Many of you plan on celebrating the fourth of July. Think of a few good friends or family members that you would like to spend some time with and start making plans! What kind of food do you want? Do you want to have fireworks? Where do you want to get together?
FOOD
Most people think of hot dogs and hamburgers for a cookout. That’s great! They have been go- to foods for the grill for decades because people love them. Take the time to make sure your grill is in working order. Go ahead and have plenty of charcoal on hand. Buy your food early and have it ready. Of course that means buns to match the food. We’ve all waited until the last minute and ended up having to settle on something else! If you choose hamburgers, get them made up into patties a day or two before- hand and keep them in the refrigerator. If you’re going to season some chicken breasts, do it the day before and have them ready to go. Most things can be ready to hit the grill in a moments notice, so no sweat.
Ribs, brisket and other things need more thought in preparation. Keep in mind how long it will take to have the food ready! Brisket is very time consuming. Ribs will take a few hours. How many slabs of ribs will you need? Will you need a rack of some sort to accommodate more than one slab? Will you need more than one grill? Get ready!
Sides like potato salad or slaw will have to be made before-hand and kept refrigerated so keep that in mind. Baked beans, etc., can be fixed indoors. All this will probably be a team effort so get your team ready.
FIREWORKS
There will be several outfits selling fireworks for sure. A lot of hard-working people will be staffing these tents and they are all worthy of consideration. However, some will be run by local organizations that rely on these tents for funding the organization they represent. Local High School bands or sports teams for example. You may want to find out about these spots and buy your fireworks there!
Always keep in mind who will be at your event. There will likely be some young children so keep that in mind when buying your fireworks. Hand- held sprinklers may be suitable for them but be careful about other types of fireworks. They don’t need to be having Roman Candle fights!!!! The overwhelming majority of fireworks are adult only types! Keep a close eye on your kids!
PLACE
Pick a place that will accommodate the crowd. The more outside area available the better. For that matter, the more inside area the better as well. It might rain! If you are going to have any of the higher end fireworks, you have to have an area large enough where you can use these without endangering a neighbor’s property. Get prepared and have a great FOURTH!!!!