7 Simple Ideas for July 4th Fun

The Aquafresh brand has compensated me in connection with the statements made in this post.

Independence Day in the United States is a unique holiday in that it occurs during the lazy months of summer.

While holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas often feel rushed and frantic because they fall right in the middle of the busy school year, 4th of July celebrations are usually more relaxed to match the slower pace of the season.

With that in mind, these seven simple ideas for July 4th fun will help make your family’s Independence Day special while still keeping with the laid back, no-fuss vibe the holiday usually has.

7 Simple Ideas for July 4th Fun

1. Enjoy a red, white, and blue breakfast.

Start the day off on a patriotic note with a red, white, and blue morning meal. Try a parfait made with layers of vanilla yogurt, blueberries, and strawberries. Or for something more decadent, top a stack of pancakes with blueberries, strawberries, and whipped cream or powdered sugar.

2. Play some patriotic-themed games.

A round of Independence Day Bingo is fun even for preschool-age kids. You can create your own customized bingo cards or use this free printable for Patriotic Bingo from Blooming Homestead.

Or get the kids moving with a round of Red, White, and Blue Tag. Just give each child a token or chip that’s either red, white, or blue. When someone is tagged, they must give their chip to the person who tagged them. The first one to collect a red, white, and blue chip wins!

3. Make a super simple flag craft with your kids.

Help your kids construct an American flag out of anything from drinking straws to paper chains. Kids Activities Blog has a great list of 30 American flag crafts, including this easy Popsicle stick flag from Glued to My Crafts—perfect for toddlers!

4. Create care packages for the troops.

Creating care packages for those in the military is a great way to open up a conversation with your kids about the role those in the military play in keeping people safe, both here and abroad. And of course it’s a perfect service project in the spirit of Independence Day. Check out this helpful list of what deployed troops really want in their care packages.

5. Host a neighborhood bike parade.

Round up all the kiddos on your block for a classic Independence Day bike and trike parade. The kids can adorn their bikes (and their helmets!) with red, white, and blue stars and streamers (making sure they can’t get caught in the bike spokes, of course). Then they pedal away to show off their decked-out, patriotic rides to all the neighbors.

6. Be flexible about fireworks.

If you grew up watching fireworks every 4th of July, you probably can’t wait for your kids to enjoy them as well. But sometimes we forget that fireworks can be downright terrifying for little ones! So prepare your children as best you can—explaining what fireworks are, why we enjoy watching them, and why they’re perfectly safe. Then consider choosing a low-key spot for viewing them, one that isn’t too close or too loud.

And always remain flexible. If your child is obviously not enjoying the show, shrug it off and try again next year.

7. Don’t fret over extra indulgences.

As with most holidays, the 4th of July is a time for enjoying special sweets and treats—but we well-meaning parents get frantic when we see our kids reaching for an extra cupcake. It’s our job to keep them healthy, and the last thing we want is for our kids to get cavities from too much sugar.

Fortunately, new Aquafresh® Multi Action Whitening toothpaste comes with Sugar Acid Protection (provided by active fluoride) to strengthen and shield teeth against the key cause of cavities*: sugar acid from everyday foods and drinks.

What that means is that Aquafresh® is basically a safety net for parents —providing essential cavity protection so you can relax and let your kids (and yourself!) indulge a bit this 4th of July.

How do you celebrate the 4th of July with your kids? Tell me in the comments and you will be entered to win a $100 Visa gift card!

Be sure to stay connected with Aquafresh® on Facebook and Twitter! 

*With twice daily brushing

Entry Instructions:

No duplicate comments.

You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:

1. Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post

2. Tweet (public message) about this promotion; including exactly the following unique term in your tweet message: “#SweepstakesEntry”; and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post

3. Blog about this promotion, including a disclosure that you are receiving a sweepstakes entry in exchange for writing the blog post, and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post

4. For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.

This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older (or nineteen (19) years of age or older in Alabama and Nebraska). Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. The notification email will come directly from BlogHer via the sweeps@blogher email address. You will have 2 business days to respond; otherwise a new winner will be selected.

The Official Rules are available here.

This sweepstakes runs from 6/1/2016 – 6/30/2016

Be sure to visit the Aquafresh® brand page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ posts!

Sweepstakes is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by Aquafresh® or GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare