Many of us get tired of winter - the dark, cold days, the gray landscape, and feeling of being cooped up. Here is a fun idea to help you break out of the winter blahs. Have a barbecue party! Following are some ideas to get you going. Barbecue and picnic traditions vary from family to family and region to region - so tailor these ideas to appeal to your crowd.
- Serve barbecued foods (duh!). You actually can barbecue outdoors in winter, even in the colder climates - but you may not want to. First of all, someone will need to stand out in the cold to do the grilling, and secondly, the food will get cold on its way from the grill to the house. Consider instead using your broiler or indoor grill to "barbecue." Or purchase pre-cooked barbecue foods at your grocery store, a discount retailer, or a local restaurant. If your group is small, you can even roast hot dogs on sticks in the fireplace.
- Decorate for a picnic. Use a checkered tablecloth, and lay some seashells randomly on the table. You can purchase shells at craft stores if you don't happen to have any lying around. Use casual tableware or paper plates, and don't forget extra napkins!
- Serve side dishes that you generally have only in summer, or that you typically serve with picnics. This varies widely from place to place and group to group. In the Northeast, you might include macaroni or potato salad, baked beans, corn-on-the-cob (available in the frozen food section) and lemonade.
- For dessert, think "s'mores" (graham cracker, roasted marshmallow and chocolate bar), ice cream sundaes, fruit pies, or whatever says "summer" to you.
- For drinks, beer always goes well with barbecue, but serve what appeals to you and your guests.
- Turn up the thermostat - just for this couple of hours - and invite your guests to wear short sleeves. The kids in particular will get a kick out of being able to wear shorts or a sundress in the middle of winter.
- Put on some summer party music. Go retro with The Beach Boys - nothings says summer like "Surfin' Safari."
- Pin up pictures of summer scenes, beaches and sunshine. Or have the kids make suns out of yellow construction paper and post them all over the party area.
- Most adults will be more comfortable at a table - but have blankets laid out for the kids to picnic "on the ground."
- Invite guests to bring a favorite picnic recipe to share, or steer the conversation to your guests favorite memories of a summer picnic or barbecue.
- Keep it simple and easy. Remember that the atmosphere you are aiming for is "relaxed and carefree." Consider asking your guests to bring side dishes, beverages or desserts, as they would to a family picnic in summer.
- Enjoy this slice of summer while you wait for spring to come!
Bbq Recipe
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Cheryl Lyon is a Certified Professional Life Coach, meditation leader and author of the At Home Retreat Kit.
Cheryl aspires to live, and to help others to live, what she calls "The Winged Life." A life of purpose AND fun. A life of work AND play. A life of accomplishment AND creativity, planning AND spontaneity, peace AND adventure. A life of one's own choosing.
Visit Cheryl's websites at http://www.wingedlifecoaching.com and http://www.athomeretreatkit.com.
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