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A 4th of July Party Idea

Light up your Holiday!

Here's a 4th of July Party Idea for the whole family. It is packed with fun, games and lights! This summer holiday is a huge reason to gather the family and all of our friends together. Ours is an open house and everyone invites whomever they see! No one arrives empty handed, everyone comes with food. We supply the beer, soft drinks and burgers! Our FOCUS is not on food but rather FUN! There's always plenty to eat at our parties..but in all honesty that is not what makes the memories that we laugh about years later.

Step 1
Invitations? Not necessary for this party. It has become a 4th of July party tradition with our crew. It's word of mouth and phone calls on this event. We want to save our money for the light up party favors! Seems like everyone stops by after the parade and town picnic. There are all ages here from 8 months to 80! One word of caution.. as I have said numerous times throughout this site. RAIN DATE, RAIN DATE, RAIN DATE.. make sure you tell you your friends when you are going to have it if it is pouring!! If you want to start your own tradition, go ahead create invites, always ask for an RSVP, "regrets only" is tough to plan.If you are creative you can even name your event for the creation of an annual party!

There's so much going on in the yard.. we set up the tables in our driveway!

Step 2
Decorations: Our porch is draped with red, white and blue bunting. We have our flag proudly displayed and pick up red, white and blue paper goods. Don't spend extra for ones with the 4th Of July designs! They are way more expensive and the plain colored ones do just fine with creating the atmosphere.

Step 3
Food.. couldn't be easier
Everyone brings something like an old fashioned picnic. We do the burgers and the drinks. Just beer, wine and soft drinks plus tons of water!

Step 4 Party Games are a part of this 4th of July party idea. These are always a must!
This 4th of July party idea includes a home-made Frisbee toss, created by our college crowd. It was simple but fun. The kids set water bottles on top of ski poles and tossed the frisbee in an attempt to knock them off! There were lines of every age group attempting this feat. It was not as easy as it looked but fun for all. It was single elimination per player, one try and you either faced a new competitor or were out! It ended up drawing a crowd for the final round!
We borrowed some tot toys from our neighbor. She lent us all her Little Tykes toys. We had a teeter totter, slide and blow up pool for the younger crew. One of my friends also got some face paints at Party City and painted faces. The kids looked awesome!

If you have smaller kids, you may want to look at taking some ideas from our "water park of fun" birthday party. This would be so fun for them!

Could this game be any simpler, but yet SO FUN!

Look at how cute!

Step 5 In our state fireworks are illegal but we came up with our own way to "light up the night" for this 4th of July party idea with this Patriotic Light up Lei These were so fun and so safe for the kids. All were adorned..even our Wheaton Terrier, Bailey! While you can't see the chasing lights in these photos, by 9pm our yard looked like an alien landing zone from a distance with all our guests "lit up"!

Step 6
Light Up Games are part of this 4th of July party idea
Here's a family favorite that we play at all of our parties but with a twist after dark! We ran a Midnight Madness Bocce Ball Tournament. Once the polena was tossed, the official "spotter" wrapped one of the light up leis around it so the players could spot the target. Bocce is a fabulous family game. Over the years, the throws have landed the target in bushes, under trees and even across the street. Since it is easy and safe, all age groups play. They form teams, so you can have lots of participants. It is a great bonding game between the adults and the kids. Our kids have been playing with the guys since they were 5! Here's the set we have had for years - Park & Sun BB-109 Bocce Pro Set

An intense game as they strategize to come close to the polena!

Step 7
Ok.. it's almost midnight and we still have a full house.. the little ones running wild and the dad and bigger kids immersed in an intense bocce tournament. I am exhausted and send them all home but it has been a blast. As they pull out of sight.I wave and call...

"Happy 4th of July to all and to all a Good Night!"

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