The 4th

Happy, Happy!  I love this group!

The 4th of July (OK, the 3rd...Whatever...) started with quiche and fresh fruit with the Kings.  Then Scott and a couple of kids walked the 2 miles to our regular spot on the parade route, on the hill in front of City Hall, to be joined by the rest of us just as the sirens started.  Like everyone else, we had staked out our spot with blankets yesterday.  I love how everyone leaves blankets, chairs and awnings to reserve their spots, and nothing ever gets vandalized.   It's another reason this is the world's best parade.  Sure, it's nothing more than a collection of trucks and four wheelers advertising local businesses, but the fire trucks spray the crowd with streams of water at the end and the whole city erupts into a giant water fight.  Does life get better than that?!  The water fight this year was much more subdued than I would have liked.  I hope it's not a trend!  It could have been the milder temps.  We still got plenty soaked!

Food tastes better on holidays.  Our BBQ at Grandma and Grandpa's was so good.  We could have been eating bricks and the kids wouldn't have cared, though.  They were busy for hours on the giant water park that Grandma and Grandpa set up!  Ptolemy and Kate were too little for the waterslide and opted for hitting each other with Tinker Toys and posing for pictures.

Next on the program: fireworks!  Creatures of habit, we migrated to our usual place, the field in back of "the regional dance church" for a great view of the Davis High fireworks, with others in the distance further down the mountain range.  (Bountiful?  Lagoon?)  Ptolemy watched solemnly, taking in all the sounds and colors and Freestone narrated the action for him.  "Oooooh, did you like that one?  Were you afraid it was going to fall on you?  It wasn't.  You're OK!..."  With the girls spread out on blankets with Izzy, Lexie, Coco and Bill, Scott and I watched the back of our boys' heads, bent together watching the show.  I can't believe I am fortunate enough to have two sons and four daughters.  It's too good to be true and too many riches to take in. 

As a big firework exploded in the sky, Free said, "It's cool how it's in 3-D."  I promise, we do limit his video game time.  Really.  He's right, though.  It is cool how life is in 3-D.