Over the last few years, the Kirk and Thomas families have developed a tradition of attending our town’s Fourth of July parade together. It’s pretty much guaranteed to be outrageously hot and charmingly old-fashioned :) This year, of course, the parade is cancelled, but Lisa came up with the idea to make a bit of our own Fourth fun – and I was immediately on board! Whether you’ll be celebrating at home alone this weekend or socially-distanced with another family, we hope these ideas inspire you to have a little fun and get a little fancy! After months of leggings and jean shorts, it felt wonderful to wear a dress while toasting to silver linings, friendship, and our magnificent country. A little background: you may recall that Lisa and I spent several years together criss-crossing the South creating editorial photo shoots for Southern Weddings. Though this most recent collaboration was hardly a professional production, we had fun brainstorming over Zoom and then bringing our ideas to life! And though our details were far more casual than our wedding days, we were very lucky to have professional photography on hand to capture them – thank you, Christen, for coming out to snap a few photos!! They turned out beautifully! Even if it’s just your family around the table on Saturday, here is your permission to break out your favorite tablecloth, pour a cocktail, and try something new for dinner. About the food: though I love a good modern spin on a charcuterie board (always and forever inspired by my friend Kayte!), we wanted to style an option that might feel more comfortable in the age of COVID. Instead of everyone sharing from a central platter, we made individual “boards,” complete with tomato, watermelon, and feta salad, cheese and crackers, summer fruit,