• cateemay said on May 16, 2007....

  Wow, tbs, that's quite a menu you've got going there... Wish I could attend! By the looks of it you've got it covered- if not a little too well. Most BBQ's are basic- atleast that's how we keep them around here. It's not always about the food, but about the company. :)

• lioneljay said on May 16, 2007....

  One of the easiest ways to throw a party like this - especially a casual one - is to make it a potluck event. Each guest brings something to share. Often people will suggest that guests bring either appetizers, salads, or desserts and the host takes care of the main dish(es) and drinks. But with a very young crowd I don't think it would be unusual to ask that everyone bring along something their own something to drink as well.

• tbs230 said on May 16, 2007....

  I was thinking the same thing. Because I don't know the first thing about cleaning chicken, and I doubt my guests would like salmonella with their meal...so excellent, excellent. I agree with keeping it simple too.
  
  So you think my list is too much? :-)

• secretlife said on May 16, 2007....

  ice...don't forget ice.

  you have alot on your list.

  i would keep it to hotdogs, hamburgers, and maybe one other thing-  chicken goes over well.

  get a big tub for soda/water

  Divide your invitee list in 3, the method LJ suggests works really well for all sorts of events we do-  then you choose and tell each person, appetizer, salad, dessert.  If you want to be ultra organized, you can say, ok you do potato salad, you do maccarroni, we need pasta salad...brownies, chocolate chips, fruit.

  ice...did i mention lots of ice?

   

• Zayda said on May 16, 2007....

  TBS--I think maybe you could do more of a potluck, like LJ suggested. Perhaps you provide three types of meat: hot dogs (decide if you are going to use all beef franks, turkey dogs, or regular hot dogs), hamburger patties, and chicken, while your guests provide the salads, chips, etc.
  
  Boneless skinless chicken breasts or tender fillets are what you want for the grill rather than bone-in chicken pieces. In terms of cleaning the chicken, rinse it under cold water and pat it dry with a paper towel; throw the paper towels away. If you want to marinate the chicken in anything, do so for at least an hour beforehand and always marinate it in the refrigerator.
  
  The one thing I didn't see on your list was eating utensils--forks, knives, spoons.
  
  Also, depending on where you live and the time of day or how long your BBQ lasts, you may want to purchase some citronella candles or Tiki torches with citronella oil in them to burn and keep back the bugs.
  
  

• sweet_cookie01 said on May 16, 2007....

  use charcoal to make the taste better and it smells great too.... have fun!

• Expendable said on May 16, 2007....

  Split up the list alphabetically. A-J bring some sort of salad. K-N bring side dish. O-Z is desert. Or however it works for you. Remember to vary it the next time so that A-J brings desert, K-N brings a salad and O-Z brings the side dish, etc.

• tbs230 said on May 16, 2007....

  Oh Guys! I knew coming here was a good idea. Love it, love it, love!! I gotta go and reorganize my list.
  
  Ice [smacks self on the head], oh yeah....that tub thing is an excellent idea too...I could even put the ice INside the tub! lol...
  
  Thank you Zayda. You're awesomeness astounds me sometimes (okay, a lot of the time) :-)
  
  There isn't any eating utensils on that list, is there...yeah, I really must be a college student...
  
  sweet, charcoal it is...although I think I'll let someone else be in charge of that...I'm not too good with setting things on fire...on purpose...
  
  Thank you guys very very much...
  

• Club38 said on May 17, 2007....

  tbs,why not hire somebody?If you need all that stuff it just might be cheaper.If you are close to Fresno,CA.,you could hire me.

  Club38

   

• CreativeWoman said on May 17, 2007....

  You might ask people to bring their lawn chairs.  They make it nice for visiting before and after the meal.
  
  Sounds like a lot of fun.
  
  CW
  
  
  

• silverwhisper said on May 17, 2007....

  tbs, i think you've gotten some good advice already. don't put the burden entirely on yourself as others have already said--as the hostess, you should be able to have fun, too!
  
  don't forget cheese, for those who want cheeseburgers. :>
  
  ed

• skald said on May 17, 2007....

  That is a big list I am going to BBQ or grill this evening and the children want hot dogs so they will get them.

• lioneljay said on May 17, 2007....

  Oh, you also forgot the toful.

• MsBradford07 said on May 17, 2007....

  What do you help with??

• Zayda said on May 17, 2007....

  Awww...TBS...thanks.
  
  
  Ohhh, you might want to have some toothpicks on hand for spearing up things like pickles and olives.
  
  
  I always make a veggie platter of some kind with different dips and salsas for those who are vegetarian and don't like veggie burgers and for those who are watching what they eat.
  
  
  Veggie platters are easy if you just pick one up at the deli of your local grocery and then you can make extra dips to go with it. (Or have one of your guests bring that if you are making this more potluck.)

• MsBradford07 said on May 17, 2007....

  Make sure you know in advance who is coming and if you are telling people to bring something, know that person can cook. You don't want people ignore food or talking about people.

• secretlife said on May 17, 2007....

  have you thought of activities you'd like to do?

  it's always fun to put a net up if you have room for volleyball-

  my husband and his brothers love horseshoes...

  my kids love water balloons!

  and how about music? 

• uniquely-ironic said on May 17, 2007....

  Don't forget to have a couple of board games too for folks who are not able or don't want to move around a lot.  I usually have a checkers board and scrabble.

• uniquely-ironic said on May 17, 2007....

  Oh, and sunscreen.  Inevitably someone will forget and start burning so maybe aloe vera too.

• botoni said on May 17, 2007....

  Watermelon......no bbq is complete with out it. A big garbage bin is handy. Zee is right on the chicken. I might add that its a good idea to wipe down the items used to prep the chicken with a 10% bleach solution. (I just put some bleach on a paper towel and wipe.)

• lioneljay said on May 17, 2007....

  I notice that you haven't invited any of us, tbs. That seems to me to guarantee that your BBQ will be an abject failure. :p

• Mamie said on May 17, 2007....

  well, I think you could go to your local pretzel shop and have a coupla dozen pretzels made of your last name initial (they are cheap)...then you could put our the big plate of T's (for tbs of course) and surround the plate with little bowls of different flavors of mustards...like a mustard bar! No cooking, no attending too, fun and everybody will talk about it! Have fun!! M

• tbs230 said on May 20, 2007....

  Thank you everyone. I've told everyone to bring something and people have seemed more than willing. Watermelon, good idea. Now I just have to figure out what to tell people to bring.
  
  Thanks again!
  

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