There's nothing better than Independence Day. We've had the opportunity to celebrate it a few ways the past few weeks...
In June, the traveling Vietnam Memorial Wall came to Ogden, and we went to go see it. It was a neat experience. As soon as we got near the wall and displays, we could feel the sacredness of the ground we were walking on. Though I've never known anyone personally who has died while in uniform, I almost felt a connection to those soldiers & their families who have sacrificed so much for people like me, who they have never even known. I feel so grateful for their service, not only those who died in Vietnam, but all of those soldiers who have fought for our freedoms since America's infancy, and those who continue to defend what we believe by serving in Afghanistan, Iraq, and other places. God bless the troops!
Of course one of the best things about the month of July is the fireworks! We love them! We went to Eaglewood fireworks on July 3, and sat with the Ryerse and Stoddard families. The festivities began by going to Spanky's in Bountiful for sandwiches, then homeade Reese's Ice Cream, staking out a spot on the green, and waiting. Emma loved them! "Oooooh!" "Woa!" "Yeah!" "Fireworks" she would say. The finale at Eaglewood made her go crazy! She stuck out her tongue and was hooting and hollering. Everyone around us was laughing pretty hard. We've been to 5 firework shows so far this year, and look forward to even more.
On July 4, we drove up to Huntsville for their parade with the Stoddard crew. It's a fun, small town parade. Lots of tractors, Marlin K. Jensen of the 70, and horses stole the show. One of the great things about the summer and holidays is being able to be with family. We had a picnic with the Stoddard/Richens family in Ogden. Dave, Suz, Alex, Kyle and Morgan Stoddard from Spokane, WA were down, so it was great to see them. But it was hot! The nice thing about having families that live near each other is that we get two Thanksgivings, two Christmases...we can usually work it out. We had a smashing BBQ at the Ryerse home that evening, and went to Davis High fireworks. That has got to be my favorite firework show. The fireworks are in sync with music that is playing, and it's always awesome. Last year, they did the song "Don't Worry Be Happy" and smiley face fireworks went off right when the lyrics said "be happy". This year, they did an Indiana Jones one that I particularly liked, along with the traditional patriotic songs. I'm kind of a sap, but I began tearing up a few times when some of these songs about our country played. Luckilly, no one saw! It's amazing how many great opportunities and freedoms we have by living here. This is a blessed land, and I am so overwhelmingly grateful for all we have!
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