The Fourth of July is a magical day for Americans to celebrate freedom and show pride in the USA alongside friends and family. People all around the country are planning backyard barbecues, trips to the beach, and wild fireworks shows for the neighborhood.

No matter how you plan on celebrating, you need to spread the word. What better way to get a crowd over than using Smilebox invitations made specifically for the 4th! This post features some of our favorite invitation designs. Click here to see all Smilebox Fourth of July designs in action then read on for some quick party-planning tips.

Once you’ve created fun invitations and sent them out, you can start planning activities, decorations, and food to make your party unforgettable. These are just a few ideas to help you along the way.

Patriotic Pastimes

Help the kids paint beautiful American Flag themed shirts. The creative mom over at “The Family Scientista” blog came up with these easy instructions that will have your family looking the best on the block.

Outdoor games like horseshoes and touch football will keep party guests of all ages entertained. If there is a Fourth of July parade planned in your town, it may feature contests like the egg toss or three-legged race that kids (and kids at heart) will love. Our friends at Family Fun magazine have created a list of fun Fourth of July games and activities that everyone will love. As the night winds down, build a fire and see who can make the best s’more while you admire everyone’s fireworks.

Show Your True Colors

Decorations are key to getting your party site ready, and flying Old Glory is a must. Whether it’s a full-size flag or those cute mini-flags lining the yard, make sure to show your pride by displaying the majestic stars and stripes.

When it comes to decorating for meal time, every party supply store and supermarket will have red, white and blue paper plates, napkins, and tablecloths to help spice up your patriotic feast. We love the look Hostess with the Mostess created for extra stylish Fourth of July soirees.

Feast on the Fourth

In our opinion, the best way to go when it comes to food is the classic All-American barbecue. Have guests share the duties of preparing burgers, hot dogs, and ribs as main course items. Have each family bring their favorite side dish. Watermelon, pasta salad, potato salad, and cole slaw are always favorites on a hot summer day. Make sure you have some extra coolers to keep everything fresh as the celebration continues! Need more inspiration on what to serve?  Good Housekeeping has ideas for patriotic fare that’s designed to dazzle guests.

Light up the Night

Make a trip to a local fireworks stand and buy a variety of whiz-bangs that will have the crowd ooh-ing and ahh-ing. Get some big fireworks for the Dads to help light, and some sparklers for the younger kids and parents that want to keep it low-key. It’s also important to have a bucket of water nearby, just in case the lawn catches a spark. If fireworks are banned in your city, or you just don’t feel comfortable having your family handling fireworks, search for a nearby neighborhood show that will wow all of your guests.

Support the Troops

Lastly, the Fourth of July is a great time to remember and honor those who fight for the freedom you are celebrating. Operation Homefront is an important organization dedicated to helping troops with a variety of basic needs.

We hope these designs and tips spark your creativity and help you plan a star-spangled celebration. From all of us at Smilebox, have a happy (and safe!) Fourth of July.

“Pride and Patriotism” Scrapbook

UPDATE 6/20: The submission period has ended. Please head to the Smilebox Facebook page to view and vote for the finalists. Voting closes on Wednesday at 5 pm. Thanks to everyone who entered for sharing their stories, there were a ton of heroes and it was hard to only pick three!

This Father’s Day we want you to share why you admire Dad and tell us what makes him a hero in your life. Get inspired and tell us about his heroics using one of the Smilebox Father’s Day designs for the chance to win a $100 Amazon.com gift card!

In your Smilebox, you can use pictures, text, quotes, or even video clips of Dad saving the day. Get creative!

To enter the contest, “Like” the Smilebox Facebook page, then email your awe-inspiring creation to community@smilebox.com by the end of June 19.

Once the submission period has ended, the Smilebox team will select three semi-finalists, which will be posted on the Smilebox Facebook page and voted on by the Facebook community. The submission with the most votes will win the Amazon.com gift card. The other two semi-finalists will take home a free year of Club Smilebox ($39.99 value).

Helpful hints for winning the “My Hero is My Dad” Contest:
·    Be sure to add an interesting title to your Smilebox creation
·    Use creative and unique photos to help tell your story
·    Include a description of your Smilebox and why you think it should win when you email us your creation
·    Submissions will be judged based on quality of photos and creativity

Visit the Smilebox “My Hero is My Dad” Rules and Regulations page for more information. Don’t forget, the winner will receive a $100 Amazon.com gift card to give to their hero. Now get Smileboxing and convince us that you’ve got the most heroic dad around! Good luck!

