Schools across the nation are winding down for the start of summer, and that means Memorial Day is just around the corner. You can celebrate the long standing and time-honored tradition of Memorial Day with friends and family as you reflect on the special meaning of this day, and the sacrifices of those brave men and women that paid the ultimate price for our freedom. Although we hang our American flags high in honor of our fallen military, we also fire up the grill, dust off the swim shorts, and invite lots of friends over for the ultimate cookout.

In my humble opinion, Memorial Day cookouts should be kept traditional in nature, with lots of red, white and blue decorations, burgers and hot dogs on the grill and simple drinks that are perfect for celebrating the occasion. For the invitations, you should stick with patriotic themes, perhaps with the American flag or simple stars and stripes and have fun with the wording. You can suggest wearing red, white and blue and bringing their favorite side dish or dessert. Guests can reply to online invitations stating what they will be bringing so you can keep a list.

For the drinks, you can make the adults a Red, White and Blue Sangria, and for the kids a Layered Patriotic Punch and use colorful straws for an added touch of fun. For the grill, you need to have lots of juicy burgers, chicken kabobs, corn on the cob and even some grilled pineapple! You can even set out a burger bar so the guests can pick and choose what they would like on their burger. And to wrap up this delicious meal, a patriotic berry trifle, frozen lemonade pie or or simple red, white and blue fruit cups will make excellent dessert options.

As a way to show your appreciation to your host, you can always take along our Patriotic Summer Gift Basket that is filled with all of the necessities for an incredible dessert offering. Included are three different flavored ice cream toppings, chocolate sprinkles, sugar cones and even a couple of American flags! This is the ultimate way to show your American pride and thanks at the same time for throwing such an incredible Memorial Day party!