Happy 4th of July

The Fourth of July is a holiday with many memories attached to it. Each year when it arrives I remember ones that stand out for me. Each year as a child my family would always go down to Liberty Park to watch the fireworks. We would park the car and walk by the polygamists' homes as we carried our pillows to the park. We would lay down on the grass and be in awe as the fireworks exploded over our heads.
Then in 1976 when the United States was 200 years old, I remember the huge power outage that affected almost the entire State of Utah. I just remember it being so hot and we didn't even have power to listen to our favorite tunes on the radio as we hung out!
Then when I got married and moved to Seattle, it seemed that I always had to work the night shift on the 4th. I would drive from our apartment in North Seattle and pass the Seattle Center just as the fireworks were going off over Puget Sound. It was beautiful.
After moving to Murray, new traditions started. It became necessary to attend the Murray Parade which goes down State Street. It started out that either Harold or I would go down at about 6:00 a.m. to save a spot. Over the years the time has gotten earlier and earlier until the kids started sleeping at Harold's office and get up early and go save our seats. This year only Brandon and Blake would sleep at the office and we set our chairs out at 8:30 p.m. last night. Some years Gwen has been in the parade, but always there are people we know in the parade that we shout at and they throw us more candy! Some years Harold's parents have joined us and this year Harold's brother and his family joined us for the fun. It would not feel like the 4th of July without the parade.

Most years we have a picnic dinner at my sister's home. We then watch the fireworks from her backyard. The pyromaniacs of the family light off fireworks in her driveway. This year we missed that party to be with Harold's brother before he is deployed again. We are grateful to him and others in the military like him that make this world a safer place and help maintain the wonderful freedoms we enjoy. We pray for their protection and well-being.
I feel so blessed to live in this great country. I am grateful for those who went before and have sacrificed so much that me and my family can enjoy all the blessings that come with living here in the United States. I look forward to celebrating many more 4th of Julys in the future.

I was also glad that Ben was able to join us for the celebration!