Football and fall are the perfect combination. Agreed? This year has been all over the place with sports, so we thought it would be fun to host a tailgate party in our backyard. With the mild weather we set up the projector, served some delicious food and watched a Michigan football game. It was the perfect way to kick off fall and spend time with my family. Here are some tips for hosting a backyard tailgate party of your own.
Backyard Tailgate Party Tips
Send Invites
I can’t remember the last time I received an invite, so I thought it would be fun to send invites for our tailgate party. I’m a huge fan of Paperless Post for sending online invitations. I’ve used their invites for our engagement party, Italy party and many other little parties that we’ve hosted. I used this helmet head invitation for the tailgate party and was able to customize the colors for Michigan.
Since we’re all Michigan fans, Cory picked his favorite Michigan game to watch. You could watch a live sports event or do as we did and watch an old game.
Add Some Fall & Football Decor
Like I said, fall and football are the perfect combination. To embrace the fall season I included some mums, pumpkins and gourds on the tables for some decor. I also gave my nephews some pumpkins to take home with them, which they absolutely loved. The little details make a huge difference when hosting a small party.
A tailgate party wouldn’t be complete without some football and team decor. We had some Michigan items and football decorations included on the food tables. The kids really enjoyed the football toothpicks and fun plates.
Tailgate Party Menu
I wanted to keep the menu for this party easy and aimed toward fall. This harvest mix recipe I found from Southern Living was probably the highlight of the night. This mix was served in a waffle cone and it was perfect for enjoying with the game. I also did a quick DIY project by cutting paper bags and making them look like footballs. I filled these bags with a mix of regular popcorn, cheddar popcorn and caramel popcorn. This was an easy project and the kids really liked it.
In case you missed it, I included the recipe for these scotcharoos in the Fall Issue that came out last week. These scotcharoos are my all time favorite and very easy to make.
I also made pulled pork sliders (jackfruit sliders for myself and my sister), chips and guacamole and for something healthy a shaved brussels sprout salad. This salad recipe can also be found in the Fall Issue.
For the drinks I thought it would be great to serve a fall cocktail. Cory decided on apple cider mimosas which were so good! This recipe is also in the Fall Issue. We also served sparkling water and Oktoberfest beer at our tailgate party.
What do you think of our tailgate party? If you loved this blog post, check out our 4th of July inspired backyard movie night.
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