We kept the grandson part of this weekend and when Pat and I and little Liam were riding around on Saturday we drove by several fireworks stands.
It’s hard not to drive by one as many as there are around and they’ve been selling fireworks for at least a couple of weeks already.
Liam, who will be 5 in August, brought up the subject a time or two as we passed by the stands.
Last year we had several family members here on July 4, we cooked out and we set off fireworks since we are out of the city limits and can.
Liam was old enough last year to be able to take the fireworks to his dad and the others who were setting them off.
Not sure exactly what our plans are going to be this year on the 4th since it’s Tuesday and that falls on a weekday.
When I was a kid growing up, July 4th was a big deal. You could still purchase cherry bombs, bottle rockets, M2’s, just all sorts of stuff. I, and some of my cousins, because Uncle Ed was gracious enough to take us, would go out to other relatives’ farms, away from the cattle, and shoot them off.
I look forward to July 4, even though it gets pretty noisy usually around our neighborhood.
Quite a few on our block shoot off fireworks.
A few in our neighborhood even have large gatherings.
What I probably like best about it is spending time with family and friends, cooking out at the house, and letting some of the other younger members of the family set off fireworks while enjoying watching the others do so.
In past years, we’ve had some of those large family gatherings, cooked out, I’ve even helped set off the fireworks while others on our block and in the neighborhood were setting off theirs.
We hadn’t done much of that setting them off in a few years until last year but we had a good time.
When our daughter Meghan was growing up, we purchased fireworks, even continued to do it until several years ago when, for whatever reason, we just stopped.
But now that Meghan and her husband Terry and the grandson are interested in doing some of that, it’s fun again.
Last year in addition to them, we had my sister Maureen and her husband Randy and their daughter Kara and her husband CJ and their son, Wayman, and really had a good time.
I hope we can possibly do that again this year whether it’s the day of or a day or two prior.
Hot dogs and hamburgers are pretty tasty on the 4th and it’s so enjoyable to have family around as we celebrate Independence Day once more.