4th of July Highlights

I hope everyone had a fabulous Independence Day weekend! Ours was packed with activity. The All-Star tournament for my son's baseball team started on Saturday, and then we spent Sunday at church thanking God for this great nation, and singing old patriotic hymns. I don't know about you, but we always get a lump in our throat when we sing about those who have greatly sacrificed  so that we can enjoy our freedom today.

Monday, we went to our local 4th of July parade, and it was a beautiful morning for sitting in a lawn chair!

I think that small town parades are AWESOME! We always know lots of the people in the parade, and the kids catch candy, Otter Pops, and stickers, as the floats go by. Patriotism is big in our mountain communities!

 Here's a tiny glimpse of our parade through my lens:

Motorcycles and tractors are always a hit!

I could not stop laughing at the group of  ladies below who weren't afraid to flaunt their artificial bodies. They've got a great sense of humor, and each year they do something outrageous! They're a real crowd-pleaser.  You should have heard all of the whistles!

These men won first place for their portrayal of the "Buffalo Soldiers".  They sung an old Army song that sounded hauntingly beautiful as they rode by.  I've read that over 200,000 African American men served in the Civil War, and during peacetime, the Buffalo soldiers primary job became to protect settlers as they moved west into hostile territories.  They helped to build infrastructure for new settlements to encourage expansion in the west as well.  I'm definitely going to do more research about these fascinating men.

 

After the parade, we had to hustle to get to the baseball field in time for the big tournament.  As of today, we're still in it! Our son eats, breathes, and sleeps baseball, right now.  

 

After the game ended, my in-laws brought over a feast of delicious food, and we enjoyed dinner outside on the picnic table.  We ended the evening by having a bowl of homemade ice cream.  Because of fire danger, the fireworks were cancelled, but the lightning from the evening's monsoon storm was just as brilliant as fireworks.

Here we are with my husband's parents, having a lovely evening.

I hope your week is going well!

Nell