Planning 4th of July Festivities
Happy Birthday America! The 4th of July is more than America's birthday. It is the day America won the fight for freedom; it is Independence Day. This is a time to reflect on the history and how far America has come. Many people choose to celebrate freedom and the birth of the nation with a large get-together. Planning an event can be an exhausting task, but the end result is a gathering of friends and family and always a lot of fun.
The location of your get together is only the beginning. If you are just having family and friends gather in the backyard, that is one thing. It is takes a little more planning if you want the whole neighborhood to gather at the cul-de-sac. Once you have decided the size of festivities you want to plan, it's time to start organizing the event.
For a theme, of course you are thinking: Red, White, Blue; Fireworks; Stars & Stripes; Uncle Sam. All of these themes immediately bring independence to mind. Decorations are therefore simple. If you have children, set them up with some craft supplies and they can create flags, fireworks, and a variety of other decorations. Use red, white, and blue tablecloths on your tables or use red, white, and blue plastic ware and paper goods.
When planning food for the event, it would be easier for you to plan a potluck. It can be difficult if you are the only one cooking for a large number a people. As the host, you might supply the meat like hamburgers and hotdogs while other guests can bring their favorite 4th of July salads, desserts, or side dishes. If you are planning a neighborhood event, it might be easiest to request that house numbers ending in 0, 2, 4 bring the salads while house numbers ending in 3, 5, 7 bring side dishes. That would leave house numbers ending with 6, 8, and 9 to bring desserts. It is a fair way to divide the types of food. However, if you have time plan a root beer float area for the kids.
Your 4th of July festivities are not just people standing or sitting around talking. If there are going to be a lot of children, plan for a costume contest. Each child dresses up in the most patriotic way they can think of and then you can have them march in a parade while the adults act as the judges. Cornhole, known in some parts of the country as bean bag toss, is another great game. Children and adults both love it! Other typical activities you can enjoy are tug-of-war, volleyball matches, egg tosses, three-legged races, or potato sack races. The main ingredient in your 4th of July activities will surely be fun.
Now that you have the festivities leading up to the fireworks planned, you can cross one thing off your list. The night is not complete without fireworks. If you decide to organize carpooling to get to the town's display fireworks or you are able to set fireworks of your own, your night is sure to end with a blaze of glory.
