Your Summertime BBQ Guide

This sponsored post was created with help from HONEY MAID Grahams, HERSHEY’S Milk Chocolate and JET-PUFFED Marshmallows.

Summertime is for BBQ’s, late nights, summer fights, and roasting S’mores. I am filling you in with all the tips you’ll need for your Summertime BBQ guide so you will have no trouble whipping up some fun. I have partnered with  HONEY MAID Grahams, HERSHEY’S Milk Chocolate and JET-PUFFED Marshmallows to bring you all of these fun tips.

 

My favorite Summertime memories have always been centered around time that I’ve spent with my loved ones and making memories. I grew up in a family that loved to eat together, tell stories, and making each other laugh. This last year Paul and I have worked endlessly updating our backyard and finishing our basement. Now that summer is finally here we are ready to party, and here are some tips so that you can party too.

Share the load:

From the get go my family and I always spread out meal assignments so that putting together a last minute bbq is totally doable. We take a brief survey via text of who has what in their pantry and what we can all bring to make a meal happen! Here is a screen shot of a conversation with my family that I had today:

As you can see we keep things very low key! It makes it so much easier to get together and make things happen when you come as you are and bring what you can. I love that I can go with the flow with them and we are always so grateful we put forth the effort to see each other and the kids.

Everyone loves to only have to prepare one thing, and the dinner typically comes together beautifully.

Bring the outside in.

Notice these gorgeous flowers on the counter? They came from my YARD! I adore Peonies, but they tend to only last for a few short weeks. Bring those flowers inside for all to enjoy if you get the chance!

Have places for the kids to run free:

I have always been a big believer in enjoying the great outdoors when you can! The kids always do so much better when they are given space to run around free and you aren’t worried about them breaking something.

 

Paper plates and cups. 

Make life easier on everyone by going with paper and plastic for these types of events. Yes, please recycle, but don’t worry too much about putting on a show for the fanciest dishes. Clean up is so much easier when you can take and toss and you aren’t having to miss out on the party with all the dishes.

Decorate with ease. 

I love to throw out a bright runner and flowers. These flowers were from my local dollar store! I paired them with a bright cheery blue mug, also found at the dollar store, and called it a day. Fresh flowers are gorgeous and so appreciated, but sometimes the fake flowers can be the perfect solution for a hot summer day.

 

Serve S’mores.

 

Everyone loves S’mores for dessert when getting together for a barbecue. They are low fuss, and so much fun to make no matter what age you are!

 

We typically prefer to make our S’mores around a fire, but we don’t have a fire pit at our house! So we went a different route this time and used our grill to make the S’mores. The kids had a blast and it was so easy to put the fire out! 🙂

The thing that I love about making S’mores is that it is a social dessert. Whether it is a rowdy group, a quiet fire glow, or giggles of laughter there is always so much fun surrounding the making of S’mores.  To kick of S’mores season, there will be a fun Facebook Live event, that you can be a part of on Facebook.com/lovesmores and use the hashtag #ShareSmore. Join in on the run as we celebrate the official dessert of the summer season!

Serve food that pleases a crowd but doesn’t take long to make. Here are some delicious side salads you could prepare or bring to your next get together.

Make the drinks an easy thing.

We love to serve canned soda or mixes of lemonade. The best is when its warm enough to put a big cooler with a spout outside so the kids can fill up their cups again and again to their liking without making a big mess.

Save it for later or get together again!

If we have extra buns, marshmallows, hot dogs, or chips we will freeze what we can and save it for later. We might even decide we want to get together the next night if we can swing it.

What are some of your best summer bbq tips?

This sponsored post was created with help from HONEY MAID Grahams, HERSHEY’S Milk Chocolate and JET-PUFFED Marshmallows. Find more fun S’mores ideas on Facebook!

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