We're gearing up for July Fourth activities, and outdoor barbecues are a great way to celebrate. Social distancing guidelines needn't put a damper on summer gatherings and patio parties, say experts, who offer simple tips that will keep everyone safe during the coronavirus pandemic.

Lifestyle expert Jill Bauer shared her ideas with Today, a list that includes creating sanitation stations, using disposable guest towels, and employing balloons to delineate safe social distancing. She said that tying the balloons to golf tees and placing them in the ground around your yard is a colorful way mark six-foot increments.

"Something else you can do as a 'corona courtesy' is to put out hand sanitizer stations," she said, adding that placing sanitizing wipes on each table is also helpful. Hosts should have disposable face masks on hand for forgetful guests, along with disposable towels.

According to Delish, as far as food goes, it’s time to say goodbye to chips and dips, shared condiments, and bags of buns.

"You want to be careful about the food, especially if you have some sort of shared buffet or shared food services," said Dr. Julie Swann, the department head and Allison Distinguished Professor of the Fitts Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at North Carolina State University. "You want to try and reduce how many people are breathing over the food or putting their hands and fingers all over serving utensils, so when possible have one person do all the serving."

As far as drinks, Delish recommends BYOB or, again, having one person be the bartender and making sure people know which drink is theirs. Swann said that while we can no longer do the things that used to be so natural, like greeting our friends with a hug or bringing a snack to share, we can focus on respecting the guidelines to celebrate safely with our loved ones.