“This post has been sponsored by Tyson Foods, Inc. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”
It seems like just a week ago it was Christmas, and then New Year’s Day yesterday, and before you know it, it’s going to be the Super Bowl! I love a good excuse to throw a party like everybody else, but it’s so easy to get busy. Then, before you know it, a big game is the next day. True to my millennial title, I am a big procrastinator—but I’m good at it. I’m going to share with you my secrets for throwing an awesome last-minute party with decor and awesome food from Tyson Foods®, (yum!), which you can run out and purchase today at your local Kroger or Kroger family store. You don’t have to have FOMO with these décor tricks and easy-to-make snacks!
How to throw a last minute Football party:
Step 1: Now that you’ve decided you want to have a party, you want to work with what you have at home. Find a side table or counter that can fit all of your food and clear it off. For me, it’s the side board table behind my dining table. It’s only 10 feet away from the TV, so it’s perfect for being nearby for snack breaks. Look around the house to see if you have any tablecloths that will work. If you don’t, most grocery stores carry solid colored ones or even football ones around football season!
Step 2: Add some height and serveware. Pro-tip: Adding height to your party table immediately makes it look like you know what you’re doing. Shop from within your house and find some crates or wood boxes and varying heights of bowl and trays. I only buy white serveware, that way I can pull it out any time for any party and it all matches. If you don’t have white, brown and green are great football colors or the colors of the team you are cheering on! You can also use white or colored parchment laid on plates or trays to add color or hide a pattern you don’t love.
I grabbed a football from our garage and added it to the table for instant decor!
Step 3: Go Shopping! The next thing you want to do is decide what food you want to serve. Since you’re going last minute, you’re going to want to go for pre-cooked foods that can just be preheated. Even if I have time to plan for a long time, precooked snacks are some of the best football food. I headed to Kroger and picked up Tyson® Any’Tizers® Boneless Chicken Bites, Hillshire Farm® Lit’l Smokies® Beef Smoked Sausages (I was obsessed with these as a kid!), Tyson® Crispy Chicken Strips, and State Fair® Corn Dogs. I stuck with all finger foods, that way you don’t have to deal with the fuss of silverware; plus, everyone loves finger foods!
Tyson Any’Tizers Boneless Chicken Bites, are perfect for your flavor-loving guests. They are a protein-packed burst of flavor that will be the hit of your party! You can find them in the freezer aisle
Hillshire Farm Lit’l Smokies are so good. They come pre-cooked and pre-seasoned, and you can make whatever yummy sauce you want to go over them. I like to make things up as I go, so I usually add some barbecue sauce, some garlic, some brown sugar, and teriyaki sauce. 
Tyson Crispy Chicken Strips are minimally processed and have no artificial ingredients, that’s probably why they taste so good. These are always in the freezer section.
State Fair Corn Dogs. These are the jam! When I was in college, I used to eat these every single day for lunch, no joke. They go perfectly with cheering fans and big foam fingers. Kids love them, adults love them, and you can make them in either the oven or the microwave, so they’re sure to be ready for your party when you are!
While you’re at the store, stop by the bakery and see if they have any cupcake picks that are football themed. They’re usually willing to sell (or give) you a few, and you can use them as festive toothpicks! Bam—instant decor! Check around and see if they have any brown or green plates or cups (or whatever colors you chose to go with). Pops of your decor colors will tie the decor together! Our Kroger has a whole seasonal section that usually has football-themed plates, napkins, and decor. When you’re throwing a party last minute, you only have time to shop in one place!
Step 4: Add some cute football-themed decorations. Of course, Pinterest has a million ideas for football decorations, games, etc, but we’re going to be focusing on last minute here. Look around your house and try to shop from what you already have on hand. My colors were green and brown, so I was looking for anything green and brown to incorporate into my tablescape. One of the first things I grabbed was our football. It’s a football party, so a football (no matter how worn out) is always going to be a great addition to the table. You could use balloons taped to the wall to make a goal post or the numbers of your favorite player, you could hang up some football jerseys and spirit wear on a line as the backdrop, or you could even grab some of your brother’s old football trophies—the possibilities around your house are endless!
For my decor, I first started with some brown party cups. One brown party cup + one white paint marker = football cups! Simply draw the laces on, and now we’re starting to get in the football spirit!
The next decor I added was a chalkboard. These days it seems like everyone has a cute chalkboard lying around. What’s more classic football than x’s and o’s making game plans on a chalkboard? Draw your best Paul Bear Bryant play and put it out for display!
For plates, I opted for stadium bowls. They give that fun football stadium feel and make for easy clean up! I used my cupcake picks as toothpicks so no one would need silverware.
For the backdrop behind the table, you just need some black vinyl, cardstock, or even just use black electrical tape (I told you we’d be working with what you already have on hand!) Cut it out to say any cute football phrase and tape it up! I chose “GO TEAM!”
Now you’re ready to party! Invite your friends over and have fun watching the game! Don’t forget, you can get all this great food and most of the supplies at your local Kroger or Kroger banner store! (And if you’re really busy, their Clicklist grocery pickup is awesome!!!!) Save today with these two awesome Shopkick offers here and here!
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