One of the highlights of summer break comes on Independence Day, when we all take time for backyard barbecues, park picnics and camping trips to honor those who’ve served our country and spend time with family and friends. July Fourth is the perfect occasion to take your party outdoors, where you’re surrounded by the natural beauty of America’s 50 states. It’s also a great time to incorporate local, natural and reusable materials into your decorations and activities to celebrate nature and teach your children the importance of caring for our planet.
Celebrate the Fourth with these eco-friendly activities, decorations and treats.
1. Liberty Garlands
What: Decoration
Add a dash of sparkle to your party space with all-natural garlands. Gather friends and family for a hike to collect twigs, pine cones, leaves, nuts and other natural materials you find along the trail. Collect items from the forest floor, leaving living plants intact. Spread materials out on a picnic table and decorate with non-toxic red, white and blue paint and glitter, then cut three even lengths of baling twine, braiding them together and knotting the ends. Use a glue gun or clear fishing line to attach decorations to the twine. For an extra splash of color, add sprigs of summer wildflowers like asters, thimbleweed and sage, weaving the flower stems through your braid between the other decorations.
2. Old Glory Slushies
What: Drink
Cool off with icy slushies layered in the colors of the American flag. Dissolve a ½ cup sugar and one package of black cherry gelatin in two cups of boiling water. Repeat with berry blue gelatin in a separate bowl. Add a thawed 12-ounce can of frozen lemonade concentrate to each bowl, cover, and freeze overnight. An hour before guests arrive, take bowls out of the freezer to thaw. Scoop the slush, and combine with a ½ cup of lemon-lime soda, then garnish with blueberries and cut-up strawberries.
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3. Stars & Stripes Luminaries
What: Decoration
Recycle food cans for this earth-friendly party lantern. Clean cans, fill with a handful of sand and water, and freeze overnight. The next day, pat cans dry and use a hammer and nail to tap each can with Fourth of July-themed designs like stars, fireworks and USA lettering. Nails will pierce the ice but the sand will prevent the can from denting. Allow ice to melt, dry cans, then paint red, white and blue. Once the paint dries, put sand in the bottom, add a tea light and arrange luminaries along walkways and garden walls, or along the perimeter of your campsite.
4. Patriotic Popcorn
What: Snack
For a quick and easy snack that satisfies both sweet and salty palates, microwave a bag of popcorn, or cook kernels in oil on the stovetop or over the campfire. Toss with melted white chocolate morsels to coat, then toss again with red, white and blue sprinkles. Other mix-ins can include star-shaped sprinkles, pretzels, mini-marshmallows, M&Ms and pop rocks. Let chocolate set before serving.
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5. Yankee Doodle Rock Toss
What: Game
Craft your own life-size playing board for an old-fashioned game of skill that you can make with all-natural materials. Draw an oversized, star-shaped stencil, then cut the center out, leaving the star outline. Create a row of star-shaped targets on the ground using white flour to fill in the stencil. The more distance between stars, the more challenging your game will be.
Next, find five to 10 half-dollar-size rocks and let your youngest party guests paint them with red, white and blue stars and stripes. Let the paint dry, find your starting line at one end of your row of stars, and start tossing. Teams earn points for landing rocks on stars.
6. Star Spangled S’Mores
What: Dessert
Make-ahead s’mores add a patriotic twist to this campfire favorite, turning it into an anytime treat. Melt marshmallows in a stovetop pot and divide into three bowls. Working quickly, mix blue food color into one bowl and red food color into another. Pour all three bowls onto a baking pan, then marble with a knife coated with cooking spray. Let cool and cut into squares. Place graham cracker squares on a baking sheet, top with chocolate squares, bake until chocolate starts to melt, then top with a marshmallow square and another graham cracker for a grab-and-go sandwich snack.
7. Firecracker Edible Centerpiece
What: Decoration/Snack
Create a July Fourth centerpiece that’s both festive and delicious. Pick a deep, clear bowl and fill it halfway with red, white and blue jelly beans. Assemble fruit skewers with bite-size chunks of strawberries, bananas and blueberries on skewers. Dip pretzel rods in almond bark or white candy coating, roll in red, white and blue sprinkles, and allow to set. Make star-shaped Rice Krispy treats on candy sticks or skewers and drizzle them with red, white and blue icing. Place all skewers upright in bowl and serve on your campground picnic table.
Are you ready for an outdoor adventure? Plan your camping trip!