't How It Looked In The Magazine."
sassysal21477
"My Wife Is Grocery Shopping For Thanksgiving. There Is Only One Cashier Open."
deutschHotel
"Don't Worry, I Got The Cranberries" She Said"
TheSlopingCompanion
"Gluten Free Dressing May Be A Little Salty This Year"
pnutgvr
"When You're Already Having A Challenging Thanksgiving Because Your Fridge Is Broken, But Then Your Husband Drops The Blackberry Pie That He Spent The Whole Morning Baking It"
roseberk
"Mother-In-Law's Glass Baking Dish Exploded In The Oven, Getting All Glass In The Thanksgiving Food. Main Dish Was The Only Thing Spared"
Skea_and_Tittles
"Thanksgiving Fail"
denyscegmz
"My Grandma Thought She Bought a Turkey, But It's A Chicken. Happy Thanksgiving"
fartwithmypantsdown
"I Started My Thanksgiving By Having A 5-Pound Weight Fall On My Head. I Hope Yours Is Better Than Mine. But, Hey, I'm Thankful My Family's Always There To Bandage Me Up"
laithchaz
"I Had It So Easy. All I Had To Do Was Let Them Rise And Bake. A Moment Of Silence For Those Beautiful Delicious Rolls"
kathy_alldredge
"Pecan Pie Fail. That's What I Get For Multitasking"
4fordgirlsmom
"My Mom Doesn't Understand The Concept Of Halving A Recipe, So She Makes Way Too Much Food For 3 People, And They End Up Getting Thrown Away"
reddit.com
"Happy Thanksgiving. There Was A Power Surge At 1:40 AM. It's Still Out, And I Was Supposed To Be Hosting The Lunch"
Mdavies8807
Thanksgiving rarely unfolds exactly as planned, and that’s what makes it memorable. The small failures, last-minute fixes, and unexpected laughs often shape the best stories. Instead of chasing perfection, embracing the chaos can make the day lighter and more enjoyable. In the end, it’s the shared moments, messy or not, that give the holiday its real meaning.
