Thrifty Mommas Tips

Travel, Health & Family

Summer Parties – 6 Tips to Greatness

By: Paula47 Comments

This post was sponsored by Hamilton Beach Canada. I received product for consideration here. This post contains affiliate links.

Summer parties are a big part of our lives when the warm months finally get here. Sure, my family loves winter and all the fun it has to offer, but living in Canada, we’re so ready for the warmth when it finally comes. That’s why we have as many summer parties as we can when the weather is with us.

summer_parties

Tips for Smashing Summer Parties

Because I know how much we all love having family and friends over for those warm months, I’ve put together a few tips to make your parties total winners this summer.

camping-in-ontario
Young family, parents with children, in pool

Set the Mood, Don’t Ruin Yours

Summer parties are always more fun when you set the mood. Don’t make yourself crazy over it, though. All you need is a nice table cloth from the dollar store and some fresh flowers to make your space pop.

Pick a nice (and cheap) table cloth, and decorate the table with pretty flowers in small steel buckets. It gives a summer feel, and it’s easy to do.

Hamilton_beach_blender

Seating. Lots of Seating

Make sure you have plenty of seating for your guests. No one wants to stand around throughout the entire party. You can find cute folding chairs at almost every department store. Stock up so everyone has a place to relax. In the summer all of my parties take place outside near my pool so pool floats are good too.

Shade. Lots of Shade

We all love the summer sun, but too much of a good thing is just too much. Summer parties take a real nosedive when everyone is wilted from the heat and blaring sun. If you have a shade-free yard, consider getting some shade umbrellas that you can stake into the ground to provide shade for guests.

Hamilton_beach_stainless_steel_blender

Make it a Pot Luck

Great food makes for a great party, but honestly, all that cooking and prep is cringe-worthy. Rather than do all the work yourself, make it a potluck! Almost every member of the family has that one dish that everyone else can’t get enough of, so why not have everyone bring that dish?

When everyone arrives with one dish, you end up with a big, tasty buffet, and you only had to make one thing. When it’s all over, you also only have to clean one thing.

Games are Always Good

Summer parties practically require outdoor games and toys. They make for great fun, conversation, and boredom crushers. Some classic games to have on hand are bags, horse shoes, and even sack races. If you have a pool you can play Marco Polo or simply toss rings, a volleyball or inflatable ball in the pool. Party at the cottage or the lake?Grab one of these floating islands and make a splash.

Stay cool and don’t forget sunscreen too.

Hamilton_beach_stainless_steel_blender

Keep the Drinks Flowing

Whether virgin or hard, drinks are one of the best parts of summer parties. Have a drink station on hand with water, cola, anything else that will keep all your guests happy. And if you want to get fancy, consider making shakes and soda fountain drinks for your guests. WE also love these tumblers for the patio.

Hamilton Beach Stainless Steel Drink Mixer

If you choose to make mixed drinks, get yourself the Hamilton Beach Stainless Steel Drink Mixer. It’s the perfect companion to summer parties. This beauty makes it easy to mix up shakes and floats in no time flat.

Its 28-ounce capacity means you don’t have to worry about wimpy portions or big messes from mixing. It’s tough, as well, so you won’t have to worry about it breaking after a few uses. It even features a tilting head for ease of use, mixing, and serving!

Here are the specs so you can see what it has to offer.

  • Durable, stainless steel mixing cup
  • Two speed settings
  • Tilting mixing head
  • Detachable spindle for easy cleanup
  • Chrome finish

Summer Parties, Summer Fun!

Good food, drinks, and games make for great summer parties. The warm weather is finally here, so use these tips to plan some epic summer parties for your friends and family this year. And if you love shakes and floats, snag a Hamilton Beach Stainless Steel mixer to serve up some cold, tasty treats!

Print Recipe

Cookies and Cream Milkshake

Scrumptious summer shake
Prep Time4 mins
Cook Time2 mins
Course: Drinks
Cuisine: American
Keyword: cookies and cream milkshake
Servings: -1
Calories: 275kcal
Cost: $1

Equipment

  • Hamilton Beach stainless steel Drinkmaster blender

Ingredients

  • 2 scoops vanilla ice cream
  • ½ cup plain yogurt
  • ½ cup white milk
  • 1 snack package Oreo cookies

Instructions

  • Scoop one scoop ice cream into the blender cup
  • Add the yogurt
  • Add the milk
  • Crush the oreo snack cookies (6 mini cookies) and add to the mix.
    Blend everything until milkshake consistency.
  • Hold back one scoop of vanilla for the final product
  • Pour mixture into a thermal cup
  • Add one generous scoop of vanilla ice cream
  • Keep 2 small oreo cookies intact for decoration at end

Get in on the Giveaway

If you like the sound of this mixer, then enter to win! I’m giving one lucky reader their very own mixer to make their summer parties even better.

Comments

  3. Lynda Cook says

    I have been wanting to try a shamrock shake, I never ever had one before so I think I might just have to make one!

    Reply

  4. Shirley P says

    I would make smoothies bannana and strawberry The milkshake recipe that you shared I would make I would also use this for making soup

    Reply

  15. Shirley P says

    I would like to make a citrus energy boosting smoothie for the morning. It has orange lemon peach spinach leaves and a carrot and almond milk.

    Reply

  18. Shirley P says

    I would make a smoothie using Strawberries Pineapple a Banana Orange Juice Greek Yogurt and Spinach

    Reply

  20. Lynda Cook says

    My granddaughter would think this is so cool and she would love watching it make her a chocolate shake!

    Reply

  28. Krista M says

    I would make a chocolate, peanut butter & banana protein shake for a great boost of energy for the day!

    Reply

  31. Shirley says

    I would like to make Muddy Bottom Baby it has chocolate ice cream, marshmallow creme, and creme-filled chocolate sandwich cookies

    Reply

  34. Shirley P says

    I would make Mash One in the hay use strawberry frozen yogurt, apple juice, fresh strawberries and a banana

    Reply

  41. Shirley P says

    I would like to make an ice cream sandwich milkshake use.. ice cream.. nutella spread.. milk and and an ice cream sandwich.

    Reply

  45. Krista M says

    This would be awesome to puree veggies to hide in foods for my son like in muffins or pasta sauces!

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.