Summer is here, and with this warm season comes school breaks for your little ones, days spent by the pool, and of course, the most wonderful summer celebration there is—the Fourth of July. Most employees across the United States get this fun day off, and with this year’s occasion falling on a Monday, that means a three-day weekend. What better reason could there be to celebrate? If you’re wanting to host a fun Independence Day shindig, it’s time to start planning. With these tips in your arsenal, you’ll throw the most perfectly patriotic and festive Fourth of July party your friends and family have ever attended.
Sending Out Invitations
We’re in the 21st century people, embrace it. You’ll want to get your invitations out with plenty of time for guests to plan, so make sure you write your guest list as soon as possible. To make it easier on yourself, create evites on a site like PunchBowl.com and send them out. While you may usually prefer paper invites, evites make it easier to update guests on any party changes and will make it much easier for you to keep track of RSVPs, which will help you plan supplies accordingly.
Delightful Decorations
The Fourth of July is one of the easiest holidays to decorate for: stick to red, white, and blue, and stars and stripes—you’re pretty much set. Don’t shell out huge amounts of money on decorations you’ll only use one day out of the year (even if you can recycle them for Memorial Day décor). Instead, head to The Dollar Store; these bargain markets have surprisingly amazing deals on fun décor that you won’t feel bad about throwing out at the end of the day. From tablecloths to centerpieces to little American-themed party favors, you can pretty much find anything you need.
The Dress Code
If you’re going all out with a 4th of July patriotic theme, make sure your guests know to come the part. Make sure your family goes all out. Dad could dress up like George Washington while Mom makes an excellent Betsy Ross, or you could go easy and do patriotic colored clothing, putting the kids in American flag leggings and star spangled banner tank tops. The sky’s the limit; just make sure you indicate on the invitation that you want family and friends to dress up, or you’ll deal with potentially being the only ones dressed up to the American nines on this patriotic occasion.
The Entertainment
The fireworks don’t usually start until the sun goes down, so make sure you have plenty of activities ready for your loved ones to enjoy until the colors start bursting in the sky. If there will be a bevy of little ones at your party, set up a craft table so they can let their imaginative sides run wild. It could be putting out red and blue paint with white paper so they can make their own flags (be sure to hang them up for extra decoration when they’re done), or maybe even red, white, and blue beads strung together in a beautiful bracelet or necklace.
July tends to be a toasty month depending on your location, so make sure you’ve got some fun waterworks set up for the kids if your backyard has the room. A Slip N Slide never fails to entertain, and even the simplest of misters and kiddie pools set up can entertain kids of all ages, and is safe for even the littlest of tots. Just be sure to have an adult always watching over the water play. Adults love games too, so make sure you have some fun options set up for attendees over the age of 12. It might be a fun ladder golf setup, or even a bocce ball tournament that sees some fierce competition.
Some Delicious Treats
Keep your spread classically American. Barbecues are an easy and delicious way to keep costs down and tummies happy, and you can serve burgers, hot dogs, and veggie kebabs without breaking the budget. As far as sides go, ask family and friends to bring their favorite side dish and make it a potluck affair. It helps people feel more involved and saves your budget—a win, win.
