Labor Day Picnic

Although you might be tempted to spend Labor Day doing anything but labor, a picnic is a nice way to gather with friends without breaking (much of) a sweat. Instead of planning another barbecue or beach party, head for the park, where you can relax with your friends and take in a little nature.

You'll Need
• Ingredients for each of the recipes and any serving tools, including metal skewers for the marshmallow toasting
• Tools to clean picnic site (before and after picnic): paper towels, all-purpose cleaner, trash bags, metal dustpan for ashes, whisk broom
• Tools to prepare grill: oven cleaner (really good for getting dried-on gunk off frequently used grills), wire brush, charcoal, lighter fluid, matches or lighter
• Materials for favors: tumblers, craft/paint pens
• Lawn and/or board games
• Balloons
• Large cooler, drink cooler for punch, ice

Date, Theme, Budget, and Venue
Labor Day—Traditionally observed the first Monday in September; check your calendar for this year's date. Arrive at your picnic site at about noon, and plan to eat at about 2:00 p.m.

All play and no work theme—Labor Day is a celebration of the workers and their families, so this year, honor your hard-working guests with a day filled with leisure. Plan a simple menu; take care of all the arrangements; purchase, borrow, or rent a few lawn games; and try to enjoy yourself.

Low budget—This simple party should only run you about $8 a person, if that.

The park venue—Do a little Internet research to find a park near you that allows you to reserve picnic sites. As many other people are likely to spend the day in the park, you'll want to ensure you have a great spot. Look for a park that has roomy sites with picnic tables, grills, and trashcans, as well as a public restroom nearby. You might have to make a few calls to find the right park with all your desired amenities.

Be sure to reserve your site as far ahead of time as possible because the really good spots are sure to fill up fast. Rental permits are usually inexpensive—less than $20—and you might even be able to make the arrangements online or over the phone.

Guest List and Invitations
Your guest list should include about 20 people. Invite friends, co-workers, and family; if you want to invite children, make sure your party is appropriate for all ages. You might also find out if dogs are permitted at your park of choice and, if so, invite guests to bring their pets.

For this casual party, Internet invitations are perfect. You can keep track of your guests and what they choose to bring, which will save you time and money.

Menu
Plan a potluck menu. Although you'll provide the basics, ask each guest to bring one item to contribute to the picnic, such as condiments, garnishes, buns, chips, cookies, ice, soda, paper plates, plastic utensils, cups, side dishes, and bottled water. For your part, plan this menu:

• Appetizers—Deviled eggs, onion dip and potato chips, cheese and crackers
• Side dishes—Terry Wilksen's Summer Salad, grilled corn on the cob, watermelon
• Main course—Grilled sausages, hamburgers, and veggie burgers (garnishes: onion, lettuce, tomato, and cheese)
• Dessert—Toasted marshmallows
• Beverages—Cranberry Cocktail Punch Cooler (bring a bottle of vodka to spike the cooler if alcohol is permitted at your picnic site), soda, bottled water

If you have enough guests attending, ask them to bring menu items, such as cheese and crackers, onion dip and potato chips, or marshmallows. You can also ask them to supplement the menu with their own salads, desserts, or items to grill. Most web-based invitation systems enable you to keep track of what your guests are bringing, so check a few days before the party to ensure that you have the basics covered.

To add a touch of merriment to your party, spike the watermelon with vodka. A week before the party, cut a 1"-diameter hole in the watermelon and empty in the contents of a 750ml bottle of vodka (the cheap stuff is fine). Refrigerate until the day of the party.

If you have a tight budget, eliminate the hamburgers and switch the sausages to hot dogs. Your guests won't mind at all because park picnics are typically low-tech.

Décor and Favors
Instead of focusing on a particular theme, dress your picnic in simple, classic décor. Look for red-and-white checkered tablecloths at your local discount or dollar store.

Cover the picnic table, and spread a few tablecloths on the lawn area for additional seating. Add white cloth or festive paper napkins, and you don't need much else—besides the food!

After Independence Day, many stores, such as Wal-Mart or Target, offer deep discounts on their summer merchandise. Plan ahead and stock up on coolers, lawn games, grilling tools, cutlery, dishes, and picnic baskets. You'll use these items long after your Labor Day picnic, so consider them as an investment.

Consider offering personalized tumblers as favors. As you're shopping at end-of-summer sales or dollar stores, pick up enough large (32 to 64 oz.), plastic tumblers for all your guests.

Choose unadorned tumblers in different colors and use craft or paint pens to customize each tumbler with your guests' names. Then, at the picnic, each guest will have his own cup from which to drink, eliminating a great deal of trash. After the party, guests can take the cups home with them and use them for their own picnics. Be sure to bring extra cups and your writing materials to the picnic; it will only take moments to make favors for unexpected guests.

Don't forget the balloons! Purchase a few helium-inflated mylars and tie them at your picnic area so that guests are able to find you easily. If the park is particularly difficult to navigate, tie mylars in a trail from the parking area to your picnic site.

Music and Entertainment Bring a boom box (and extra batteries!) and play your favorite party music. Here are a few CDs that would work well:

• Beauty & The Beat, Go-Go's
• Songs You Know by Heart, Jimmy Buffett
• The Immaculate Collection, Madonna

Remember that you are sharing public space, and adjust the volume accordingly.

Bring an assortment of fun games intended to be played on a lawn, such as croquet, badminton, volleyball, lawn darts, or beanbag tic-tac-toe. Check your picnic site first to see how much room you have. If you're too limited for big-area games, bring a variety of board games, such as Scrabble, Monopoly, Trivial Pursuit, or Cranium. Don't force anyone to play; just make the games available for anyone who's interested.

As you're toasting marshmallows or polishing off the last of the spiked watermelon, start a little game in which you invite people to share the thing they hate most about their jobs. Then, after everyone has had a turn, get everyone in the mood to return to work by inviting them to share the thing they love best about their jobs.