The 4th

I'm back tracking a bit (was the 4th of July really almost three weeks ago?) but I wanted to share a bit about our Independence Day weekend. On the 4th we spent the afternoon and evening with our delightful neighbors. These dear folks are some of the most generous hearted people I have ever met and I hope that I can be just like them when I grow up. They have a lovely garden and are always inviting the neighbors over to pick tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, okra, etc. because they say that they will never eat it all. Every time we turn around they are doing some good deed for us. They have kept Sonora for us, patched a tire, recommended mechanics, landscapers, doctors, etc.- just wonderful folks! They have 5 horses, 2 cats, 5 kittens, 1 dog, and 4 children (1 set of twins). They are trying to convince us that Sonora needs a kitten or two but I am refusing that bit of generosity.

So back to the 4th. We celebrated with our neighbors by swimming in their pool, grilling hamburgers and hotdogs and shooting off the largest home fireworks show I have ever seen. And did Sonora get scared by all the noise and smoke? No-sir-ee, she squealed when the bottle rockets screeched, cheered when the pretty ones went off, and clapped at every spark. She was precious and we had so much fun! She loves the neighbor kids and in between the lighting of the fuses she rolled around with the kids on the blanket. 

It was a fun and relaxing day but I do not want to lose sight of the fact that we were celebrating the birth of our nation, blessed by God. Ever since marrying a military officer my views on all patriotic holidays have completely evolved. Instead of a trite "thank you" regarding the founding fathers and all service members, I remember the feeling of sending your husband off to war and the nauseous feeling I still get every time I learn of the death of another soldier. I am not a hero, our hardship of Jon's deployment was so small compared to the continual sacrifices of so many others.  I only mention this to say that I feel deeply and intensely grateful for the lives and courage of those who founded our nation and for those who continue to carry out its vision. 

Back to the weekend. On Sunday we went to Church and then headed down to Atlanta to meet up with our friends, the Pattons. Jon and Eric became good friends while at pilot training and the wives and kids have become friends because they (the Patton family) are wonderful people and easy to enjoy! Lauren is two and Kaitlyn is just three months younger than Sonora. We had so much fun wading in the river that ran through the park and we almost busted a gut laughing as Lauren was chased in circles by this adorable tiny puppy who kept trying to nip at her undies and pull them down (the dress had gotten wet in the river and was drying out in the sun). The puppy was successful once and left Lauren with tiny teeth marks in her pantaloons which were around her knees and the rest of us holding our bellies laughing so hard. Sonora and Kaitlyn were fascinated with each other and spent a good part of the visit just checking each other out. It was so cute to listen as they started mimicking the noises made by the other one. It was also the first time that I have ever seen Sonora get jealous that someone else had her toy. She didn't fuss about it, she just took it back. *Sigh, maybe that will be the only time that will ever happen.....

We all had dinner at my favorite Chinese restaurant in America (the really good stuff is still in China) and then topped it off with dessert to go from the Cheesecake Factory. A wonderful day with friends filled with fun new memories and a great way to wrap up this special weekend.