There were two differences between Coco Gauff’s Thanksgiving celebrations this year as compared to 2023. One, the 20-year-old hosted friends and family in her very own home this time. And two, this year’s baking experiment didn’t end in disaster.

In October, Gauff announced on Instagram, “Life update: bought a house a few months ago. Cheers to being a homeowner at 20. All glory to God.” After living with her parents in Delray Beach until now, the World No. 3 shifted out to, well, Delray Beach. It’s not far from her childhood home, and as she revealed in Riyadh earlier this month, “My parents have a court at home, so I practice there still. So it feels somewhat the same.” But being a new homeowner and living alone comes with different responsibilities, one that Gauff opened up about.

“I’m just trying to learn how to cook more, something I never really had to do living with both parents who like to cook. So, it’s been something that I’ve been experimenting with and had some mostly successes, some failures.” The 20-year-old’s mention of “failures” takes us back to last Thanksgiving, when Coco attempted to bake banana bread. And, well, it didn’t go according to plan. “The bananas were too ripe because you’re supposed to wait. I think I waited too long, so I threw them away. I tried to freestyle it without it, and that came out awful.” But this year was different.

After winning her first-ever WTA Finals trophy earlier this month by taking down Qinwen Zheng, Coco Gauff became the first American since Serena Williams in 2014 to win the title. And now, she’s relishing a well-earned break in the offseason. And what better way to utilize the holiday period than spending precious moments with your loved ones? Since last week, she’s been busy participating in fun activities with them, all of which started on November 24.

She posted a story on Instagram featuring her cousins and a food spread, writing, “My first time hosting ‘Cousins/Friendsgiving.’ Everyone made something.” What did she successfully make? “Sweet potato pie for the first time.” But that was just the beginning of the celebrations! In a new string of Instagram stories, dated November 27, Gauff revealed how she can’t get enough of “Cousinsgiving!!!” at her new home.

Sharing a video clip, she revealed that her cousin brothers Cameron and Zabian “brought the cornbread” and “cucumber salad” for Thanksgiving. And Coco’s cousin sisters Yenice and Deja made “brownies and mashed potatoes and gravy” and “collard greens” for the occasion. The next story featured a rare appearance from her grandfather, Eddie Odom, making for a wholesome moment.

Posting a selfie with Eddie, dressed in their Thanksgiving best, Coco captioned the picture, “granddad💜.” For the unversed, Eddie Odom has been just as involved in sports as Gauff and her parents have while running inspiring initiatives throughout the years. Eddie has been associated with baseball for quite some time now, having made a name for himself in the Delray Beach American Little League. He’s been working on making sports accessible for all. Back in 1970, he started a Little League for black kids to help them play baseball at a time when the facilities weren’t easily available.

Coming back to Gauff’s Thanksgiving festivities, after Wednesday’s festivities, she wound up for the day by baking a few more sweet potato pies. Sharing a picture at 1:30 AM (Thursday), the 20-year-old wrote, “Late finish, but we’re done🙏🏽 excited to eat tomorrow [for real]😝 happy thanksgiving ya’ll.” From the Instagram updates that followed, Turkey Day lived up to her expectations.

With family members dancing around the house and singing karaoke, Coco Gauff shared a video showing the scene, captioned, “family over everything❤️.” As night fell, a visibly exhausted (but extremely happy) Coco shared a video of herself dancing with her cousins, writing, “time to go to sleep, bruh😭.” As enjoyable as the day may have been, there’s no doubt that one of Gauff’s favorite memories from the celebrations would’ve been spending time with her grandpa. After all, he’s always expressed great pride in her achievements. That’s why the young tennis sensation adores him so much!

Coco Gauff’s grandfather is one of her biggest supporters!

Coco Gauff’s entire family has been supportive of her aspirations to become the best tennis player. One such example was seen earlier this year, in August, when her granddad took pride in Gauff’s significant milestone by expressing his feelings on social media.

On Instagram, Odom had posted a photo that delighted all Coco fans. He was seen wearing a New Balance t-shirt that featured a playful image of Gauff enjoying a pizza slice. To go along with the picture, he added a sweet caption. “Look at the new COCO SHIRT… PIZZA in New York,” he wrote. For those unaware, Coco secured a deal with New Balance four years ago when she was just 18.

In simple words, the bond between Coco and her granddad is quite special, to say the least. We got to witness a glimpse of it last month as well when she penned a heartfelt message on his birthday to go along with a picture of them embracing each other. “Happy birthday grandad 🙏❤️❤️ lol he doesn’t have Instagram, but any reason to share this picture, imma do it,” she wrote in her Instagram story.

While Coco’s currently having a break from tennis ahead of next season, she will look to pick up right where she left off this season. After lifting the trophy in Riyadh, she would’ve gotten an added boost of confidence going into 2025. Undoubtedly, the Australian Open will be her target. This year, she made it to the event’s semifinal but failed to get past the challenge posed by eventual champion Aryna Sabalenka. Do you think Gauff will be able to win the Australian Open this time around? Let us know in the comments below.