/ Better Living

Fourth of July marks the heart of summer and a great time to celebrate, so here are a few fun ways to help you get in the spirit of the red, white and blue.

Turn a white sheet into a temporary tablecloth. Let kids make a border using patriotic stickers around the top. When the party is over, just peel the stickers off.

Make individual firecracker cakes by stacking two cupcakes. Use frosting to hold them together and then frost the outside with white icing. Decorate the sides with sprinkles and use a piece of red licorice rope for a wick.

Nothing is more American than apple pie. Decorate yours with pastry stars cut with a small cookie cutter. Paint on color before baking, using a blend of milk and food coloring.

Use a bell-shaped cookie cutter to create Liberty Bell cookies. Before baking, use a sharp knife to create the famous crack at the bottom.

	Slide a film canister into a toilet paper roll, add water and an antacid tablet, and watch it fly!

Make a patriotic centerpiece by painting a coffee can red. Make the stripes using white tape. The brim is a flowerpot saucer with star stickers.

Inexpensive tiki torches make great outdoor decorations for Fourth of July parties. Use acrylic paints to decorate them with a stars-and-stripes design.

Kids will love family rocket races. Fizzy antacid tablets are the fuel for these safe and simple-to-make rockets. Here's how: Slit a toilet paper tube up one side. Wrap and tape it tightly around an empty film canister. Canister should have a snap-on lid. Make sure the lid sticks out about 1/8 inch for easy opening. Make a small nosecone from paper and tape it to the other end of the rocket. Decorate with markers and stickers. To blast off, turn rocket upside down, fill canister about one third full with water and add one or two antacid tablets. Instantly replace lid and set on ground. Stand back and watch it take off! Have kids wear sunglasses to protect their eyes.

And here are some other ideas!

An old glory windsock is a great way to fly your colors and it’s easy enough for kids to make. You will need fun foam, several spools of ¼" satin ribbon, a hole punch and a low melt hot glue gun. Cut out an 8" x 12 " rectangle of fun foam and glue the 8" sides together with about a ½" overlap. With the hole punch, punch holes at approx. 1" intervals at around one end of the cylinder. At the other end punch 2 holes opposite one another and tie a piece of ribbon to each hole, forming a handle with which to hang the windsock. Cut out stripes and stars from contrasting colors of fun foam and hot glue to the windsock to decorate. Then cut lengths of ribbon between 12" and 18" and tie them securely through the holes at the bottom of the windsock to complete the job.

Make a patriotic tablecloth by sponge painting an old white sheet. Before you start, wash and dry the sheet. Lightly sketch stripes and an area for the stars. Using fabric paint, dab it gently in the areas designated for the stripes. Create the stars by pressing on sticky stars in the appropriate space and sponging over them with blue paint. Then just lift them up to reveal the design. Allow the paint to dry thoroughly and launder according to directions on paint container.

Red, white and blue ice cubes will really be a hit. Just freeze red and blue juice, fill a clear glass and top it off with some lemon lime soda.

A clever flag centerpiece is just a flowerpot painted with a few stars and stripes and turned upside down. Then just slip small flags in the hole.

Add a little red, white and blue to your table by lining chip bowls with colored tissue paper.

You can even recycle your Christmas star cookie cutter to make red, white and blue cookies. Using either prepackaged dough or homemade, bake star shaped sugar cookies in several sizes. Cool cookies completely and dip the ends in melted red, white and blue candy melts (available at craft and party stores). Lay out on wax paper and allow to dry.

A traditional flag cake topped with berries can be spectacular when you light it up with sparkler candles. For the cake, you’ll need a cake mix, one can of white frosting, and one pint each of blueberries and strawberries. Bake the cake according to package direction and ice. Create a flag design using the berries. Sparkler candles are available where craft or party supplies are sold.

So celebrate your independence with fun ideas you can do all by yourself.