4th of July 2020

There is no doubt that 4th of July is going to look a little different for all of us this year because of COVID-19. Some of us may not be getting together for cookouts but still want to celebrate with our family. I’ve pulled together a few fun & unique ideas that are all social distance approved.

A traditional cookout may not be on your calendar but that doesn’t mean that you can’t still make festive delicious goodies. Beyond the traditional hot dogs, hamburgers & chips you can make fun dounts that you can add frosting to, cupcakes, or even these ice cream sandwich waffles! For the waffle recipe I would swap out the rainbow jimmies (sprinkles) for red white & blue sprinkles ones to match to the holiday colors.

Picnic Basket Swap

Another fun idea including food would be to do a picnic basket swap! The idea is that you find a family who will participate with you and pack a basket for you. You can do a surprise lunch for each other & take it to a park, or lay out a blanket in your back yard. You could even do a dessert basket swap if you don’t want to commit to a full meal. Before you swap baskets please be mindful to make sure that neither family is sick.

**Mention any food allergies or dietary preferences to the family who you will be swapping with.**

Lawn Activities

Many of us will be spending some time outside but lets be honest- we may have run out of ‘fun’ ideas at this point. You (and your kiddos if you have them) could get outside and decorate the lawn with this fun lawn spray paint(chalk)! Make sure that you have a large star stencil -you could create one for free by cutting out the a star onto a piece of cardboard.

Other lawn ideas include games that you may not have. In my Memorial Day 2020 blog post I included a few different activities like Corn Hole, Kan Jam & a Splash Pad for the kiddos.

When I used to Nanny on Long Island in the summers the family that I lived with would sometimes play Bocce! I’ll admit that I am terrible at it, but it’s something different that I never experienced growing up. I wanted to include some kid friendly games too – these are all games that would be great for any time of year as most can be played inside too. Lawn Dominos could be a great opportunity for children & adults to play together (kids can practice their matching skills!) Jenga is a family favorite along with Yardzee.

Outside Movie Theater

I saw this really easy outside movie theater screen featured on HGTV & thought it would be great for a warm summer night!

An activity like this could still provide you the comfort of ‘social distancing’ while interacting with a few other families. Everyone could bring their own blanket & snack to enjoy the film! Prime Video has tons of great movies that you can stream for free (with this link you can get a free 30 day trial).

You can choose to get a few fancy seats or you can simply throw some blankets on the ground. There are a few great Mini Projectors on Amazon that hook up to a laptop, smart phone, PS4, etc. You can use a white sheet as a back drop – however this won’t capture a nice crisp video picture like a white back drop or projector screen would.

Colorful Camp Cookout

Add a little color to your traditional camp fire by adding these ‘Magical Flames’ to your fire! You get a colorful rainbow type of flame that will last an hour! If you are cooking hot dogs or smores over your fire pit I would do that before you throw in the color flames.

This Pop-up Firepit is a great solution for individuals who have a small yard or plan on going to the beach! We haven’t completed (or honestly even started) our back yard yet so this is a great temporary solution for us. You could also bring this camping or to a river!Our plans for the 4th obviously include a cook out but we are also going to do a Virtual Tours of museums abroad!

Virtual Museum Tours

I have a friend that works for a museum in California & she mentioned to me that that I lot of Museums are doing virtual tours during the pandemic. This is a great time to tour museums that you may not be able to do otherwise. I would love to travel overseas and visit tons of museums, but realistically I just don’t have the time. I’ve viewed a few & here is what I have found most interesting:

The Grand Palais: Located in Paris, France Click Here to Start Tour
The State Hermitage Museum: Located in St. Petersburg, Russia Click Here to Start Tour
The Louvre Museum: Located in Paris, France Click Here to Start Tour
National Portrait Gallery: Located in Washington, DC. Click Here to Start Tour
American Battlefield Trust: Located in United States of American (various locations) Click Here to Pick a Tour

If none of those look interesting to you this website has compiled tons of different tours from around the world that you can do from home! Will you be celebrating Independence Day this year? We would love to hear what your plans or traditions are!

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