Independence Day 2017
09 July 2017
Independence Day has long been my favorite holiday. I love the coming-togetherness of Americans that day, unlike any other day which usually divides us and keeps us, at least in these latter years, at a heightened sense of all our differences. On July 4th, everyone is an American. Aside from that: fireworks. I love them. We opted not to go this year, for reasons that include our dogs and chickens (we have chickens!! more on them in another post) and all the animals' well-being, so we had to come up with some other fun ways to spend the day. And that, we did!
For starters, Jack had a sleepover camp-out in the backyard with his friend, D. They ended up in a vastly different location in the yard from where they started, so who knows went on in the night? But they had a good time, so that's all that matters.
Also, there was pie for breakfast! This one was the cherry pie, from freshly grown, local cherries. Super amazingly delicious. I got it from this recipe on AllRecipes.com (using this recipe for the crust).
But why stop at one pie? We had to have apple, too! I made homemade whipped cream for the cherry pie, but I ducked out while the apple pie (from this recipe) was baking, to get some BOGO pints of Häagen-Dazs vanilla ice cream. All the recipes for dessert-for-breakfast were winners which I'll have to make again someday.
As everyone was showering and getting ready for the next phase of our day, I put on an imPRESS manicure set from this collection. I love these nail sets for two reasons: They're inexpensive, and I'm a cheap bastard frugal mom; and also, they don't last that long, so I don't have to commit to having longer nail than I am used to with my own non-growing ones. I really can't stand long nails, but I like the look on my hands, so this is just right for me. Anyway, enough about the informercial... ;)
When everyone was ready, we headed to the movies to see Despicable Me 3. It was mildly amusing, and of course those Minions kept trying to steal the show. The kids laughed a ton, which made Mom happy. Money not wasted!
Returning home from the movie, we grabbed D again and did some Pop-Its out in the driveway. The kids seem to like them more than my old favorite, sparklers, so I deferred to their preferences this year. Observe:
They get a charge out of throwing a whole handful down at once. Meh. It's like gunpowder-meets-bubble wrap for me, and at 40 years of age, I guess I no longer see the appeal of either more than the odd rare occasion.
The goofballs and their Jolly Rancher popsicles... funny thing about those pops! Chloe had been wanting to try them for quite a while, but since I'm, uh, frugal, I didn't want to spend the money. Finally, for the holiday, I bent to her desires. And guess what? NONE of the kids really even liked them! Ha. Well, that settles that.
Later on in the evening, since we weren't going out the fireworks show, I decided to break out all the 4th of July glow sticks and such. My family know that I am always trying to get them to do ridiculous things for the camera, and usually they don't play along too well. That day, they did! I love this photo!
Enjoy the show!
Happy birthday, America!
Fin.