The wonderful summer holiday is upon us where we celebrate the anniversary of when our forefather’s in Congress approved the Declaration of Independence drafting by Thomas Jefferson and signed by 56 delegates. Now technically the The Declaration of Independence wasn’t signed until August 2, 1776. But the voting in Congress began on the 2nd. The final draft of the Declaration of Independence was voted on July 4th, 1776. So, I guess it was just easier to let the pomp and circumstance start off the summer and get everyone amped up for a revolution from England. The combination of hope & heat could easily get the colonists ready for a fight against His Majesty and his Military. And so here we are 236 years later a little more modern, a little more free and just as much pomp and circumstance.
Now we all know that Fireworks are a must! Here is a list of large shows in the Los Angeles area. My personal favorites are the shows in Studio City at The Radford Studios & in Old Town Monrovia. The ones in Old Town Monrovia give me an old town feel…something out of the Back to the Future series.
Having something in the backyard? Make it a classic theme w/ twist. Take a galvanized tub and fill it with 
ice and classic sodas in bottles such as Coca-Cola, Bubble Up, Crush’s Grape, Dad’s Root Beer & Boylan Cream Soda. Decorate the tables with brown parchment paper, leave out crayons for the kids to color with. Make pitchers of Lemonade & Ice Tea. You can use Mason Jars as drinking glasses and garnish with lemons, oranges & mint leaves. You can get Red, White & Blue sugar crystal sticks in the jars to sweeten drinks…unless you go super traditional and make some good ‘ol sweet tea! Use Red Corn or Sundried Tomato, Blue Corn & White Corn Tortilla Chips. Add a festive adult drink like a blue cosmo like my mom made for my babyshower. It’s a little different than making a regular cosmo. Usually a cosmo is equal parts vodka, triple sec, cranberry juice & half a shot of lime juice. In the blue-tini you put a shot of Vodka, shot of Triple Sec, double shot of White Cranberry Juice and half a shot of lime juice. And I would say half a shot of Blue Curacao, but that could be quite strong, so put enough in there to make it blue, try and see how you like it! LOL!
Make your menu simple and from the grill, griddle or oven. Hamburgers, Dogs, Fries, Grilled/BBQ chicken, Green Salad, Grilled Veggies, Potato Salad & Macaroni & Cheese. You can add flair and modernize these classics with a few touches.
Hamburgers You Can Add:
Brioche or Hawaiian Buns
Shredded Cabbage
Bleu Cheese
Bacon
Heirloom Tomatoes
Slice Jalapenos
Vegetable Spread
Red Relish
Thousand Island Dressing
Hot Dogs You Can Add:
Instead of using Hot Dogs, Use Polish Dogs, Hot Sausage or Bratwurst
Sauerkraut
Bacon
Shredded Cheese
Red Relish
Roasted Peppers
Whole Wheat, Hawaiian or Lobster Roll Buns
Chopped Tomato, Onions, Pickles
Jalapenos
French Fries You Can Add:
Make the Fries Sweet Potato or Garlic Fries
Make Different Dipping sauces
Make them shoestring size
Macaroni & Cheese You Can Add:
Add Pepper Jack, or Asiago cheeses
Use multicolor Macaroni
Potato Salad You Can Add:
Purple & Red Potatoes
A nice simple cold dessert is a bowl frozen yogurt topped with fresh blueberries will go over lovely. You can take a scoop of Raspberry, Pomegranate, or Strawberry frozen yogurt, and a scoop of Plain Tart Frozen yogurt and sprinkle some fresh blueberries on top! Kid & Adult friendly. You can also take a Vanilla ice cream sandwich bar, put a popscicle stick up the middle and cover the vanilla sides with red, white & blue candied dots or sprinkles. Cut up some pineapple and watermelon up with a star cookie cutter. Make fun kid friendly ice cream sandwiches with freshly baked mini choco chips from Toll House and your kid’s favorite ice cream flavor. It’s a fun activity for the kids. You can really do any kind of cookie or a fudge brownies.
When the sun sets give the kids some sparklers and put some in the cupcakes & cakes on the dessert table to 
add a nice festive fun! While you’re at your grocery store buying mason jars buy a few extra. Add some tea lights to some to light up your tables. Then dust off the christmas lights in the garage and hang them around your yard. You can gather a few up and hang them inside mason jars that you hang from the string of lights. You can also use some Red, White & Blue paper lanterns in different sizes around the outside area and or some paper lantern stars. Ask your friends to bring their blankets for the backyard to lay out and enjoy the closest fireworks show.
I hope that you all have a safe and fun Fourth of July with your family, friends, neighbors & fellow Americans! Remember that this day is a celebration and a day of unity. Enjoy the day and time off!! Happy Fourth Everyone!!
