Fourth of July Decorations

Ever since I was a little girl my family drove from upstate NY to Cape Cod to enjoy the Fourth of July. To this day, everyone stays at my Nana's home that's only 1/4 mile from the beach. My most vivid memories include making Fourth of July decorations with my cousins — I can still see myself sitting on my Nana's screened in porch sipping lemonade and painting seashells.

Here are my favorite Fourth of July decorations that are kid-friendly and perfect for parties.

1. Festive Florals

My Poppy had the most beautiful gardens, and my favorite was his rose garden. He would let me pick my very own rose from his garden and he'd place it next to my bed in a sweet little vase. So in his honor, our family continues the tradition and we've enjoyed creating festive arrangements.

Photo Credit: Pixabay

Supplies:

• Any cheap vase that kiddos can handle - we go to the Dollar store
• Red, white and blue paint (the brand Testor works great on glass)
• Festive star or flag stickers (optional)
• Pruning shears
• Fresh garden flowers - think red, white and blue

Instructions:

1. Paint your vase(s) in festive colors - let kids get creative and paint any design. Here's some swoonworthy inspiration via Pinterest.
2. Once the vase is dry, add your star or flag stickers. While you wait, play festive games!
3. Take a walk and cut your flowers of choice. In New England we use blue hydrangea (they welcome you as you enter my grandparents house), and red and white roses.
4. Arrange your flowers and enjoy!

2. Red, White and Blue Candy Bar

We had a candy bar at our wedding and our guests raved about it for months! So we recreate it every year to celebrate the Fourth. Here is a picture from our wedding candy bar...

Photo Credit: My Own Photo

Supplies:

• Twizzlers
• Red and Blue Skittles
• Red and Blue M&Ms
• Yogurt Covered Pretzels
• 6 Mason jars or bowls
• Cellophane bags or ziploc bags
• Construction paper and markers

Instructions:

1. Separate your skittles and m&m's - this is a great sorting project for kids!
2. Add each candy into a bowl or mason jar
3. Have your children make labels for each candy
4. Give each guest a bag to fill and enjoy!

3. Patriotic Marshmallows

I wholeheartedly stole this idea from The Decorated Cookie because it's just so festive and easy. These are fun to eat during fireworks!

Photo Credit: The Decorated Cookie

Ingredients:

• 1-2 bags of marshmallows
• Red, white and blue glitter
• Festive straws

Instructions:

1. Briefly dip each marshmallow in water
2. Roll the marshmallows in glitter
3. Place the marshmallows on a festive straw

4. Marble Fireworks

Yes, you read that right. I found this idea because my son is OBSESSED with marbles. This was an instant win for my family! A big thank you to Melissa at Kid-Friendly Things to Do.

Supplies

• An old shoebox
• Red, white and blue paint
• A marble
• Paper

Instructions:

1. Place your paper into your shoebox
2. Add a quarter sized amount of each color paint to your paper
3. Place your marble into the shoebox and tilt it around to create "fireworks"
4. Once the art is dry you can use it as placemats as part of your fourth of july decorations.

Photo Credit: Pixaby

Happy Fourth of July to your family from mine!