Happy Birthday America!

Hope everyone had a great 4th of July whatever you did and wherever you celebrated.

I would have loved to be out in the RV but holidays are just too crowded and some of the celebrations get a little too wild so we celebrated at home.  First, we all headed up to Gruene. Steve and Cameron on one motorcycle and Dave on his bike with Helen, Morgan, and I in the car. Angus and Harley stayed home as it is just too hot to take them right now.

We had a relaxing visit at the Gruene Coffee Haus. Steve knows everyone there and they know him too. Grandpa Dave and the two grandkids went next door to the Toy Shop. They always enjoy walking through there.....it isn't just an ordinary toy shop, there are toys for everyone.

We headed home after a while and the kids and granddaughter got started on dinner. Helen had mentioned shrimp earlier which didn't really sound very 4th of Julyish but it turns out that it was only for an appetizer. The main meal was kabobs. Helen made the chicken and bacon kabobs.

Morgan was in charge of putting together the vegetable kabobs. I was in charge of watching and taking a few photos.

And then they were ready for the grill.

Steve took over the grilling job. It's great to have a daughter-in-law that likes to cook and a son that doesn't mind helping. I have been having a problem with tendonitous in both shoulders so it was especially nice.

The meal turned out to be absolutely delicious.

Later on in the evening, the kids and grandkids headed out to see the fireworks. Dave and I stayed home with Angus and Harley. Unfortunately, the fireworks at Ratama Park were not anywhere near as spectacular as these. Neither Angus or Harley are afraid of fireworks or thunderstorms. I just closed the doggy door so they wouldn't run in and out checking on the noise in the neighborhood.

Happy Birthday America

Fun on the Fourth!

We had an old fashioned hometown 4th of July that started with the parade.  This is the Jubilee year for Schertz and they always have parades anyway so it was a good one.  All the other local small towns right around here were represented too since they don't have their own parades.  First, there was a 5k run that started early and came in down the parade route right before the parade was due to start.  So the runners were treated to lots of cheers no matter what their place in line was.  You could tell from the big smiles of some of the "also rans" that they really appreciated the applause.  Next the parade led by the color guard from one of our local high schools.  We were on a corner near the beginning of the parade so sorry for all the wires.

The grand marshall in an old fire truck.

Clowns waving back at all the flags being waved.

Morgan was interested in the little car but Cameron had his eye on the motorcycle group coming up next.  I didn't get a photo but they did some fancy maneuvers on their big bikes.

Everybody gets in on the action in a local parade and HEB is a big sponsor of all the fun.

There are fancy floats too with princesses.

Hmmmm......the local RV dealer was there too towing a pop-up and a huge 5th wheel with no decorations.  Can we say blatant advertising????

Not sure where this old time police vehicle came from but it got lots of looks and waves.

There was a really nice showing of old cars all decked out with flags.

This princes was showing off her fancy sneakers with her dress.  All the kids were chanting "show us your shoes"....I guess it is a local thing.

And then there was a local Mustang club.

This pink was dancing the whole time and he really had some moves.

And, of course, it wouldn't be a Texas parade without the horses.  There were a lot of them, large and small,  some colts practicing their parade manners next to their mothers.  Some cute little ponies pulling carts.  Of course, the horses are always last.....I think you can guess why.

We were also celebrating birthdays.  It was a day early for Dave since he works this weekend....

and a month late for Helen since she was in Florida and the rest of us were in Texas.

I think he was thinking about his birthday wish.

Morgan is always ready to help open birthday presents.

And we rounded off the whole big day with the fireworks display.  My camera is a little slow for good shots of fireworks but it was a great show.

From all of us to you......hoping you had a great 4th of July celebration wherever you were for the day!

4th of July at Pier Park

Our 4th of July was just beginning.  The weather was looking rather "iffy" so we headed out to Pier Park in Panama City Beach to see a movie.  The kids were pretty excited to see "Madagascar 3".  It was pretty funny even for the adults.  The theater was full.  It was raining when we went into the theater but....the sun was shining when we came out.

We took a walk through Pier Park.  See the fountain turtles?

There were crowds of people doing the same thing as we were.

I think this girl thought I wanted to take a picture of her.......

but we were really checking out this cute little girl in the background.

Later on, back at the house, it was time to head out again to take in the fireworks.  The kids and grandkids walked over to the bridge across the bay to sit on the sidewalk part.  They shoot fireworks further along the bay so you can get a great view from there and don't have to deal with the traffic and parking.  I was exhausted so decided to stay home with the Traveling Longdogs; however, I went outside and discovered that I could see the fireworks from the street along the side of the house so I enjoyed them too without that walk over and back.

Hope you had a great 4th of July.

Happy 4th of July Lynn Haven FL Style

What do you do on the 4th of July in a small town?  Why, you go to the parade of course.  Steve was already back from a 30 mile bike ride but no one had eaten breakfast yet.  The parade started at 0900 so we had to hustle.  On with the clothes, bag up some cheerios for the kids, and pour the coffee.  We walked about 4 blocks over to where we could watch the parade.  The awning from this gas station gave us a little shade and no cars would be coming through while the parade was on as the roads were blocked.  Okay, bring it on, we are ready.

Okay, wave kids and they will throw you some beads.

In a small town parade, the floats are often unique.

And everyone including the local national guard unit can get in on the act.

The politicians are out in full force and candy get tossed to the kids and adults alike.

Lots of flags coming down the road here.

Lots of Shriners and other fraternal organizations are out to enjoy the day.

Here we have a small band.  Not too shabby either!

And what would a parade be without the little cars.

And lets not forget the little vans.

And some pirates sailing down the main road.

Morgan is showing off her "booty".  They each got a stash of candy too.

And then the little princess went by.  She had "the" wave perfected.

And our little princess was busy waving back at a float full of princesses.

Another band and candy was flying.  The kids also got flags from one of the politicians.

It must be the end because there are the horses and no one wants to march down the road after the horses even though they have a crew right behind them cleaning up.  Check out those clouds.  Yes, the rain held off until the very end of the parade.

We got a little wet walking home but it was a great way to start the 4th of July.  The sun came out just a short while later and we were off for the rest of the day.