Popular 4th of July festivities include historical pageants, picnics, baseball games, watermelon-eating contests, and trips to the beach. However, nothing beats the great American cookout – a BBQ with family and friends on the 4th of July.

The Invitations - Whether you plan to invite a handful of people or the entire neighborhood, a good party planning tool and online invitations are a great help. Check out the incredible 4th of July invitation designs at purpletrail.com. You are sure to find one that you will love.

The Food – A BBQ event is all about the food. Since you wouldn’t want your guests to go home disappointed, keep them in mind when planning the menu. There are many meat options for the grill. Some eternal favorites are hotdogs, sausages, burgers, kebabs, chicken, fish and steaks. Be sure to marinade or use the rubs you want on your meat the evening prior to the party and then refrigerate to allow it to soak up the flavors. We found BBQ Recipes and Recipe Secrets to have some great recipes.

Also keep any vegetarian guests in mind and give them some variety as well. Vegetable kebabs or veggie burgers are a great option. You could also consider sliced grilled vegetables. Another sure hit for everyone at the party would be fresh fruit skewers dusted with icing sugar and then grilled.

The Grill - Has it been awhile since you fired up the grill or is this your first time? Cooking on the grill can be very easy, but also overwhelming. Check out our article BBQ 101 - Easy Grilling Tips for some great tips and ideas to make your 4th of July BBQ fun and simple.

The Decorations – Decorations go a long way to help make your party spectacular. It is always nice to create a warm and inviting atmosphere for your guests. This doesn’t necessarily translate into spending loads of money or making elaborate arrangements.

We have gathered some of our favorite homemade 4th of July decoration ideas from around the web:

Party Games: No 4th of July BBQ would be complete without some party games. Here is one of my favorites:

Balloon Relay Race

  • Assemble teams in single file with the first player in each line holding a balloon. It works best to have at least 4 people in each team.
  • When the whistle blows, each lead player passes the balloon between her legs to the next person in line. Each recipient, in turn, passes the balloon overhead to the person directly behind her.
  • The balloon is passed alternately between players’ legs and over players’ heads all the way down the line. When the last person receives the balloon, he or she races to the front of the line and the balloon pass resumes.
  • The relay continues in this fashion until the first player of the team makes it back to the starting position at the front of the line and pops the team balloon.

 

For more game ideas, check out our favorite outdoor party games.

Enjoy planning your party and have a sizzling time!  If you have any 4th of July ideas or suggestions, please email us at partyexperts@purpletrail.com.