Independence Day

You see this face right here (below)? That is the face of a guy that wakes up at 4am on his day off to reserve space along the parade route for the rest of us lazy folks who like to stroll up to the parade as it's starting to find our chairs all lined up and waiting for us. He wasn't happy about his assignment, but he did it anyways, and I love him for it. We do love the Provo Freedom Festival parade, but I think next year we may break from tradition and find a parade that doesn't require quite as much advance preparation.

I am hereby suggesting that the Freedom Festival needs to increase it's budget to buy a few boxes of tootsie rolls to throw out to all the kids (and their hot, exhausted moms) lining the parade route. We loved the bands and the horses and the BYU teams, but we could have really used some candy to combat the beating sun and the wait time between floats.

I love you, too, Benny!

It's just not Independence Day if there isn't some sort of picnic or barbeque. We congregated at the Grovers' house (I like to call it the "homestead") for Papa Grover's grilled steak and Nana Grover's scones. Benny just ate up all the attention from his Nanas and Papas and aunts and uncles, but really seemed to favor his Aunt "Feather."

We finished the night watching the fireworks display from our back deck.

Of all the generations of time and places around the globe that I could have been born into, I feel pretty lucky to live in a time and place where my family is safe, we have plenty of food to eat, we are able to worship according to our own conscience, and our future is bright. God bless the U.S.A.