Make Dad’s Day a Hole-in-One

Play a family round of golf… or, if there are some young ones in the family, a leisurely round of putt-putt golf would be perfect. Just make sure you let Dad win! For those golf-loving dads that would rather spend their day lounging around, spend some time watching the U.S. Open with him (even if it’s not your TV show of choice).

The History of Dad

If you are having a big gathering for Father’s Day, be it with family or friends, take the opportunity to play some fun Father’s Day games. One of our favorites is to collect a few baby pictures and silly mementos from each Dad’s childhood and let everyone guess what belongs to whom. The kids will love discovering funny facts about Dad’s past hobbies and interests.

Extreme Chef: Family Edition

A huge part of Father’s Day is the food, so get the rest of the family together and make Dad his all-time favorite meal for dinner. This will lead to some fun times in the kitchen, give everyone a chance to show off their cooking skills, and leave you with one happy dad! Or, if he has a favorite local restaurant, plan a surprise trip there for dinner. Being wined and dined will put a big smile on his face and a tasty meal in his belly.

Outdoor Adventure Time

Get out and enjoy the fresh spring air! Whether this is a family hike for a few hours or an overnight camping trip, everyone will enjoy getting out of the house and spending some time in the great outdoors. Bring along some of dad’s favorite snacks, a couple small outdoor games to enjoy as a family, and of course your camera to make a slideshow of your family’s great day together.

Weed and Wash Coupons

You can never go wrong with this classic gift idea. Give Dad a coupon to help him weed in the garden, wash the car, or paint the deck. Not only is it something helpful for him, it’s also something fun for the two of you, or the whole family, to do together. Our Dad’s Coupons designs are a creative and easy way to email and print your coupons.

A Gift Straight Off of Broadway

Encourage the kids to plan something special for Dad to enjoy, such as a play or special musical performance about their favorite times with him. The kids will have fun showing off their talents, and Dad will get a priceless memory to cherish for the rest of his life. We guarantee everyone will be smiling when the curtain drops at the end of the performance.

A Grand Slam of a Day

Father’s Day is a perfect time to go enjoy the warm weather and see a ballgame. Go see your favorite Major League Baseball (MLB) team and get some Cracker Jacks, cotton candy, and frozen lemonade for the whole family to share. Everyone will go home happy, especially if the hometown heroes win the game! If your family has some young ones who like to play ball, head to a local park after the game and have them toss around the ball with Dad. This will be fun family time for everyone, including the dog.

Home Movie Night

After dinner, round up your family and watch home movies. Or, make a personalized Father’s Day Smilebox with your best home movie clips. This is sure to bring laughter and a smile to everyone’s face. This activity is even better if you have any embarrassing videos of Dad when he was a kid! After these are done playing grab a blanket and some popcorn to settle in and watch one of Dad’s favorite movies.

Learn a Skill from Dad

If your kids are teenagers, they may not be as enthused as they used to be about Dad’s special day. Instead of buying a last-minute gift at the mall, have your kids ask Dad to teach them a special skill that they are interested in learning. Maybe they want to know how to change a flat tire or get some tips on their golf swing. This simple idea will remind Dad of his importance in their lives, and will be a fun and productive adventure for all.

Honor His Memory

If your father has passed away, honor his legacy on Father’s Day by donating to his favorite charity or lending a hand to a cause he cared about. You could also take the time to pick out your favorite pictures with Dad and make a Smilebox scrapbook or photo album to help you cherish those precious memories.

Here at Smilebox we hope you have a fantastic time with your family this Father’s Day. Make sure to take some beautiful pictures and videos to share with friends and loved ones, and to look back on in the years to come. Good Luck and happy planning!

Create your Easter Tale now, or browse our entire colorful collection of Easter slideshows, collages and scrapbooks. Happy hunting!

St. Patrick’s Day Fun Facts

• Irish legends say that each leaf of the four-leaf-clover comes with a different message: the first for hope, the second for faith, the third for love and the fourth for luck!
• In Ireland, people traditionally celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by wearing a small bunch of shamrocks on their clothes or hats.
• There are two U.S. cities called “Shamrock.” Do you know what states they’re in? (Hint: they share a border!)
• According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the highest number of leaves found on any one clover is 14!
• Green is associated with St. Patrick’s Day because it is the color of spring.
• In Chicago, on St. Patrick’s Day, the rivers surrounding the city are dyed green!

Feeling enlightened? Share your knowledge and St. Patty’s Day pride with a Smilebox greeting to friends and family. Check out one of our new favorite designs, Leapin’ Leprechaun below, or browse all of our St. Patricks Day designs! Oh, and don’t forget to wear green this Thursday to avoid getting pinched!

Get started on your own Mardi Gras Slideshow.

