Happy 4th of July!

To all my United States readers, I sincerely hope that your 4th of July holiday was as fantastic as mine. Yes, many of us think of the 4th of July as picnics, time with family, parades, fireworks, and of course, a holiday from work. The 4th is that too, but let us all remember, 234 years ago this country declared its independence from Great Britain. We may not be perfect as a people or as a country, but America has always overcome adversity and become a better country for it.

Today was a time to forget about the things that trouble us as a country and individually. Today was a time to celebrate and just enjoy being with family and friends.

I spent the day at Keuka Lake, one of the Finger Lakes that western New York State is famous for. My son, John's in-laws, Sue and Gerry, have a home on the lake and I was invited to spend the day there, along with Michael and Marisa (my other son, John's twin, and daughter in law), John, Jen, and my grandsons, Kevin, Jake and Andrew, Jen's brother, Brett, and his family, wife, Lindsey, and children, Caitlin, and Stephen.

A couple of years ago, the cousins, Kevin, Jake, Andrew, Caitlin, and Stephen, began having a parade on the 4th of July. From it's humble beginnings, today it mushroomed into quite an affair! Below are pictures from this wonderful day.



Kevin paddling a kayak along the shoreline.




Hanging out on the trampoline in the water.




The cousins! They are all wearing shirts that say CC (Camp Cousins).





Now we get to the parade pictures! That's Gerry driving the tractor with "Keukie the Lake Monster" and kids behind!




Now this is the amazing part, folks. I told you earlier, this "parade" idea the cousins had a couple of years ago, until now had been just a short "walk" down the Lake Rd and neighbors would come out and wave. But THIS YEAR!!! Drum roll, please! One of the neighbors, who is a fireman, found and restored a vintage 1955 firetruck, from the year he was born,. . . his wife claims it is the "other woman in her life". He brought it to the parade, and believe me when I tell you, kids and adults came out of the woodwork to see this masterpiece! "Who wants to ride in the back?", he asked and kids and adults vied for a spot on it! Really!. . . And I don't mind telling you, once this parade got going, I jumped on the back end and loved every minute of the ride up the road with the bell clanging and the siren going and people everywhere staring in wonder!



Even Bingo, the dog, got in on the act!

It was truly a magnificent day and I am grateful to Sue and Gerry for inviting me to share their day.