We all know that the most wonderful time of the year can also be one of the most stressful times of the year for a lot of different reasons. Maybe hosting family is hectic or your December calendar fills up in what feels like minutes. The last thing you need is to also be stressed about decorating your home for the holidays.

Every November, there is a war between people who are ready to start celebrating Christmas and those who fiercely defend the day that stands between Halloween and the official start of the Christmas season in the United States. That day, of course, is Thanksgiving – on the fourth Thursday of November. Whether you put up your tree the moment Halloween is over or can’t hear a note of Michael Buble until Black Friday begins, we can all agree that Thanksgiving is worth preserving in the midst of the yearly decorating debate.

When it comes to decorating your home for different holidays, there are different challenges and different appeals. In the spring and especially in the summer months, decorating can only go so far because many of those holidays like Memorial Day and the 4th of July are primarily celebrated outdoors. The holidays that fall later in the year, however, offer a different charm for decorating.

By the time July rolls around, it’s been a while since any big holidays. Easter falls somewhere in March or April, and Memorial Day closes out the month of May. But across the summer months of June through August, there’s essentially only one major holiday to celebrate, and it’s the holiday that encapsulates everything that an American summer should be. This is the 4th of July, and a day this good deserves to be decked out just as well!