Living in one of the most beautiful states in the union, we try to make the most of every opportunity to spend outside enjoying Colorado’s natural splendor. There is no need to head to the nearest park or into the mountains to have an opportunity to relax with your friends and family outdoors around a crackling fire if you have a fire pit in your yard.
With all the distractions in our lives, we know that it can be hard to get your kids to look up from their screens or convince your friends to break away from Netflix to spend quality time together when you aren’t on vacation. That’s why we have put together this list of the top 6 ways to use your fire pit to bring your friends and family together in real life.
#1 – Old Fashioned BBQ Fourth of July Celebration
The Fourth of July is right around the corner! What better way to celebrate our nation’s Independence day than with American classics like grilled sweet corn, homemade peach pie & barbeque? All you need is a roaring fire and a grate to lie over the fire pit to grill up sweet corn and barbeque bison ribs, chicken breast, or seitan patties.
Ask your friends to bring a drink or side dish to share to cut down on how much you have to cook and give yourself more time for party prep. Along with red, white and blue tableware, you can string up twinkle lights or put mason jars in the middle of the picnic tables with glow sticks, sparklers and mini American flags.
After you are all done eating, you can burn off some of the calories and make use of the glow sticks by playing glow-in-the-dark capture the flag or glow-in-the-dark bowling with water bottles with glow sticks inside for the pins and a soccer ball instead of a bowling ball.
#2 – Homemade Pizza Party
Nothing beats a wood fired pizza. Instead of ordering in, head outside to bake a homemade pizza over the fire pit. All you need is a grate for the fire pit, a pizza stone and pizza ingredients. If you’re worried that you won’t master making the crust or sauce on your own, don’t worry! You can pick up delicious pre-made pizza crusts and sauces at the grocery store along with the toppings and cheese.
You can get your family or friends involved by letting them make their own personal-sized pizza or giving each person a section of a bigger pie to load up with the toppings of their choice.
#3 – Popcorn & a Movie
It is easy to make popcorn over a fire pit. You can use an open-fire popcorn popper kit or create a DIY popcorn popper with aluminum foil, oil and corn kernels. (You can find a lot of helpful videos on YouTube to learn the best techniques.)
If you or your friends can get a hold of a video projector, a good set of speakers and a white sheet, you can setup your own outdoor theater and enjoy your freshly made popcorn under the stars watching a new movie or old classic.
#4 – Hot Diggity Hot Dog Party
Fire roasted hot dogs are easy to make and so delicious! Why not get your friends and family together for a casual party where they can roast their own hot dogs and cover them with all of their favorite condiments? You don’t even need a grate to grill them on. All you need are roasting sticks, hotdogs, buns and a plethora of popular condiments: ketchup, mustard, pickles, sauerkraut, coleslaw, pickled relish, and onions.
There’s no need to wait for nightfall to throw this party. If you plan it for the afternoon, you can set up outdoor games like ring toss, lawn twister, and giant Jenga for your guests to play while they wait for a spot to open up at the fire pit or while they’re digesting their hot diggity dog.
#5 – S’mores & Campfire Stories
For many chocoholics, s’mores are the highlight of the summer. You can enjoy them anytime you like when you have a fire pit in your backyard as long as you keep the three key ingredients stocked up: large marshmallows, graham crackers and chocolate bars. But planning a night of s’mores and campfire stories with your friends and family will make you feel like your back at summer camp.
If you can’t remember any good campfire stories, that’s okay! There are plenty of resources available. You can find creepy and funny campfire tales online. You could also pickup a copy of any one of S. E. Schlosser’s “Spooky” books that has a collection of tales of “Hauntings, Strange Happenings, And Supernatural Lore” or pull out your dusty copy of Edgar Allan Poe’s writing to do a dramatic reading of one of his classic thrillers like “The Tell-Tale Heart” or “The Raven.”
#6 – Block Party
Block parties are a great opportunity to meet new neighbors and reconnect with the neighbors you do know. After months of quick “Hellos” as you rushed inside to get out of the cold or ran out the door to shuttle your kids off to the next thing on the itinerary, the summer is the best time to slow down a little and take time to chit chat.
All you need for a great block party are a roaring fire pit, good background music, light refreshments, and plenty of drinks to go around. Games like giant Jenga and giant beer pong (with empty buckets instead of beer-filled Solo cups and cheap rubber balls instead of ping pong palls) are great games that can help foster conversations and comradery. If you want to improve the ambiance and add extra lighting, you can hang up strings of twinkle lights or lanterns.
If you are dreaming about what life would be like if you had a fire pit in your yard, let us turn your dream into a reality! Stop by FyrePro’s showroom in Fort Collins, CO. We can answer all of your questions and show you a wide selection of top rated fire pits and outdoor fireplaces that you can choose from. If you don’t find what you are looking for, we can work with you to create a custom built fire pit. Your patio or yard can be transformed into the outdoor living space that you fantasize about.