Hooray for Independence Day!

Darius has been working a lot lately with very few days off. I was very excited when he told me he managed to get two full days off from work and would be spending Independence Day and the day before with us.

Wednesday just happened to be the opening day of Despicable Me 2, and after a busy morning of cleaning, we all went to an early showing. After a dry spell of good kids movies, it's nice to have several to look forward to this summer. The boys enjoyed watching the previews and were almost as excited for their big tub of popcorn and rare jumbo soda as they were for the movie. The movie was great and we all loved it!

For the 4th, we headed over to the Bruhn house for a BBQ. We had a good turnout...Eric's family, Clair's family, the Bruhn 3, Joy and Courtney. We all enjoyed a little potluck offering, and did our best to beat the heat by sticking to the shade.

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The boys had lots of fun with their cousins, did a little wheel-barrowing and 3-leg races. It was cute to see my boys so close together without fighting, but they quickly ditched their leg tie and tried to cheat their way to a victory.

Days off for Darius mean catching up on sleep, so while D napped after the BBQ, the boys and I headed out for a little shopping excursion. They've been dying to spend some of the money they've been saving, so I bribed them with a purchase so long as they let me look for a new top. They had their new Lego sets picked out within a quick minute, and I wish I could say I had as good of luck as they had. I struck out at our first stop, and after a promising armful of things to try on at H&M, I unfortunately struck out there as well. Stores were closing early, so we headed home to figure out the rest of our day.

I didn't realize it until now, but this was our first year watching fireworks on the 4th since watching them in Clearwater when the boys were just shy of 4 months! We were back and forth deciding where we would go, but when Joy mentioned hiking a trail in Millcreek Canyon, I thought it was a great idea. We stopped for a quick bite to eat on our way up to meet her at the trail head. The year before, Joy said there were very few people at the top, but this year the cat was out of the bag, and there were a lot of people with the same idea.

We reached the top just in time, and with the valley spread out below us, we could watch an entire spread of light shows! There were a few shows bigger than others, but with people setting off their own fireworks, there were dozens of lights to watch, and our attention darted from one area to another. It was incredible! We even got to see nature's lightshow...strikes of lightning far off in the distance that lit up the surrounding sky red.

Darius decided to head back down the trail with the boys a few minutes before me to get a head start. There were a few parts of the trail to where I could hear the boys, but I didn't catch up with them until almost the end of the trail. It was tricky heading down a trail in the dark, and the boys were getting tripped up, so Darius was very relieved when a nice family came along and helped him with the boys. The mom in the group, snatched up Zach and apparently he talked her ear off, telling her his life story and then some.

It was great to be able to spend the day with all my men, and so much of my family. I take for granted what all our little freedoms amount to, and how despite the cons, our country has far and away so many more pros that make me incredibly grateful to live here.

Holiday Weekend

It's probably just me, but holidays in Cordova don't feel the same as they do in the other places I have lived. In some ways it makes me kind of sad, but I try to shrug off the negative feelings as best I can and find ways to get involved in a few of the local traditions.

Cordova's Independence Day celebrations took place yesterday. Unfortunately the weather was cloudy and wet, so we didn't get out to see as many events as we did last year. I made pies again for the pie social which wasn't much of a social this year. At least I opted to save one pie for us (banana cream) which we all enjoyed after the beer battered halibut Darius made us for dinner.

Today was a quiet day. Joy and I took the boys for a walk around town and then out Orca Road. I enjoyed taking random pictures along the way, and adult talk with Joy after the boys fell asleep. We ended up cutting our walk short due to looming rain, which we still got caught in anyway.

This afternoon I tried to create a picnic-like barbeque. We tried a yummy Rachael Ray burger recipe with sides of macaroni salad, baked beans, chips, and strawberry lemonade. We cheated just a bit and "roasted" marshmallows for smores in the oven under the broiler. They were sticky and delicious, but missing that slightly smokey element that you can only get from a campfire.

Big or small celebration, I'm still very grateful there's a reason behind it all. I'm blessed to live in a beautiful part of a beautiful country. I'm also very grateful that there are men and women in this country who willingly serve it and us.

Red, White and Blue

I was thinking back today on some past 4th of July holidays I've enjoyed... box seats at a Yankees game in the Bronx, sitting on the FDR Drive in NYC to watch the Macy's firework show, watching San Diego's "Big Bay" fireworks show, and taking Ben & Zach to see their first fireworks in Safety Harbor, FL.

Cordova may not have big parades or an expensive firework show, but their Old Time 4th of July has a lot of heart. Living in Cordova, I've noticed that the holidays and community events are only as good as what the community is willing to make them. It may not seem like much to outsiders, but I'm impressed by how kind and giving the residents of Cordova are.

So, what does one do in Cordova for Independence Day? We started out by watching the Kelp Box Derby on Main Street. Mom tells me that a previous year a woman was hit by one of the 'boxes' and had her leg broken. The requirements are that all 'boxes' now must be steerable and have brakes. Ben and Zach paid little attention to the races and had more fun walking around in the middle of the street.

Later in the day we enjoyed the community potluck and salmon barbeque. The lines were long, and Mom was kind enough to wait in line (having already eaten herself) while Dad and I chased the boys around. They loved playing with the balloons and a toy walker that they found next to the thrift store.

After lunch we meandered down to the harbor to check out the kayak/canoe races. We weren't patient enough to see the start of the race before we left, but we caught a look at it from the view at the Reluctant Fisherman, while visiting Joy at work.

Alright family members...I know you're all disappointed that Mom and I weren't around for Thanksgiving to pump out the dozen plus pies that you'll all used to, so maybe it's cruel for me to mention the PIE Social we attended today! I did my part to contribute to the yummy event by making a few pies. If anyone is interested in trying a delicious peanut butter pie recipe, let me know! It was nice to end the festivities on a sweet note. Of course I made a couple of pies all for us too. Mmmm pie.

Happy Independence Day everyone!