Dear Friends,

Welcome to my annual July 4th newsletter! As you can see from photos from last year’s 4th, it’s crazy, chaotic, and so much fun! To make sure I’m able to have fun too, I get organized well in advance with my GamePlan, Menus, and Activities.

The best part of our July 4th celebrations is time on the porch lingering over coffee or cocktails. Being together is THE most important thing!! A good plan ensures I’m on the porch too and not in the kitchen!

As I suggest to you each year, I keep my July 4th Master GamePlan list in the Notes function on my phone, which also syncs to my laptop and iPad. Every year I copy last year’s notes to use as my template — see last year’s GamePlan below. From there I add, delete, edit. I email the itinerary to our family to provide everything they need to know. Once everyone arrives, I post the itinerary on the fridge.

Also on the refrigerator is the “I emptied the dishwasher list!” This may be one of my most brilliant ideas of all time. Once that list goes up everyone wants to get their name on it and I never have to empty the dishwasher the entire week.

Many of the recipes can be prepped or prepared in advance. For recipes that we (yes, that means others will be helping!) will make closer to our festivities, I’ve planned when we will prepare each recipe. I will also make my grocery list in Notes. This will also be effortless as I simply copy and paste the ingredients needed into Notes from the EE Recipes online. For those of you who have the guide, you too can do this! If you have a guide and don’t have an online login, please email Jenny Mey at meyranary@gmail.com to set that up for you.

In addition to using the Notes function on your phone, we’ve provided a PDF below that will help you get started. In your EE guide and online, you also have a generic Shopping List that you can print. See Charts in Sources & Resources. Step Nine in Effortless Entertaining, “Plan Your Work and Work Your Plan.”

With good planning and prep, our July 4^th gatherings can truly be … effortless!

From our home to yours with love and best wishes for a very Happy 4th!

DeeDee@MyEffortlessEntertaining.com

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July 4^th GamePlan   🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

Remember, this is the template I use every year — copied and pasted from last year to the next in the Notes app. This is my 2024 GamePlan that I am editing for 2025. Also helpful when using Notes is that everything is synced to my laptop and iPad.

Printer-friendly Fillable One-Week GamePlan*

*Best filled out in your Web-browser or Adobe Acrobat

Signature Cocktails

• Jalapeño Cucumber Limeade
• Dalrymple Brown Derby 
• Liz’s Margarita 
• St. Germaine Martini
• Old Fashioned
• Cosmos

On Your Own

What to Wear and What to Pack

What to Pack

• Jacket (no tie), long sleeve dress shirts, cute tops, casual dresses, jeans
• Workout clothes, hiking, and tennis clothes
• Golf clothes, shoes, clubs
• Bathing suits
• Wraps, Sweaters

Note: Club is allowing jeans for dining on the patio. We still prefer long sleeve shirts and jackets for men on the weekends even with jeans.

To-Do List

Printer-friendly Fillable Shopping List*

*Best filled out in your Web-browser or Adobe Acrobat

Style Points Shop the Creatives!
Lemondaisy Designs available here: Patriotic Sea Life | Multi Color Golf Bag Cart		Elizabeth Delphine Embroidery Follow on Instagram
Stars, Stripes, and Confetti!  Shop for July 4th  lanterns, hats, pinwheels, bunting and more … Have fun!
Budweiser Cowboy Hat available here	Pleated Fan Flag | Patriotic Lanterns (3 pc) | Blue Lanterns | Patriotic Lanterns | Flag Pinwheels | Assorted Pinwheels	Table Confetti USA Stars & Flags | Large Stars

Tips & Quips
Without question, one of my best ideas EVER! I never had to ask anyone to empty the dishwasher … Everyone wanted to make sure they added their name!	In every guest bath, I place Makeup towels. These are a win-win for host and guest — no fretting for anyone about makeup on your white hand towels! Available here

Sources & Resources Setting the Table
Pomegranate Red Tablecloth | Red Napkin | Blue Bamboo Tablecloth | Red Scalloped Placemat	Red & Blue Kitchen Towels available here	4th of July Napkins available here	Vintage Georges Briard Lowball Rock Glasses available here

Votives
Assorted Blue Votives available here	Red and Blue Votives available here	Hurricane Votives available here

More Votives!