Independence Day! Celebrating 4th of July!

4th of July with family and friends. A perfect way to celebrate Independence Day.

The morning of July 4th, 2012 began with parade preparations in Junction City OR. with my friends from the Damsels in Disguise, 40 Something Cowgirls. Seven cowgirls brought their horses to the staging location and two, including me, cowgirls were there to help the other cowgirls and their horses and children. Mary Trummer and I rode in the back of the pick-up truck with 5 girls, waving and throwing candy. This parade is very much about the candy that is thrown to the spectators. People came with bags and grocery sacks to collect the candy being thrown. They were barking at the truck as it went by, "Throw candy!" Mary and I kept warning the girls that the parade was long and not to throw too much of the candy at the beginning of the parade, but they had a hard time resisting the demands of the candy hungry crowd. We did run out of candy about a block before the end of the parade at which time we heard rude comments from the greedy spectators, "Cheap-scapes!" One of our girls decided to chant, "We ran out of candy, throw us your candy and we'll throw it back to you!". We were surprised when a few people actually did throw candy to the girls, who in turn threw it back to them, with a lot of laughing a giggling!

This photo is of Dianna Chappell, Teresa Nielson and me.

I loved spending the evening with my family in Salem Oregon. My little granddaughter Ruby had about as much tolerance for the loud, smokey fireworks as I did. After reaching our saturation point, an hour or so before anybody else did, we watched the colorful fireworks from inside the house by the window. One of the especially pretty fireworks had sparkles and firey fountains, I said, "Ohhh, that one's pretty!" Ruby replied, "Pretty like Nana Laura". Could anything melt my heart faster than that? How can a little two year girl know how precious that comment was?

I said, "And pretty like Ruby!"