Fourth of July 2009 Tips: Fruit Pizza Recipes, Water Grenades, Bocce Ball and More

Fireworks in the park, kids pulling pranks with the bottle rockets, and twenty-seven mosquito bites aching on your arms are just a few things returning to a neighborhood near you in just a few days. Yes, the Fourth of July Holiday 2009 is upon us, and I know what you're thinking: what are we going to do this year?

You must choose for yourself which park you'll watch those big sparkly fireworks from, who you're going to invite (or not invite) to your Fourth of July party, and what you're going to wear (oh please, let it not be that faded red flag shirt from 10 years ago!). But on the bright side, I can help you with a few other party details, such as food, drinks, and activities to keep everybody busy.

Must-Have Dessert: Fruit Pizza

Fruit pizza is a must for Fourth of July. It's simple, doesn't take much oven time, and only requires you to cut up a little bit of fruit. You'll need:

A package of cookie dough, premade

One 8-oz cream cheese

1 cup sugar

Fruit for topping: blueberries, strawberries, kiwis, and peaches work the best. Not only do these provide a festive look, they also don't brown as quickly as apples, grapes, and bananas.

Simply cook the cookie dough in a pan according to directions, then let it cool completely. Mix the cream cheese and sugar and spread over top of the dough. Wash and cut the fruit into bite-size pieces, and arrange in a pinwheel pattern on top of the cream cheese mixture. You can even make a flag design with the blueberries and strawberries. Voila! You're finished.

Must-Have Drinks: SoBe Life Water

If you're packing everything in a cooler to take to the park, don't forget to pack some SoBe Life Waters to go along. These flavored waters are sweetened with natural PureVia, not aspartame, so they're better for your liver as well as the bodies of your darling children. They come in all kinds of great flavors, such as Pomegranate Cherry, Goji Apple Pear, Mojave Lemonade, and Black and Blueberry, just to name a few.

Each SoBe Life Water comes in a 20 ounce bottle, and at our grocery stores, it is cheaper than buying a 20 ounce carbonated beverage like Pepsi or Mountain Dew. They outshine leading soft drinks when it comes to behavior, too, as your children won't get a caffeine rush from the SoBe's that they will from pop.

Fun Pre-Fireworks Activities

Anyone planning a Fourth of July party knows the main attraction is not the fireworks. It's getting together and having fun with friends and family. But the fun wears thin if there's not enough to do, and when the kids start getting bored, you've got a problem on your hands. Having plenty of things for everyone to do will keep your party running smoothly, whether you're at the park or in your front yard.

Activity One: Water Grenades

Here's a new, slightly more grown-up twist on water balloons. Next time you're in the mood to play with water, try Water Grenades. You can get them at Birthday Direct and many other party stores. Instead of chintzy, multi-colored balloons, you can get wet and dirty with authentic-looking water grenades. These don't break easily upon contact, either, so it'll take a strong throw to soak your opponent. This will keep kids busy for quite some time while filling and throwing, and it will keep their mitts out of the slightly more harmful Fourth of July alternatives, like firecrackers.

Activity Two: Bocce Ball

We got a set of this Italian game at Kohl's this summer. This is a great game for people ages twelve and up who are responsible enough not to throw the heavy balls anywhere but in a safe direction. In this game, you're split up onto two teams. One person throws a small, golf ball sized ball out onto a mowed lawn, and each team's goal is to throw their ball the absolute closest to the target ball. It's not as easy as it sounds, and the game usually elicits whoops and hollers from each team as players fumble around lobbing balls.

If you're at a public playground or park, some games might not be looked highly upon, such as the water grenade one above. If this is the case, try to bring a Frisbee, gloves and a baseball, or one huge blow-up ball to entertain yourselves with while you wait for the fireworks. Sometimes, you can even get strangers to join in the game, and you get to meet some really nice people.

Hopefully these tips will help you have the best Fourth of July holiday ever.