Greetings

Keep it short and sweet in a classic or funny greeting. With the ability to add up to 25 photos, a personal video message and animation options, you can be sure to find a design that says, “Happy Valentine’s Day” just the way you want to. We love Candy Stripes, below.

Browse all of our Valentine’s Day greetings.

Slideshows

Slideshows are a great way to show off many photos and videos quickly and easily to remind your sweetie of all of the fabulous times you’ve had together. Able to showcase up to 400 photos and captions, Love Struck, below, is one of our favorites.

Browse all of our Valentine’s Day Slideshows.

Collages

Great for printing and framing, collages are an elegant way to share favorite moments and family memories. With Smilebox, it’s easy to create professionally looking collages that make for a thoughtful, personalized gift this Valentine’s Day. Check out this love themed collage, Crazy for You.

Browse all of our Valentine’s Day collages.

Photo Albums

A photo album is the perfect way to embellish your photos with decor and design, while keeping all of your personalized memories in the spotlight. We like Just the Two of Us below.

Browse all of our Valentine’s Day Photo Albums.

Scrapbooks

With multiple text and photo options, a scrapbook is one of the most customizable ways to share your personal story. Tell your love story through the combination of photos, video and text, like quotes or poems, to help adorn your memories. Check it out in the scrapbook below, A Love Story.

Browse all Valentine’s Day Scrapbooks for more ideas.

Recipes

Does your sweetie have a sweet tooth? Send them a preview of your Valentine’s Day dinner, or charm a baker-extraordinaire friend with a yummy V-day recipe, in this Sweet Eats design.

Get inspiration from our  healthy Valentine’s Day snack ideas to send to friends and family.

As a general rule of thumb, remember that diversity is key. This goes without saying for any scrapbooking project, but in particular for Halloween; we know you had great Halloween costumes this year, but do you also have great pictures of the family putting up decorations? Maybe you took a family trip to the pumpkin patch or visited a corn maze. These are the kinds of pictures that can help make a good Halloween scrapbook a GREAT one.

For a good example of diversity in a Halloween scrapbooking project, check out the Smilebox on Parent Talk Today

Another great hook that gets people every time is pictures of cute kids… It never hurts to milk the cuteness factor. If it comes down to another picture of your Halloween decor OR a picture of a child with pumpkin pie all over his or her face, well, you know what to do.

To see what I mean when I say that everyone loves a cute kid, check out the Smilebox on Mama Cheaps

Last but not least, don’t forget to show the process. If you’re proud of your finished product, show off your hard work by showcasing all the behind-the-scenes stuff – the sewing, the carving, the baking, or whatever you did to make your Halloween special.

If you want to see great Smilebox featuring a Halloween-in-the-making, check out Rootie Tootie Thankful Hootie

Do have a great Smilebox that
you’d like to share with the world?
Send it in to community@smilebox.com,
or post to our Facebook fan page.

Halloween Bone Hunt:

An Easter egg hunt in October? For a Halloween twist on this popular game, hide mini skeleton bones (available at most party supply stores) around an indoor room. Lead the kids in with their eyes closed, and on your cue let the hunt begin! For older kids, you can also try playing outside with flashlights.  Hand out prizes (hint: kids like candy) to the children with the most bones found.

Monster Mash Freeze Dance:

When energy levels are high, this is a great game to play with kids. Turn on fun and spooky Halloween music for the guests to dance around to. When you pause the music, the players must freeze in a Halloween position, such as a pumpkin or a mummy. Whoever is caught moving when the music has stopped playing is out, and the last person standing wins!

Costume Contest:

A Halloween party wouldn’t be complete without a costume contest! Spice up this classic activity by preparing creative superlative awards ahead of time. Instead of giving prizes for the “best” costumes, hand out prizes for the funniest, most creative, most unrecognizable, or most colorful costume. On the night of the party, have a mini awards ceremony. Present winners with a take-home trophy, like a mini-pumpkin with the title of the award printed on it.

Mini Pumpkin Decorating:

For younger kids, hand out mini pumpkins to decorate with puff paint, markers, glitter and sequins. This is a simple and clean craft that can easily be taken home as a party favor.

Ghost grub:

A Halloween party wouldn’t be complete without a few terrifyingly tasty snacks. But just because it’s Halloween doesn’t mean it has to be all sugar and candy. Our friends over at FamilyFun have put together a slideshow of hauntingly healthy Halloween snacks to die for! Be sure to check out the tasty Apple Bites and spooky Melon Brain. Yum!

Now that you’ve got some entertaining ideas all you need is the guests! Check out some of our spirited Halloween invitations, like this Black Cat invite.

Sisterhood Slideshow

Family Garden