4th of July

Dear Reader:  My wholehearted apologies...I started this post ages ago and thought I had posted it.  Alas, I had not.  I am a slacker!  Slap me silly with a wet, soggy noodle and consider yourself way ahead of the game with tons of ideas for NEXT year's 4th of July festivities.

The kids helped me get a 4th of July package together for our missionaries - my son, his girlfriend and my parents.  Wow!  I can't believe it's July already.  Mason comes home in just a few very short weeks.  We are so excited around here...but also just a little sad.  I will miss having a missionary BUT we still have my parents and his "friend that's a girl but not his girlfriend" so I will still try my best to come up with creative, fun package and letter ideas.

This one is oh, so easy to pull together.  Red, white and blue everything.  Grab some festive patterned or plain paper/card stock and some coordinating tissue paper and you're good to go.

Suggested Contents:

small flags

Cracker Jack

Firecracker Cookies

(see recipe below)

*place cookies in an empty Pringle's Chip can

Red Licorice

Cinnamon Bears

Peanuts

Pistachio's

Hershey kisses

Salt water Taffy

Peppermint swirls

football

Frisbee

squirt guns

Patriotic ties

...is that enough to get your creative juices flowing?

Firecracker Cookies:

I found the recipe for these delicious cookies on Pinterest (of course!) from the Cookin' Cowgirl.  They were so easy to whip up and look so festive for the holiday.  The recipe calls for an 18.25 oz. box of cake mix.  I don't know about your local grocer but mine only carries the 15.25 oz. size.  I added an extra 1/4 cup flour and they turned out just perfect.  The recipe also calls for lots and lots of sprinkles that are added to the cookie batter.  Each container was $2.49...yikes!!  And I needed 6 of them because I was making a double batch.  I grabbed two and headed to the bakery to see if they had any that I could buy.  They had a mix of red, white and blue stars.  One cup for .99 ...score!!

Firecracker Cookies:

1 box French Vanilla cake mix

     (18.25 oz. size or 15.25 oz. and 1/4 cup flour)

1 tsp baking powder

2 eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup red sprinkles

1/2 cup blue sprinkles

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a large bowl, mix together cake mix and baking powder.  In another bowl, mix together eggs, oil and vanilla.  Combine mixtures and blend.  Stir in the sprinkles and drop by rounded teaspoon or small cookie scoop* onto a greased or parchment lined cookie sheet.  Bake for 10 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool completely.  Place inside a clean Pringle's potato chip canister that you have covered in colored/patterned paper.  Reseal.

*I use a #60 scoop (the higher the number the smaller the scoop)



More ideas to spark your creative genius:

Do you prefer Red Vines or Twizzlers?  Either way, these are so CUTE!!

Candy Rockets

    

 

Lifesaver Fire Crackers

Iced Sugar Cookies

"Oh Snap!"  bag topper for Poppers

Patriotic Pretzel Rods

Patriotic Popcorn

Firecracker Favors

(with free printable)



Stars & Stripes bag topper

(with free printable)